Review of Stilwell's "Slavery and Slaving in African History." (2014)
Sean Stilwell, Slavery and Slaving in African History: New Approaches to African History (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2014), pgs. 223.
Book here.
Understanding the institution of slavery in the modern world is critical, particularly in order to see how it shaped societies across the globe. Often, scholars and non-academics’ focus on either slavery or its abolition are Western centric or focused exclusively on Europe and the Americas. However, as historian Sean Stilwell, a professor and department chair at the University of Vermont, demonstrates, much is lost by not looking at the entire Atlantic world, including Africa. In his second book Slavery and Slaving in African History (2014) Stilwell takes a synthesis approach to this important history, gathering together decades of scholarship into a comprehensive and approachable book for both scholars and students that covers the history of slavery in Africa from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. Arguing that slavery was an essential, but complicated part of African history, Stilwell’s history has the potential to unsettle long established historiographical traditions of Atlantic World historians and was one of the best books I have read in a while.
Stilwell in the preface immediately notes that his book is an attempt to push back on what I will call the “Edenic” narratives of Africa, as well as the “bloody thirsty” narratives. These two extremes, of a innocent Africa and a degraded and violent Africa, he suggests are not useful and are historically inaccurate. He boldly states that Africans “used slaves in numbers that rivaled those of the Americas, Ancient Rome, and the Islamic Middle East.” (pg. x) He urges scholars and students alike to consider that slavery was not monolithic in any way shape or form in Africa and that the institution was exploitative and centered on othering fellow human beings, but varied across region and time. Africans used slavery in a variety of ways, for political, reproductive, economic, and social purposes. Stilwell is emphatic that much can be learned by exploring these patterns of slavery and hierarchy in Africa, a proposition I wholeheartedly agree with.
Throughout Slavery and Slaving the themes of change and continuity are reiterated. Slavery is in a constant state of change (rather than a fixed, idealic familial slavery that scholars have superimposed on the historical narrative) and is built on othering, even in the most “familial” of slaveries. The growth of slavery in Africa is tied both to internal events, but also to events in the broader international sphere, both in the Mediterranean, Atlantic, and Indian Basins. Stilwell however is careful to not overemphasize the role of Europeans, steadfastly maintaining African agency. Slavery was chosen by many societies because it was not only economically viable, but essential to creating powerful states and economic profit. While the transatlantic slave trade made the Africa’s reliance on slavery worse, it was not a new or novel insertion into African life. As Stilwell persuasively shows, slavery and the violence accompanying enslavement already were deeply imbedded within many African cultures and were embraced by the large majority of states and peoples.
There is much to like about this book, however, I did wish Stilwell engaged more heartily with the broader scholarship of Atlantic world slavery, which by and large continues to perpetuate neo-Edenic narratives of Africa. He also missed opportunities to fully explore ideas of slavery and capitalism, a theme which has become dominant in the American academy. Largely, however, perhaps in part due to my lack of knowledge in African history, this book was evenly argued and respectful of the diverging scholarly opinions on this region and has expanded my view of the Atlantic world. Stilwell created a remarkable synthesis that ought to be read in every graduate seminar. This book has the potential to be transformative and generative in helping Atlantic world scholars explore more fully the entire Atlantic world.
But perhaps one of the most influential possibilities of this book is reminding scholars of the similarities between humans and the cultures they create around the world. Throughout this book, I found myself noting countless ways in which African practices mirrored European practices with slight variations. Though different in some ways, underlying the entire institution of slavery is a desire for wealth and power. Common human desires and struggles make the narratives of African and the European peoples not so different as some scholars have asserted. Stilwell’s book was a breath of fresh air and ought to be more thoroughly utilized.
Rob Swanson