Africa The Unknown Continent - Free Essay Example

Trice Riddle Mrs. Jennifer Sikes English 1020 11 February 2009 The Unknown Continent Many people know about it and have seen it on maps before but they still do not pay attention to detail or really care. People still say today that it is a country but it is a continent made up of countries. Many people describe it as the â€Å"dark continent† because it has not developed enough to be like an Asia or the Americas. Its hard to really discover what Africa is and how to define it. The land is rich and the people are full of life. Africa to many is just a land of desert and is impossible to live in because of the harsh climate. The people of Africa may be struggling its hard to tell on their faces when you visit. They are all smiles and take everyday of life to its fullest. What people do not know is that Africa is one of the most richest in resources. Its hard to find and discover them because they do not have the equipment. Africa to me could be United States of America when they find the right tools and discover the natural resources they have. When I hear the word Africa I think of Egypt, deserts, and the Nile River. Also, South Africa has a couple of really famous golfers that play and dominate the PGA Tour in the United States. Africa needs to have a since of pride from their history and move forward to be a known continent. I want to discover what Africa is and finally put a name to it where people can see that it is a beautiful, strong continent. The history of Africa is priceless. The history is so amazing its hard to tell people about. The African tribes had to rely on each other in order to survive. One of the earliest languages was founded by African tribes. The villagers would communicate by making a clicking sound with their tongues. Even though it has no words, the different sounds and lengths of the pitch was used to understand each other. They still do this today but it is rare. They have found one of the earliest human life forms i n history. Since some of the land of Africa was undiscovered, rulers would send out explorers to find some of this land and claim it. Most of the land was claimed by European countries since they were the most powerful at the time. If there was any conflict between land it resulted in fighting. If there were tribes in the way, they would raid them and probably use them as slaves. Many European rulers sent ships to Africa for the slave trade. Slaves were put the bottom of the ship and would fit as many of the slaves as possible. Over 1,600 ships and over 150,000 slaves were boarded to European countries. Many of the slaves had houses to live in, but the other working slaves lived there and they all used and shared the same things. Some slaves were treated bad. They were not fed well and didn’t have houses to sleep in. This all ended in the mid 1800s when most of the African empires signed a treaty. Because of the end of slavery, empires were unable to adapt and some even ca used civil wars. Some of these countries are affected from these civil wars that happened about 150 years ago. Africa’s rich history makes it unique and one of the most interesting continents on earth. The only history people knew about is from the great country of Egypt. A country of pharos and great Egyptian Kings like the most famous one, King Tut. In the ancient time of Egypt, it was one of the greatest countries on earth. It had advances that people today still wonder how it was built. The most amazing architect of this time was the Great Pyramid of Giza, one of the seven ancient wonders of the world. The only ancient wonder to exist. I think that if you could go visit one place with rich history that Egypt would be the place. Running through the middle of Egypt is the worlds longest river, the Nile River. Most of Egypt’s cities are built around it for water and nutrients. Everything there is so exciting and rich that you could stay there a year and still le arn about the Egyptian culture. The land of Africa is considered rich but it has one of the worlds largest deserts. Africa is not technologically developed so finding these resources is next to impossible. This poor country suffers from food, diseases, and the lack of people to care for it like they do for other countries. We see all these little kids and families on television that are anorexic and have very little clothes and food. We try to help them but its hard when all the people around them are suffering just as bad, if not worse. The richer of the African countries live around lakes and rivers. South Africa being one of the richest countries has its down side too. There is one huge thing thats comes from South Africa and thats PGA Tour golfers. Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, and the most famous one is Gary Player. These are guys who love South Africa and are proud of where they came from. Some of these golfers beat the most famous and number one golfer in the world, Tiger W oods. Gary Player has beaten the best golfer ever in Jack Nicklaus several times. It does not matter where you come from you can do anything you want and always remember where you came from. The home of some of the happiest people with the least to have or give. Africa is a country full of hope, pride, and rich history. This is a country with the poorest people, but they still find a way to look at the positive and enjoy the life they have and what they have been given. Life is to short not to be happy. They have every reason to be down and to give up, but if we look closely at the details we will see that they survive on each other and each other’s pride. We need to see how they are living and try to do it. They know every moment they are given is a blessing not just a another day. Coming closer will teach us about each other and from their we can make the lives around us better. Africa is an important continent that we all need to stop and pay attention to how beautiful it is.