Imperialism on trial
Project Reflection
The “Imperialism On Trial” project was an extensive one, covering a variety of topics, including American law, African history, and certain literary elements in the book we based this project off. This book is Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. Things Fall Apart mainly outlines the life of a revered tribe member in Africa, known as Okonkwo. Okonkwo’s life was a quite eventful one, including fighting in wars, wrestling, and even a seven year banishment from his tribe. Okonkwo’s life ends with his own suicide, when he can no longer stand the changes within his tribe brought on by missionaries and British imperialism. The end product of this project was a mock trial in which our class disputed the Plaintiff’s accusation of wrongful death. The Plaintiff’s claim was that our class (playing the British empire) was responsible for Okonkwo’s death.
In the trial, I was the defense clerk, a type of attorney. I played a leadership role within my group of fellow attorneys, and helped to bring us together and be efficient. My jobs were to take notes and set up re-direct examination questions, ask a few cross examination questions, and to object to any questions that were written incorrectly by the Plaintiff. In the case, I would pride myself on quickly preparing re-direct and cross examination questions for a couple witnesses. This means I wrote the questions whilst the Plaintiff was asking questions, giving me about a 30 second time frame. I also helped to write and facilitate the writing of the opening and closing statements for our side, although not reciting them.
I think that the biggest skill I strengthened during this project. Most of this growth took place during the trial, during which critical thinking was… critical. I was put on the spot for all sorts of questions to ask and points to dispute. When the Plaintiff made a point to put Okonkwo in a victimized position, I did my best on re-direct questions to show that Okonkwo’s decision was purely his own. Another way I grew was surely in leadership. People in my group often came to me for advice or help on things. For example, group members working on statements employed my help often and we came together to make great statements. The thing I’d really like to work on, and would change if I did this project again in the future is amount of questions. The other group had nearly twice as many questions as we did for certain witnesses. Although I think our questions were better quality, and couldn’t be disputed as easily, quantity would have helped here.
This project has definitely changed the way that I think about history, giving me a much deeper understanding of imperialism in Africa. Although I already knew the basics of what happened, I had a deeper understanding of specific events and countries’ roles in Africa, shaping what it is today. I now know that there were different types of rule that took place in Africa, such as settler rule, direct/indirect rule, and corporate rule. Knowing which countries chose which kind of rule they employed in Africa gives me a deeper understanding of why certain countries in Africa have developed in the way they have. As far as the U.S. court system, I’m glad that I have a deeper understanding of how specifically it works. Despite having seen/heard objections and cross examinations on television, I’ve never known what purpose they serve. Now I know what they are, and how to present them in a court.
The “Imperialism On Trial” project was an extensive one, covering a variety of topics, including American law, African history, and certain literary elements in the book we based this project off. This book is Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. Things Fall Apart mainly outlines the life of a revered tribe member in Africa, known as Okonkwo. Okonkwo’s life was a quite eventful one, including fighting in wars, wrestling, and even a seven year banishment from his tribe. Okonkwo’s life ends with his own suicide, when he can no longer stand the changes within his tribe brought on by missionaries and British imperialism. The end product of this project was a mock trial in which our class disputed the Plaintiff’s accusation of wrongful death. The Plaintiff’s claim was that our class (playing the British empire) was responsible for Okonkwo’s death.
In the trial, I was the defense clerk, a type of attorney. I played a leadership role within my group of fellow attorneys, and helped to bring us together and be efficient. My jobs were to take notes and set up re-direct examination questions, ask a few cross examination questions, and to object to any questions that were written incorrectly by the Plaintiff. In the case, I would pride myself on quickly preparing re-direct and cross examination questions for a couple witnesses. This means I wrote the questions whilst the Plaintiff was asking questions, giving me about a 30 second time frame. I also helped to write and facilitate the writing of the opening and closing statements for our side, although not reciting them.
I think that the biggest skill I strengthened during this project. Most of this growth took place during the trial, during which critical thinking was… critical. I was put on the spot for all sorts of questions to ask and points to dispute. When the Plaintiff made a point to put Okonkwo in a victimized position, I did my best on re-direct questions to show that Okonkwo’s decision was purely his own. Another way I grew was surely in leadership. People in my group often came to me for advice or help on things. For example, group members working on statements employed my help often and we came together to make great statements. The thing I’d really like to work on, and would change if I did this project again in the future is amount of questions. The other group had nearly twice as many questions as we did for certain witnesses. Although I think our questions were better quality, and couldn’t be disputed as easily, quantity would have helped here.
This project has definitely changed the way that I think about history, giving me a much deeper understanding of imperialism in Africa. Although I already knew the basics of what happened, I had a deeper understanding of specific events and countries’ roles in Africa, shaping what it is today. I now know that there were different types of rule that took place in Africa, such as settler rule, direct/indirect rule, and corporate rule. Knowing which countries chose which kind of rule they employed in Africa gives me a deeper understanding of why certain countries in Africa have developed in the way they have. As far as the U.S. court system, I’m glad that I have a deeper understanding of how specifically it works. Despite having seen/heard objections and cross examinations on television, I’ve never known what purpose they serve. Now I know what they are, and how to present them in a court.