Representation of East African Slave Trade in Modern Tanzanian Schoolbooks: Text and Illustrations

Abstract

The paper deals with interrelations of the illustrations and the text in narrating East African slave trade of the 19th century in modern Tanzanian school books. A visible modifying of historical reality is promoted in some history textbooks: the industrial revolution in Europe and its need in labor force (even in slave labor force on “plantations” and factories in Europe itself) are presented as the main reason for the development of the East African slave trade; Europeans are also given as the main factor, actors and beneficiaries of this slave trade; the role of the so-called “Arabs”, especially local ones, is smoothed out. However, the images used to illustrate the textbooks turn out to be more conservative: since they are based most on sketches of 19th century made by eyewitnesses of the events, and on these sketches the main characters are recognizably “Arabs”, with the exception of one case, when the modern illustrator intentionally inserts in his picture a typical “European colonialist” leading a slave caravan. The article examines this specific situation and offers its explanations.