Islam and West African Indigenous Religion Essay

Islam and West African Indigenous Religion - Essay Example Whether the local populations engaged in animism, polytheism, or other cultural heritage-derived beliefs, once Africa was directly invaded by the Turks and subsequently opened up by European traders, the Islamic religion became prevalent. The scope of this paper is to focus on the advent of the Islamic faith within the region and explain some of the factors that contributed to it. These factors can be generalized within three broad areas; geographical, historical, and behavioral. Through the combination of these causes, Islam became prolific and replaced much of the ancient indigenous practices. Africa is a diverse continent where the geography includes almost every possible landmass variation. From desert, tropical forests, mountains, and the plains of the savannah, the influence of the geography itself impacted how and when Islam spread. As Parrinder points out in his article, the expansion of non-native populations tended to take a vertical shape, almost assuredly due to the use o f the coastlines as entry points for foreign traders, but the land itself is stratified horizontally between the major geographical components. "These two ways of viewing the country help to explain the progress of Islam; for it came into the interior plateaus first and long remained almost stationary there, cut off from the coastal regions by the impenetrable forest" (Parrinder 131). It wasn't until the European traders established a transportation infrastructure of roads and railways that Islam began to make inroads from the interior of the country into the coastal regions. Once that was accomplished, however, Islam was able to spread from the central portions of the continent to the outer edges, including West Africa. This specifically points to the first of three historical aspects of the spread of Islam. Historical Factors While it might be inferred that Islam was initially carried into Africa by the Turkish invaders who used the Mediterranean Sea as a conduit for expansion, the fact is that the spread of Islam owes its initial developments to commerce. As Trimingham notes, "Islam was first introduced into West Africa by traders. Their activities in purveying Islam along with their goods have continued ever since" (28). It is intuitive that religion spreads with commerce. As native people interact with merchants, there is a blending of ideas and philosophies that naturally takes place. Given the aggressive proselytization practices of Islam, there is no great mystery as to why the native Africans would convert. Their assimilation into Islamic beliefs was also fostered by the historical imperialism of the religion. By its very structure, Islam is a faith that blends political and economic activities with religious practice. Once the belief system becomes sufficiently popular, it begins to enforce its tenets through more than simple missionary means. The statement that "Islam in power is secularized theocracy and this always leads to forms of religious imperialism" (Trimingham 28) is as true today as it was in the eleventh century. Once entrenched in tribal governance, the more aggressive forms of an imperialistic recruitment would emerge. These practices included everything from forced conversions to the refusal to allow commerce between individuals of the faith and apostates. In many parts of Africa, conversion to Islam was not a voluntary activity, but a political and economic necessity. The next historical fact, that of western development, would simply provide the means for expansion of the imperialistic

Evaluation of company user instructions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Evaluation of company user instructions - Essay Example When the company launched a new set of tooth brushes that came with a unique type of handle shape and size of the brush head, the management sought to change the type of instructions written on the package including the design of the packets that hold the tooth brushes. Particularly there was inaccuracy in the instructions and low quality of pictures that portrayed the explanation on the use safe of the product. The purpose of this memo is to analyze the audience of the company instructions, evaluate the company instructions found at the company website, and then make necessary recommendations on how to improve the usability of the instructions. shes.When the company launched a new set of tooth brushes that came with a unique type of handle shape and size of the brush head, the management sought to change the type of instructions written on the package including the design of the packets that hold the tooth brushes. Particularly there was inaccuracy in the instructions and low qualit y of pictures that portrayed the explanation on the use safe of the product. The only channel that manufacturers use to direct their consumers on how to use their products is through giving instructions, it must be clear to the point. An instruction must be free from ambiguity and duplicity in order to carry out the task well. Furthermore, users rely on well written instructions whenever they do not understand something other than seeking the manufacturer physically or through other means of communication which might prove to be expensive. The instructions were characterized with omission of key actions and false statements that could have misled our intended users. For instance, in reference on how to lean the front when using the tooth brush, the degree must have been mistakenly written as 54 degrees instead of 45 degrees; as the former is unreasonably too high in the circumstances. There was also an error on how to move the brush in one step when it was instructed as left and right instead of up and down. Since the memo will be read by a very busy manager, the contents are direct to the point and do not need deep explanation. The research manager already has some background on what the company manufactures and to redesign the company’s instruction. Evaluation and Recommendations Considering that there could be first time consumers of our product, it would have amounted to a gross loss and a complete show of unreliable instructions. This could even amount to a negative market externality which would consequent ly affect the volume of products sold. Misleading product instructions, although in our case has lesser health impacts, can be treated as a hazard to the health of consumers or even the environment. For instance, if disposal methods are misleading yet the product is harmful to the environment if not disposed of properly. Another instruction that was written poorly or rather displayed incorrectly was the picture of the position of the