Africa and Africans in the Making of the Atlantic World, 1400-1680 (Studies in Comparative World History) [Paperback]

John Thornton (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521398649 | ISBN-13: 978-0521398640 | Publication Date: April 24, 1992

This book shows how important the African role was in shaping the Atlantic world that developed after the navigational breakthroughs of the fifteenth century. The degree of African initiative displayed in this period is stressed, both by African elites in dealing with the new visitors and trading partners and, even by African slaves in the New World. Evenly divided into sections on Africa and Africans in the New World, this study stresses cultural and institutional backgrounds to Africa and African slaves. Although the book is intended to help Africanists understand how Africans fared in the Americas, its main purpose is to give readers familiar with Afro-American history a fuller and more dynamic vision of Africa, so they can see the African slave as an African and not just as a laborer.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Drawing on information from an array of primary and secondary sources, Thornton arrives at several conclusions that reflect the main thrust of contemporary slave studies. He also provides an impressive analysis of the rise, operation, and maintenance of slavery in West Africa." Patrick Carroll, Latin American Research Review

Product Details

• Paperback: 349 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (April 24, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521398649
• ISBN-13: 978-0521398640
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,432,173 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Africa and African in the making of the Atlantic world", December 3, 2003

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Chandra Runner (Billings, MT, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Africa and Africans in the Making of the Atlantic World, 1400-1680 (Studies in Comparative World History) (Paperback)

A very educational history book. The information was very useful in m histiry class. I hope that John Thorton keeps up the good work and writes more books on this subject.