Conflicting stories and contending images make the perception of Africa confusing. Whose perception and whose perspective prevails is a matter of power relationship.

As Paul Watzlawick put it “…the belief that one’s own view of reality is the only reality is the most dangerous of all delusions. It becomes still more dangerous if it is coupled with a missionary zeal to enlighten the rest of the world, whether the rest of the world wishes to be enlightened or not. To refuse to embrace wholeheartedly a particular definition of reality (i.e., ideology), to dare to see the world differently, can become a ‘think crime’ in a truly Orwellian sense…” (How Real Is Real? Confusion, Disinformation, Communication, 1976).

Conflicting Stories and Contending Images of Africa