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RELEVANCE OF THE DOMESTICATION THEORY TO THE DEVELOPMENT IN HUMAN SOCIETIES AND IN REFERENCE TO THE EVOLUTION THEORY.

The concept of the evolution theory as propounded by Charles R. Darwin (1809- 1882) and Alfred R. Wallace (1823- 1913) asserts the idea that, animals change slowly from one kind to another. Darwin called this theory “the survival of the fittest.” Changes in animal life are unnoticed as its evolution happens too slowly. As surroundings constantly keep changing, those that adapt to the environment will survive at the expense of others. Noted in his theory is the claim that man evolved from a small tree- dwelling ape in the Central African forest some 25,000,000 years ago called the Proconsul. From a deep ravine in Tanzania called the Olduvai Gorge, a ground ape which walked upright called Australopithecus emerged. With their remains have been found primitive tools made out of bone and stone, used to kill and skin animals with, and so added meat to the berries, nuts and insects which their tree cousins fed on.

This amazing phenomenon raced through the centuries with the emergence of the ape- man; the early humans called the Neanderthals, who were one and half meters tall, with heavy face and powerful jaws, thick eye brows and sloping forehead who lived in cold climatic regions during the days of the mammoth; and eventually our own ancestor, who bears our name Homo sapiens. Some scientists named him Cro- Magnon man after a place in France where he lived, about 30,000 years ago. He had much more human face, noble forehead and pointed chin, and a better brain. He also grew taller and was far superior in his handiwork. He made beautiful weapons and tools out of bone and stone. Was also a fine artist, famous for his cave paintings and carvings, which were found in a cave at Lascaux, France, by two school boys. The stages in the evolution theory are four. Which are from Australopithecus- Homo erectus or Pithecanthropus- Neanderthal man and the Cro- Magnon man.

Gradually, after thousands of years roaming about as hunters, early men began to settle down in one place. They rarely go hunting in the wild but rather to tame such animals for domestic purposes- ploughing, and carting of foodstuffs. These animals were allowed to mate to increase offspring. In time man lost his robustness and dangerous expeditions. They now have a highly developed brain and so confront issues rationally and not with coercion. 

The need to become domesticated explains the development in human societies. This is premised on the proviso that (thanks to evolution) as man and his surroundings constantly kept changing and his brains also thinking rationally, he sought to devise means to make his living conditions better. They built homes, tamed animals, and grew crops. Man was turning into a farmer. The oldest trace of such a farming village lies under the walls of the ancient city of Jericho, and is 8000 years old. At long last man had reached the Neolithic or New Stone Age. It was the dawn of civilization, leading into history.

Following the advent of metal and the discovery of fire, man was now able to manufacture implements to help increase farm yields. They warmed themselves with the fire against cold climate prevailing at the time. The invention and successful use of metals dates back to antiquity- the Bronze and Iron Age, an era where men warred against each other for power and territories. Chariots, swords, spears, bow and arrow, are among those weapons used in warfare.

Man also had to depend on neighbours near and far. This interdependence on each other was due to limited resources. Rational choices had to be made in order to maximize satisfaction and economic gains, a period known as Barter Trading- the exchange of goods agreed on by interested partners. However, some people felt cheated during the exchange process. In resolving this man devised the use of currency which could circulate, had several denominations, and still maintained the value of the selling commodity.

Today man can boast of success in the field of health/medicine, for he has been able to make advances in research to find appropriate drugs to treat diseases. He has also composed music to entertain himself, and dirges to mourn their dead. To ease long and tiring journeys he invented the automobile; put up magnificent structures, constructed roads, devised interactive mediums like the radio, television and the internet, all in a bid to better life since he is no longer a homeless wanderer but a rational being who has settled down. His inquisitive mind about climatic changes and effects of cosmic entities on nature has propelled him to venture into space, the moon.

Because of the changes in environment and events, man will always strive to find remedies to problems that are bound to occur. The reason has been that man is interested in arts and learning, coming up with arithmetic for mathematical calculations, and using scientific knowledge to explain phenomenon rather than acting on commonsense.

Domestication of man has brought impressive developments into his society. Evolution’s effect is still prevalent today as peoples past actions or lives are changed to embrace more positive attitudes and purposeful ambitions in life. There’s therefore an even greater hope of man’s advances in the untapped circles of life. This is the true essence of domestication and it’s marvelous in our eyes.

ATTITUDES OF A CRITICAL THINKER

Those creatures that undergo the seven life processes have faculties that enable them to think, and think very well. Man, who’s one of the creatures, is a thinking being. All the manifestations of his activity, thought and behaviour, which are either profitable or harmful, had been worked out in his mind. No wonder some people argue that the life force of man is in his mind. If this is true, then our mental faculty is, indeed, very powerful.

Thanks to this mind energy we’re able to freely think, and at other times reason more critically. Now, my emphasis would be on the latter, that is, what makes one a critical thinker. Defining who a critical thinker is a huge subject matter. Its definition could be lengthy or short based on one’s own volition and understanding. But briefly, who is a critical thinker? To my mind, a critical thinker is an individual whose reasoning over social events is devoid of biases and prejudices, but stems from an objective and passionate assessment of things around him. He tackles issues with a balanced mindset and his insights are simple and spot-on.

Now, let me introduce some five critical thinking attitudes. They are: Open- mindedness; Healthy skepticism; Intellectual humility; Free thinking and; High Motivation. These attitudes of the critical thinker translate in his deliberations and arguments over issues he may be called upon to explain.

The first two attitudes (open- mindedness and healthy skepticism) may appear contradictory, but they’re not. The critical thinker must be willing to investigate viewpoints in order to seek for the facts, information sources, in maintaining the goal of getting at the truth, rather than pleasing or finding faults with others views. Too much skepticism, will lead one to doubt everything and commit oneself to nothing. Conversely, too little of it will lead to gullibility and credulousness.

Secondly, having intellectual humility, means adhering tentatively (hesitantly) to recently acquired opinions; being prepared to examine new evidence and arguments even if such examination leads one to discover flaws in one’s own cherished beliefs; Sometimes ‘I don’t know’ can be the wisest position to take on an issue as Socrates noted: ‘Arrogance does not befit the critical thinker.’

The critical thinker must also have an independent mind, that is, free thinking. To think freely, one must restrain one’s desire to believe because of social pressures to conform. One must be willing to ask if conformity is motivating one’s belief or opinion, and if so, have the strength and courage to at least temporarily abandon one’s position until he/she can complete a more objective and thorough evaluation.

The last attitude which is high motivation, simply explains that, the critical thinker must have a natural curiosity to further his/her understanding so as to put in the necessary work sufficient enough to evaluate the multiple sides of an issue. This motivation will keep you going. It is the energy that propels the critical thinker to delve deeper into the core of even sensitive matters.

Those who have immortalized their names through  inventions and achievements, in part or all their lives, have been critical thinkers. However, some people see critical thinkers to be irritating. They perceive them to be scoffers and fault finders and who behave as if they aren’t with weaknesses. The truth is, they do have faults and so is everyone. But, for the sake of an objective and fair assessment of national and international issues, critical thinkers would always be called upon to unearth the hard truth. Are you a Critical Thinker?

 German East Africa

“Power is the ultimate determinant in human society, being basic to the relations within any group and between groups. It implies the ability to defend one’s interest and if necessary to imposes one’s will by any means available. When one society finds itself forced to relinquish power entirely to another society that in itself is a form of underdevelopment.”- Walter Rodney (1973).

All nations have once been independently sovereign, until many of them fell to the power of foreign domination. The annexation of these countries was grounded on the foreign power’s use of its superior ammunition and military base. The continent of Africa in particular was the target of the Europeans, following the Berlin conference of 1884-1885. A consensus was reached: to partition African States among themselves. The effects of the Industrial Revolution catalyzed this grand mission. Africa was seen as the hub for further surplus capital investment and the reinstating of redundant employees. The large resource base of the continent was deemed as a cheap source of raw material to feed the manufacturing firms in Europe. The scramble over a continent which was in surety of its own liberty and development has begun.

The Germans (from the share of Africa) got hold of some countries in the Eastern part of Africa: Burundi, Tanganyika (now Tanzania), and Rwanda. These annexed States were called colonies. The number of colonies a European power, then, controlled revealed the extent of wealth, glory, and prestige they were accorded. When Wilhelm II became Kaiser in 1888, he took up the quest with enthusiasm and demanded stridently that Germany be given a “place under the sun”. So Germany was permitted to win a few of the less desirable African lands before the continent was entirely divided among her competitors. It was honestly felt by some European statesmen that their countries, as Jules Ferry of France expressed it, would “fall to the rank of second class powers” if they did not own colonies. Europeans assumed that Africans were backward children whose wishes could neither be made known nor consulted. It was up to their new parents and religious adviser’s decision for them, and any European power was so much more civilized than the African that its rule could only be of benefit to them. This assumption was however counteracted by J.E. Casely-Hayford (1922) - “Before even the British (European state) came into relations with our people, we were a developed people, having our own institutions, having our own ideas of government”.

Germany’s colonial policy in administering the Eastern African States was weaved around the various States’ political, economic, social and educational spheres. The implementation of the policy in relation to the aforementioned fabrics of society, impacted immensely on the development process of Rwanda, Tanzania and Burundi. The contact brought about a significant change in the social structure of these East African States- family and kinship ties gradually declined. Certain traditional rites and attitudes were tagged as barbaric and not civilized. The colony came into existence during the 1880s and ended with Imperial Germany's defeat in World War I. Afterwards the territory was divided between Britain and Belgium and was later converted to a mandate of the League of Nations.

The colony began with Carl Peters, an adventurer who founded the Society for German Colonization and signed treaties with several native chieftains on the mainland opposite Zanzibar. On 3 March 1885, the German government announced it had granted an imperial charter (signed by Bismarck on 27 February) to Peters' company and intended to establish a protectorate in East Africa. Peters then recruited specialists who began exploring south to the Rufiji River and north to Witu, near Lamu on the coast. When the Sultan of Zanzibar protested, since he claimed to be ruler on the mainland as well, German chancellor Otto Von Bismarck sent five warships, which arrived on 7 August and trained their guns on the Sultan's palace. The British and Germans agreed to divide the mainland between themselves, and the Sultan had no option but to agree.

German colonial administrators relied heavily on native chiefs to keep order and collect taxes. By 1 January 1914, aside from local police, military garrisons of Schutztruppen ("protective troops") at Dar es Salaam, Moshi, Iringa, and Mahenge comprised 110 German officers (including 42 medical officers), 126 non-commissioned officers, and 2,472 native enlisted members.

German rule was quickly established over Bagamoyo, Dar es Salaam, and Kilwa, even sending the caravans of Prince Langheld, Emin Pasha, and Charles Stokes to dominate "the Street of Caravans". The Abushiri Revolt of 1888 and was put down (with British help) the following year. In 1890, London and Berlin concluded the Heligoland-Zanzibar Treaty, returning Heligoland (seized during the Napoleonic wars) to Germany and deciding on the borders of German East Africa (the exact boundaries remained unsurveyed until 1910). In 1907 Chancellor Bulow appointed Bernhard Dernburg to reform the colonial administration. It became a model of colonial efficiency and commanded extraordinary loyalty among the natives during the First World War.

The administration of the territory in the agreement of 1886 is handed over to Karl Peters' German East Africa Company. The company extends its territory to the sea from 1888, by buying a lease of the coastal strip which was left in the sultan of Zanzibar's possession. But local resentment leads to a Muslim uprising in that year which is only suppressed after the arrival of German troops (assisted on this occasion by the British navy).

The inadequacy of the company caused the German government to take direct control in 1891. But Karl Peters retains his involvement, being appointed imperial commissioner. 

There follow two decades in which the German authorities make considerable efforts to develop their east African colony. A railway is built from Dar es Salaam to Tabora and then on to Ujiji. New crops, such as sisal and cotton, are introduced and prove very successful - as also is the development of coffee plantations on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro.

But this energetic German presence is profoundly resented by the African tribes, particularly when the harsh methods of forced labour are used in the cultivation of the new and alien crops. The result, in 1905, is a widespread popular rebellion which becomes known as the Maji-Maji rising.   Maji is the Swahili for 'water'. The rising gets its name because the belief spreads among the African workers that a magic potion of water, castor oil and millet seeds can turn German bullets to water. In August 1905 the drums begin to broadcast the news that cotton plants are being pulled up rather than tended, in a symbolic gesture of resistance.

The excitement spreads throughout much of the colony, as people drink the potion and set off on a rampage wearing headbands woven from the stalks of millet, the    indigenous crop. Soon, inevitably, there are murderous attacks on Germans and the burning of their houses.

Reinforcements arrived from Germany in October 1905, by which time many of the Maji-Maji have already begun to discover that German bullets do not turn to water. The German commander, General Von Götzen, uses a strategy hardly more humane than that of his colleague Von Trotha in Namibia, whose brutality has caused an international outcry only a year previously.

Von Götzen decides that in the long term only famine will bring these rebellious workers to heel. He instructs his troops to move through the country destroying crops, removing or burning any grain already harvested, and putting entire villages to the torch.

It is estimated that about 250,000 Africans died in the resulting famine. German East Africa, like German South West Africa, acquires in its early years a besmirched colonial record. Meanwhile Karl Peters, the originator of this colony, has in 1897 been tried and convicted in a Potsdam court for brutal offenses committed in Africa. They include his response to the suspicion that one of his servants may have slept with his African mistress. The young girl is flogged and then both are hanged. These scandals shock Berlin sufficiently for reforms in colonial policy to be hastily put in place. But any likely benefit is cut short on Africa by the onset of World War I. Early in 1916 British forces move south from Kenya to occupy German East.

The German’s colonial policy in administering the colonies was weaved around the two elucidated social structures below:

Economic development

Commerce and growth started in earnest under German direction. Early on it was realized that economic development would depend on reliable transportation. Over 100,000 acres (40,000 ha) were under sisal cultivation – the biggest cash crop. Two million coffee trees were planted and rubber trees grew on 200,000 acres (81,000 ha), along with large cotton plantations. To bring these agricultural products to market, beginning in 1888, the Usambara Railway, or Northern Railroad, was built from Tanga to Moshi, Tanzania. The longest line, the Central Railroad covered 775 miles (1,247 km) from Dar es Salaam to Morogoro, Tabora and Kigoma. The final link to the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika had been completed in July 1914 and was cause for a huge and festive celebration in the capital with an agricultural fair and trade exhibition. Harbour facilities were built or improved with electrical cranes, with rail access and warehouses. Wharves were remodeled at Tanga, Bagamoyo and Lindi. In 1912 Dar es Salaam and Tanga received 356 freighters and passenger steamers and over 1,000 coastal ships and local trading vessels. By 1914 Dar es Salaam and the surrounding province had a population of 166,000, among them 10,490 (1,050 Europeans, 1,000 of them Germans. In the entire east African protectorate were 3,579 Germans. In its own right, Dar es Salaam became the showcase city of all of tropical Africa. Gold mining in Tanzania in modern times dates back to the German colonial period, beginning with gold discoveries near Lake Victoria in 1894. The first gold mine in the colony was the Sekenke Gold Mine, which began operation in 1909 after gold was found there in 1907. Despite all these efforts, German East Africa never achieved a profit for the German Empire and needed to be subsidized by the Berlin treasury.

Education

Germany developed an educational program for Africans that involved elementary, secondary and vocational schools. "Instructor qualifications, curricula, textbooks, teaching materials, all met standards unmatched anywhere in tropical Africa." In 1924, ten years after the beginning of the First World War and six years into British rule, the visiting American Phelps-Stokes Commission reported: "In regards to schools, the Germans have accomplished marvels. Some time must elapse before education attains the standard it had reached under the Germans." One of the influences of this German development of education in their colony is the word "shule" (from "Schule" in German) that means school. Since Germans were the first colonialists to establish a solid educational program in East Africa, the word "shule" has been borrowed into the Swahili language, the lingua franca of East Africa.

The Treaty of Versailles broke up the colony, giving the north-western area to Belgium as Rwanda-Burundi, the small Kionga Triangle south of the Rovuma River to Portugal to become part of Mozambique, and the remainder to Britain, which named it Tanganyika.

It must be stressed that there is a supposed benefit of colonialism to Africa. The arguments suggest that on the one hand, there was exploitation and oppression, but on the other hand, colonial governments did much for the benefit of Africans and they developed Africa. It is our contention that this is completely false. Colonialism had only one hand- it was a one- armed bandit. What did colonial governments do in the interest of Africans? Supposedly, they built railroads, schools, hospitals and the like. The sum total of these services was amazingly small- (Walter Rodney, 1973).

German rule have impacted immensely on Eastern African States both negatively and positively.

 COPYING FOREIGN CULTURE BLINDLY

Those (Africans) who copy foreign culture blindly frown on African values and ways of life.

 

Those who frown on African values and culture lose their self identity as Africans.

 

Many Ghanaians  have copied blindly foreign ways of life.

 

Therefore, they lose their self-identity as  Africans.