Benin Learning Community 2014

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This page contains the reading list for the "common packet" of the Benin 2014 Learning Community. Individual students are enrolled in Philosophy 301: Introductory Ethics, Philosophy 495: Philosophy of Culture: Benin, or Broadcast 380: Special Topics.

Here's the reading list for the common packet. We did wind up with a fair amount of reading, but we also want to encourage you to pursue other reading from the program library and investigate new topics of your own.

Benin Learning Community Common Packet

All readings are available as pdfs from your course website. Follow and read documents linked below. Login and click on "ereserves". Take some notes that you can return to.

History and Politics

• Reader, John. 1997. "The Atlantic Slave Trade," Africa: A Biography of the Continent. New York: Vintage. (excerpted in pdf, pp. 377-403) (26) (June 5)

• Gardinier, David E. 1997. "The Historical Origins of Francophone Africa." In Political Reform in Francophone Africa, edited by John F. Clark and David E. Gardinier, 9-23. Westview Press. (June 10)

• Bierschenk, Thomas. 2009. "Democratization without Development: Benin 1989-2009." International Journal of Politics, Culture and Society no. 22 (3):337-357.

Culture and Everyday Life

• Mama, Rauf. 1998. "The Dance of Poverty." In Why Goats Smell Bad and other Stories from Benin, edited by Rauf Mama, 45-50. North Haven, Connecticut: The Shoe String Press. (week of June 16)

• Kpai, Idrissou Mora, Si Gueriki The Queen Mother. (Video) (week of June 16)

• Hass, Philip, Kings of the Water (Video) (week of June 16)

• Millenium Development Goals for Benin: (June 18th)

• Guardian, 2013 Millenium Dev. Goal Progress Index [1]

  Beninese minister reports progress in achieving MDGs," [2]

• IndexMundi, "Benin MDGs" [3]

Development

• Easterly, William. 2006. excerpt from The White Man's Burden. Chapter 1, "Planners vs. Seekers," (June 18th)

• Nzamujo, Fr. Godfrey. "Using agriculture to challenge Africa's triple threat." Fr. Godfrey Nzamujo, founder of The Songhai Center. [4] or, Father Godfrey - How the South Can Feed the North [5]

Other Resources

Here is an accessible blog presentation of the Songhai concept. [6]