Abina and the Important Men: A Graphic History

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Overview


Abina and the Important Men is a compelling and powerfully illustrated "graphic history" based on an 1876 court transcript of a West African woman named Abina, who was wrongfully enslaved and took her case to court. The book is a microhistory that does much more than simply depict an event in the past; it uses the power of illustration to convey important themes in world history and to reveal the processes by which history is made.

The story of Abina Mansah--a woman "without history" who was wrongfully enslaved, escaped to British-controlled territory, and then took her former master to court--takes place in the complex world of the Gold Coast at the ...

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Overview


Abina and the Important Men is a compelling and powerfully illustrated "graphic history" based on an 1876 court transcript of a West African woman named Abina, who was wrongfully enslaved and took her case to court. The book is a microhistory that does much more than simply depict an event in the past; it uses the power of illustration to convey important themes in world history and to reveal the processes by which history is made.

The story of Abina Mansah--a woman "without history" who was wrongfully enslaved, escaped to British-controlled territory, and then took her former master to court--takes place in the complex world of the Gold Coast at the onset of late nineteenth-century colonialism. Slavery becomes a contested ground, as cultural practices collide with an emerging wage economy and British officials turn a blind eye to the presence of underpaid domestic workers in the households of African merchants. The main scenes of the story take place in the courtroom, where Abina strives to convince a series of "important men"--a British judge, two Euro-African attorneys, a wealthy African country "gentleman," and a jury of local leaders--that her rights matter. "Am I free?" Abina inquires. Throughout both the court case and the flashbacks that dramatically depict her life in servitude, these men strive to "silence" Abina and to impose their own understandings and meanings upon her. The story seems to conclude with the short-term success of the "important men," as Abina loses her case. But it doesn't end there: Abina is eventually redeemed. Her testimony is uncovered in the dusty archives by Trevor Getz and, through Liz Clarke's illustrations, becomes a graphic history read by people around the world. In this way, the reader takes an active part in the story along with the illustrator, the author, and Abina herself.

Following the graphic history in Part I, Parts II-V provide detailed historical context for the story, a reading guide that reconstructs and deconstructs the methods used to interpret the story, and strategies for using Abina in various classroom settings.

Click the following links to see sample pages from the book:

Sample page 1

Sample page 2

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780199844395
  • Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
  • Publication date: 9/2/2011
  • Edition description: New Edition
  • Pages: 208
  • Sales rank: 160,180
  • Product dimensions: 7.00 (w) x 9.90 (h) x 0.70 (d)

Meet the Author

Trevor R. Getz is Professor of History at San Francisco State University. He is the author of Modern Imperialism and Colonialism: A Global Perspective (2010) and Slavery and Reform in West Africa (2004). He is also the editor for the new Oxford University Press series, African World Histories, the first volumes of which will appear in 2012.

Liz Clarke is a professional artist and graphic designer based in Cape Town, South Africa.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Part I: The graphic history

Part II: The transcript

Part III: Historical context The Gold Coast, c.1876
The British Civilizing Mission The Civilizing Mission in the Gold Coast Slavery in the Gold Coast The Atlantic Slave Trade and Abolition Abina Mansah and the Important Men

Part IV: Reading guide Whose Story is This?
Level One: A staircase of voices Level 2: Silences Level 3: Representation and Translation Is this a "true" story?
Level 1: Reconstructing Abina's story Level 2: Deconstructing the courtroom transcript Level 3: Reconstructing Abina's "truths" or constructing our own?
Is this "authentic" history?
Level 1: Local forms of history-telling Level 2: The personal and the collective authentic Level 3: History as a forum or a temple

Part IV: Abina in the classroom Abina for the world history classroom Abina for the African history/African studies classroom Abina and colonialism Abina and the history of slavery Gendering Abina's story

Reading questions Introductory questions, for students at all levels Questions for students at the university or college level Additional questions for advanced undergraduate and graduate students Timeline of Events Further Resources Abina Mansah Slavery and Abolition on the Gold Coast About Colonialism and the Gold Coast General histories of Africa Imperialism and Colonialism Gender and African History Web Resources Glossary

List of maps and images
1) Location of Gold Coast, 16th-18th century
2) Language distribution in Ghana today
3) Asante c. 1700
4) Asante and the Gold Coast in the 1870s, showing sites of Abina Mansah's enslavement
5) Page of transcript from Regina v. Quamina Eddoo Further readings

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  • Posted February 17, 2012

    more from this reviewer

    Courageous Gold Coast Girl's Inspirational Illustrated History

    Readers will be captivated and inspired by this graphic page-turner of a young African girl's trial in Africa's Gold Coast. While Albina's experience of being separated from family and friends early in life and sold to a series of slave owners was not unusual in 1876 Ghana, it was extraordinary that Albina not only escaped captivity but subsequently brought her slave owner to trial. Fascinating aspects of Gold Coast daily life, social customs and political dynamics are presented as part of this true life story that educates all levels of readers while being exceptionally entertaining.

    Authors Trevor Getz and Liz Clarke have created an artistic and historical tour de force that succeeds both as a beautifully illustrated graphic novel and a comprehensive all-in-one teaching guide. The graphic illustrations depict emotional tension and conflict so realistically that the illustrated first half of this book will likely be read in one sitting. Several additional sections in this book provide aspiring forensic historians with just the right amount of background explanation and insight, so as to encourage development of a more discerning eye and mindset. Getz explains the scholarly process of constructing and deconstructing narratives from the past with such zest as to stimulate discussions about how one might recognize many examples of reading with and "against the grain" in order to see both what a person was trying to convey and what they were unintentionally communicating.

    Abina and the Important Men is highly recommended for anyone interested in the history of 19th century African Gold Coast, historical relationships between England and Africa, gender studies, how history is interpreted, and the topic of slavery.

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