European Literature's Image of Africa

The last four or five hundred years of European contact with Africa produced a body of literature that presented Africa in a very bad light and Africans in very lurid terms. The reason for this had to do with the need to justify the slave trade and slavery. Chinua Achebe

Interpretation

This quote highlights the historical distortion and negative portrayal of Africa and Africans in literature produced during the era of European colonialism. It asserts that the purpose of such portrayals was to rationalize and legitimize the exploitation of African people through the transatlantic slave trade and slavery. It underscores the manipulative nature of colonial narratives and their detrimental effects on Africa's image.

Note: This interpretation is our opinion. We encourage you to agree, disagree, or provide an alternate interpretation.