Benjamin Franklin vs. Olaudah Equiano (African)/ Comparative Autobiographies
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A 5 page paper that compares the autobiographies of Benjamin Franklin and Olaudah Equiano. This paper considers the way in which each many writes about their cultures, society considerations, and difficult problems in America and Africa. Franklin's authobiography is set in the context of U.S. history, while Equiano's is based in the historical perspective of European and American slave trade. No additional sources cited.
Filename: Equiano.wps

Maya Angelou/All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes
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A 5 page analysis of All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes by Maya Angelou, which is the fifth volume in her serial autobiography. This volume is an account of Angelou's experiences in Ghana in the early 1960s. This narrative relates how Angelou found a job teaching at the University of Ghana and began working as an editor. While the narrative naturally includes the details of where Angelou worked, and the major details of her life, the motivating force behind the book is how Angelou worked to relate emotionally to Ghana and her African heritage. No additional sources cited.
Filename: 99agcnts.rtf

Aids in Zimbabwe
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6 pages in length. Zimbabwe is in the midst of one of the most serious AIDS epidemics in the world. This paper takes a look at the AIDS in Zimbabwe, sex education in their schools, and government programs, all of which are trying to slow the spread of this deadly disease. Bibliography lists 5 sources.
Filename: JGAaidsz.wps

Symbolism in African Art
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A 6 page paper which examines the definition of symbolism in African art through masks and other three-dimensional work. Bibliography lists 5 sources.
Filename: BBafrart.rtf

'Heart of Darkness' and 'An Image of Africa'
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3 pages in length. Authors Joseph Conrad and Chinua Achebe take us on emotional journeys into their works. The writer describes the talent with which these two authors transport us into their world. We read about the real people of Africa, their emotions and sometimes violent tendencies in their daily survival. These are books about real life; while the characters may be fictional, one infers from the emotions that drive both authors that most of these things have happened or could easily happen and are not simply fantasy. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Filename: JGAacheb.wps

!Kung San: Cultural Change
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5 pages in length. Before the white man's social infiltration, the !Kung San were a nomadic people content to live their lives without any of the modern conveniences so readily associated with many parts of the world; in fact, there was little knowledge beyond their immediate villages as to what technological advancement actually meant. Theirs was a simple yet satisfying hunter/gatherer lifestyle perpetuated generation after generation with no external intrusion or forced cultural assimilation – until the white man arrived. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Filename: TLCKung2.rtf

!Kung San: Environmental Degradation
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14 pages in length. The !Kung San of Namibia have endured a lifetime of struggle and strife, much of which has been at the hands of colonization. After being forced to abandon their traditional way of life and become dependent upon government handouts, Bushmen – whose practice of hunting and gathering has long been an important part of the ecosystem for thousands of years – have yet another catastrophic issue to deal with that threatens their very survival: environmental degradation. Bibliography lists 17 sources.
Filename: TLC!Kung.rtf

"Dancing Skeletons": A Review of the Book by Catherine Dettwyler
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A 5 page review of the ethnographic account of fieldwork in medical anthropology. Working among malnourished children in West Africa Dettwyler experienced both professional and personal insight. Although sometimes criticized for her subjective approach to her subject, in reality Dettwyler provides both a a touching human account and a valuable ethnography. Her approach to death as "the ultimate illness", however, is one which is unfortunate. This paper points out that death is in fact a natural component of life. To view death as an ultimate illness is to regard death, a phase which we must all pass through, as a personal and medical failure. No additional sources are listed.
Filename: PPskeltn.wps

"Fantasia" by Assia Djebar
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This 7 page paper discusses the French colonization of Algeria; colonization in general; and reviews the book "Fantasia" by Assia Djebar, an Algerian. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Filename: HVFantsa.rtf

"Land Of A Thousand Hills: My Life In Rwanda" – Synopsis
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3 pages in length. To leave the lap of luxury founded upon status and money for a life filled with political strife and social corrosion is not a choice many people would make, however Rosamond Halsey Carr is not like most people. The New Jersey socialite, whose career in fashion design helped establish her as one of the city's most prominent citizens, tried to rekindle the long-dormant passion in her marriage by accompanying her husband and famous big game hunter, Kenneth Carr, back to where he left his heart: Africa. Having little idea what to expect and even less understanding of how this one decision would forever change her life, Halsey Carr stepped into an utterly foreign existence void of status, money and sometimes even the basics of survival in order to answer a calling from her own heart. Kenneth and Rosamond may never have found what it was they went in search of to restore their relationship, however, she found within herself what it was that haunted her since childhood. No additional sources cited.
Filename: TLCRwanda.rtf

"Zan Boko"
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This 3 page report discusses the 1988 movie Zan Boko. Director and writer Gaston Kaboré explores the impact of modern society on the lives and development of a traditional African people and their lifestyle. He also considers the ways in which an agrarian, subsistence society is forced into becoming an industrialized, commodity economy and an oral culture into a mass media culture. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Filename: BWzanbok.rtf

(The) Hanging Gardens of Babylon
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A short, 3 page discussion of the Hanging Gardens of Bablyon, their story & features. Focus is upon what makes them one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Bibliography lists 6 sources.
Filename: Gardenba.rtf