Ryszard Kapuscinski, a journalist who spent 40 years in Africa, just wrote a book called "The Shadow of the Sun" - vignettes about life in Africa. Although most of the book is extremely depressing, he also describes some of the ways life in Africa has improved in recent decades. According to him, one of the greatest advances in the life of African women is the use of plastic water containers to replace traditional pots. He says that the plastic jugs are much lighter than pots, so women are much less tired after carrying water to their homes from the local river or well. He says that this has been a revolutionary advance for "the exhausted African woman".
It's a pity that those beautiful earthenwares are dying out across Africa. But to the women who have to carry them every day, lugging around heavy pottery probably seemed like terrible drudgery. If plastic really is that much more practical than earthenware, the traditional pot seems bound to become extinct in Africa, except where it is kept alive by a few collectors who appreciate its aesthetic value.
Bret in Taipei
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