Out Of Africa Simon Lewis Summary

In Simon Lewis’ article, “Culture, Cultivation, and Colonialism in Out of Africa and Beyond”, Lewis argues that Isak Dinesen’s book Out of Africa demonstrates the exploitation of Africa and Africans. Lewis suggests that the book, along with its film adaptation realized in 1985, commercializes this sort of safari image nostalgia that portrays Africa as a vast wilderness of splendor and then sell this “exotic chic” to Europe and other Westernized audiences. Lewis also asks us to examine the ideology of colonizing Africa and question the very notion of culture. He explores this by looking at the late nineteenth and early twentieth century and its perception of culture in relation to “nature, cultivation, civilization, agriculture, and colony” (Lewis 64). Lewis supports his argument through the works of Ngugi wa Thiong’o depiction of Kenya and the struggles
I feel Lewis makes valid points when mentioning the commercialization of this “safari image” that the books seems to portray. When reading Out of Africa there is this sort of beautiful description of the African wild. Dinesen writes very poeticality on her life in Kenya that includes the landscape, the people, and the animals. I agree with Lewis that the book sells, “exploitation of Africa and Africans, and her exploitability as a medium for those interested in selling exotic colonial chic to a Western audience still hungry for the safari image of Africa.” (Lewis 64). I do think Lewis’ mentioning of the movie adaptation released in 1985 throughout the bulk of his article helped his argument in establishing the idea of commercialization and not just the book alone. I feel another great point Lewis makes is the farm. Dinesen does nothing to mention the process of obtaining the farm, which probably included a great deal of personal turmoil brought on the native people of the