Through African Eyes, Vol. 2: Culture and Society, Continuity and Change
Africa, dark only because of our ignorance of it, comes alive  through the eyes and voices of its people in this classic work. First  published more than two decades ago and now thoroughly revised and  updated, the book lets Africans speak for themselves through  autobiography, traditional and modern literature, historical and  contemporary documents, letters and diaries. In this volume, we are  introduced to African societies and cultures in all of their richness  and diversity. Coming of age, family values, changing gender roles,  rites of passage, the search for identity in the modern world, and many  other aspects of African life are skillfully woven into a coherent  narrative under the overarching themes of continuity and change. What  emerges is a picture of today's African with striking parallels to  North America. Africans are indeed grappling with many of the same  issues we are: individual rights vs. group and community  responsibilities, changing patterns of marriage, and the shifting  intersections between the public and private worlds in which we all  live. Leon E. Clark, General Editor of the CITE World Cultures Series,  is professor of sociology at American University in Washington, where  he also directs the graduate program in international education.  Illustrated, index.--This text refers to an alternatePaperbackedition.