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Zimbabwe's Cultural Heritage won first prize in the Zimbabwe Book Publishers Association Awards in 2006 for Non-fiction: Humanities and Social Sciences. It is a collection of pieces of the culture of the Ndebele, Shona, Tonga, Kalanga, Nambiya, Xhosa and Venda. The book gives the reader an insight into the world view of different peoples, through descriptions of their history and life events such as pregnancy, marriage and death. "...the most enduring book ever on Zimbabwean history. This book will help people change their attitude towards each other in Zimbabwe." - Zimbabwe Book Publishers Association Awards citation ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! African art constitutes one of the most diverse legacies on earth. Though many casual observers tend to generalize "traditional" African art, the continent is full of peoples, societies, and civilizations, each with a unique visual special culture. The definition also includes the art of the African Diasporas, such as the art of African Americans.Despite this diversity, there are some unifying artistic themes when considering the totality of the visual culture from the continent of Africa. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Warning
Culture this book to grow many smelly bacteria.Get it?Culture? Culture? Ha! I laugh so much at my jokes.

Very poor value for money here.BIG price for Wikipedia downloads.If Kama exists, the three "editors" will be edited out of the earth's biosphere. Pleae do not fund evil.

Ha!The eds laugh if you purchase.Ha! ... Read more

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A witch's curse, an imperialist conspiracy, a racist plot—HIV/AIDS is a catastrophic health crisis with complex cultural dimensions. From small villages to the international system, explanations of where it comes from, who gets it, and who dies are tied to political agendas, religious beliefs, and the psychology of devastating grief. Frequently these explanations conflict with science and clash with prevention and treatment programs. In Witches, Westerners, and HIV Alexander Rödlach draws on a decade of research and work in Zimbabwe to compare beliefs about witchcraft and conspiracy theories surrounding HIV/AIDS in Africa. He shows how both types of beliefs are part of a process of blaming others for AIDS, a process that occurs around the globe but takes on local, culturally specific forms. He also demonstrates the impact of these beliefs on public health and advocacy programs, arguing that cultural misunderstandings contribute to the failure of many well-intentioned efforts. This insightful book provides a cultural perspective essential for everyone interested in AIDS and cross-cultural health issues. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An absolute "must-read" for any health care or other professionals seeking to learn lessons from tragic failures of the past
Written by anthropologist and former missionary working in Zimbabwe Alexander Rodlach , Witches, Westerners, and HIV: Aids & Cultures of Blame in Africa is a serious-minded examination of cultural and social beliefs that give rise to harmful conspiracy theories and sometimes pose seemingly intractable barriers against attempts to prevent HIV/AIDS in the nation of Zimbabwe. Though Zimbabwe culture is the primary focus, the general insights of Witches, Westerners, and HIV are no doubt applicable to most if not all African nations suffering from the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Witches, Westerners, and HIV dissects cultural misunderstandings at length, from cultural beliefs in sorcery (including the idea that sorcerers use the power to spread HIV/AIDS) that provide an explanation for why the terrible disease afflicts good people; to the history of harm caused by colonialism as motivation for conspiracy theories that Western institutions are withholding a cure for HIV/AIDS or actually spreading HIV/AIDS by "distributing infected condoms" and the like; to the massacres the government carried out against perceived dissidents that have left lingering fear against speaking freely; to the need for receptive listening when interviewing Zimbabweans due to cultural tendencies to speak in metaphorical terms. An absolute "must-read" for any health care or other professionals seeking to learn lessons from tragic failures of the past and better understand how to be effective in African nations in general and Zimbabwe in particular. Highly recommended. ... Read more

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Review on "Islands of White"
In his study, "Islands of White," Dane Kennedy offers a novel perspective on the social dynamics of white settler colonies in imperialist Africa.Kennedy convincingly illustrates how these white societies wereable to create a distinct and unified culture.Presenting a newinterpretation of white settler society, Kennedy analytically demonstrateshow the social identity of white colonists was radically recast toaccommodate their special circumstances.Kennedy's study is of longlasting importance to the field of African history because it reveals thepowerful dynamics of solidarity within colonial societies whichconsequently enabled them to create and maintain a system of dominationover the indigenous African population.While the majority ofhistorians have primarily focused on the social divisions within thesettler populations, Kennedy asserts that economic, ethnic, and social differences were secondary to the overriding need for unification.Kennedyremains balanced in his approach by conceding that a certain amount ofsocial friction within the colonies cannot be denied.Yet, he alsosustains that the preoccupation of Marxist historians with the internalfissures of white society neglects to appreciate the external strength ofthe community. Through an analysis of the particular experiences faced bywhite settlers, Kennedy portrays how white settler society was not simply atransfer or replication of European national traits onto colonial societyin Africa.He holds, "this was the distinguishing feature of the settlerculture: not in the cherished values of the settlers' European heritage,but in the centripetal forces that distorted that heritage by securing itagainst all change."(192)To further establish this claim, the authoreffectively applies knowledge of social psychology to interpret and explainthe pathological behavior of the white settlers. Kennedy's compelling argument is fully supported through his analyticalutilization of many sources and statistical evidence.The extensive use ofwell documented private and official manuscripts further validate Kennedy'spersuasive argument.Unlike many documents on colonialism, the volumeappears to be written without prejudice and without reference to apreconceived view of determents. While historically solid, Kennedy's workbrings a fresh, unbiased insight to the inner workings and far-reachingimpact of white settler colonists. As Kennedy has firmly established inhis study, "Islands of White," settler culture was the expressionof the white community's delicately held position of dominance in the orderof imperial Africa.In order to maintain this dominance, white settlersexerted strong social power to shape and control their identity andposition.The significance of Kennedy's book is in its illustration of thepower group solidarity can have in shaping a community and its neighbors. ... Read more

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Chapters: Doris Lessing, Labia Elongation, Dance in Zimbabwe, Rhodie, Shebeen, National Anthem of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Bird, Tsoro Yematatu, Shava Totem, Jairos Jiri Association, N'anga, Zhing-Zhong, Rhodie Bar, Small House, Public Holidays in Zimbabwe, National Arts Council of Zimbabwe. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 64. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Doris May Lessing CH, OBE (née Tayler; born 22 October 1919) is an Iranian-born British writer, author of works such as the novels The Grass is Singing and The Golden Notebook. In 2007, Lessing won the Nobel Prize in Literature. She was described by the Swedish Academy as "that epicist of the female experience, who with scepticism, fire and visionary power has subjected a divided civilisation to scrutiny". Lessing was the eleventh woman and the oldest person ever to win the Literature Prize. In 2001, Lessing was awarded the David Cohen Prize for a lifetime's achievement in British Literature. In 2008, The Times ranked her fifth on a list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945". Lessing was born in Iran, then known as Persia, on 22 October 1919, to Captain Alfred Tayler and Emily Maude Tayler (née McVeagh), who were both English and of British nationality. Her father, who had lost a leg during his service in World War I, met his future wife, a nurse, at the Royal Free Hospital where he was recovering from his amputation. Alfred Tayler and his wife moved to Kermanshah, Iran, in order to take up a job as a clerk for the Imperial Bank of Persia and it was here that Doris was born in 1919. The family then moved to the British colony of Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in 1925 to farm maize, when her father purchased around one thousand acres of bush. Lessing's mother attempted to lead an Edwardian life style amidst the rough envi...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=88893 ... Read more

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From Enslavement to Environmentalismtakes a challenging ethnographic and historical look at the politics of ecodevelopment in the Zimbabwe-Mozambiqueborder zone. David Hughes argues that European colonization in southern Africa has profoundly reshaped rural politics and culture and continues to do so, as neoliberal developers commoditize the lands of African peasants in the name of conservation and economic progress.

Hughes builds his engaging analysis around a sort of natural experiment: in the past, whites colonized British Zimbabwe but avoided Portuguese Mozambique almost entirely. In Zimbabwe, chiefdoms that had historically focused on controlling people began to follow the English example of consolidating political power by dividing and controlling land. Meanwhile, in Mozambique, Portugal perpetuated traditional practices of recruiting and distributing forced labor as the primary means of securing power. For almost the entire twentieth century, a sharp disjuncture in the politics of land, leadership, labor, and resource use marked the border zone.

In the late 1990s, white South Africans began to establish timber plantations in Mozambique, and that difference began to be effaced. Under the banner of environmentalism and economic progress, tourism firms were allowed to claim peasant farmland. Likewise, southern African policymakers supported this new form of colonization as a form of racial integration between white investors and black peasants, paving the way for an ironic and contentious situation in which ethnic tolerance, gentrification, and land-grabbing have gone hand in hand. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Anthropology, development policy and cultural challenges
Ecodevelopment on the Zimbabwe-Mozambique border area takes on social, political and cultural challenges - and David Hughes argues here that European colonization in Southern Africa has attempted to reshape the area into another Western entity, changing culture and politics in its efforts, which continue to modern day. Using a natural experiment in the region as an example, Hughes chronicles evolving politics in the region in an area where tourism firms were allowed to claim peasant farmlands: chapters delve into anthropology, development policy and cultural challenges in the course of exploring causes and effects.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
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This digital document is an article from African Studies Quarterly, published by Thomson Gale on September 22, 2003. The length of the article is 8040 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Narratives on land: state-peasant relations over fast track land reform in Zimbabwe.
Author: Bevlyne Sithole
Publication: African Studies Quarterly (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2003
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 7Issue: 2-3Page: NA

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more