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Africa and the global life of things (Prestholdt cited in Trentmann 2012)
Africa and the global life of things (Prestholdt cited in Trentmann 2012)
Consumer desire reflects and reinforces social norms, inequalities and aspirations in the language of economic exchange. African relations and cultural formations
Pattern of social change and mutual constitution through consumption
Articulating African Consumer Interests
European-African relations became asymmetrical over time
Control over people rather than things- worth more than land. Maintenance of subjects and political power
Objects were a means to acquire power and influence over people
Labour remained nutoriously difficult to control
Foreign slave trade offered buyers the promise of externalising the consumption of slave labour
Wealth lay in followers and their productive capacities
Further trade led to patterns of transoceanic exchange and created a dynamic which made control over people increasingly difficult
African consumer tastes growing. Social dynamics of consumer demand in Africa were shaped by larger social, economic and political relationships from 16th to early 20th C.
Before the Nineteenth Century
Staples of regional consumer demand include foodstuffs, alcohol, pottery, jewellery.
Portuguese imported one category of goods over others: personal adornments, cloth, jewellery etc.
E.g. The Machira in Zimbabwe were highly valued for their durability and standard gift to ancestor mediums
Portuguese control of regional commerce in 16th and 17th century- dampened trade
Increase in demand for slaves opened up new long-distance routes of exchange
Fashion and refashioning
As the region became more integrated into expanding global markets, East Africans purchased imported goods in much larger volumes.
Region produced tusks of soft ivory, rubber, cloves, sugar and grains
Price of imported goods fell, price for exported goods rose, gave Africans much greater purchasing power
Hugely increased access to credit fuelled increased agricultural production for export, brought more cash into circulation, allowed elite to spend lavishly
Easier to invest in livestock which provided a windfall for imported goods
Region quickly transformed from a subsistence economy to one dominated by market transactions
Access to imported goods changed how Africans dressed, relate to each other and how political power was defined
Diversity of consumer goods spurred shifting fashions- East African consumer tastes were highly differentiated. Over 400 types of beads by mid century
refashioning common- imports as unfinished goods, for market niches . Regional artisans responded quickly to shifts in consumer demand and translated imported goods into objects of local desire
Economies of display and distribution
the ability to convert desires into material things was linguistically inscribes into objects
Upward mobility through increased credit led to crises of power and distiction
Ammassing and distributing imports offers means for aspirants to challenge figures of authority
Wealth became the critical determinate for claiming rank
Example of the umbrella in Zanzibar- no longer symbols of patriarchal status, associated with broader cultural norms
Clock's rare because of prayer times but became synonymous with urban culture and objects of display for elites
Conclusion
Constraints of interaction enforced by colonial empires restricted African economic possibilities
Pre- colonial consumption- regional fashions were incredibly diferentiated
Tastes changed quickly and differed among societies, social groups and neighbours
East Africans refashioned imported consumer goods to suit local demand
Greater material aquisition heightened inequalities in East African societies
Elites collected luxury goods to represent their power and ability. Consumption a strategy of belonging
Reflection on the African interests that defined these trends adds nuance to our appreciation of why global hierarchies emerged and how they have been affected by consumer choices