HSY2602 PORTFOLIO 2026
DUE 13 MAY 2026
MY TOPIC
Acculturation was the only response by Africans to imperial domination. Do you
agree with this statement? Substantiate your answer with examples drawn from
various territories in Africa that came under European rule.
The statement that “acculturation was the only response by Africans to imperial
domination” is far too simple. Acculturation the process of adopting the culture and
values of a dominant power certainly did happen among some Africans, but it was
neither the only nor the most important reaction. Colonial rule in Africa, which took
shape rapidly between the 1880s and the early 1900s, was a deeply unequal and often
brutal system. Africans responded in many different ways, depending on their local
circumstances, their precolonial political structures, and their own human choices.
These responses ranged from active armed resistance, to political accommodation
through traditional leaders, to religious movements blending old and new, and to
economic adaptation by peasant farmers. This essay will argue that to say acculturation
was the only response is to ignore the rich variety of African agency during the colonial
period. The discussion will focus on examples drawn from West, East, and Central
Africa.
DUE 13 MAY 2026
MY TOPIC
Acculturation was the only response by Africans to imperial domination. Do you
agree with this statement? Substantiate your answer with examples drawn from
various territories in Africa that came under European rule.
The statement that “acculturation was the only response by Africans to imperial
domination” is far too simple. Acculturation the process of adopting the culture and
values of a dominant power certainly did happen among some Africans, but it was
neither the only nor the most important reaction. Colonial rule in Africa, which took
shape rapidly between the 1880s and the early 1900s, was a deeply unequal and often
brutal system. Africans responded in many different ways, depending on their local
circumstances, their precolonial political structures, and their own human choices.
These responses ranged from active armed resistance, to political accommodation
through traditional leaders, to religious movements blending old and new, and to
economic adaptation by peasant farmers. This essay will argue that to say acculturation
was the only response is to ignore the rich variety of African agency during the colonial
period. The discussion will focus on examples drawn from West, East, and Central
Africa.
