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Abina and the Important Men: A Graphic History
Abina and the Important Men is a compelling and powerfully illustrated "graphic history" based on an 1876 court transcript of a West African woman named Abina, who was wrongfully enslaved and took her case to court. The book is a microhistory that does much more than simply depict an event in the past; it uses the power of illustration to convey important themes in world history and to reveal the processes by which history is made.
The story of Abina Mansah--a woman "without history" who was wrongfully enslaved, escaped to British-controlled territory, and then took her former master to court--takes place in the complex world of the Gold Coast at the onset of late nineteenth-century colonialism. Slavery becomes a contested ground, as cultural practices collide with an emerging wage economy and British officials turn a blind eye to the presence of underpaid domestic workers in the households of African merchants. The main scenes of the story take place in the courtroom, where Abina strives to convince a series of "important men"--a British judge, two Euro-African attorneys, a wealthy African country "gentleman," and a jury of local leaders--that her rights matter. "Am I free?" Abina inquires. Throughout both the court case and the flashbacks that dramatically depict her life in servitude, these men strive to "silence" Abina and to impose their own understandings and meanings upon her. The story seems to conclude with the short-term success of the "important men," as Abina loses her case. But it doesn't end there: Abina is eventually redeemed. Her testimony is uncovered in the dusty archives by Trevor Getz and, through Liz Clarke's illustrations, becomes a graphic history read by people around the world. In this way, the reader takes an active part in the story along with the illustrator, the author, and Abina herself.
Following the graphic history in Part I, Parts II-V provide detailed historical context for the story, a reading guide that reconstructs and deconstructs the methods used to interpret the story, and strategies for using Abina in various classroom settings.
The story of Abina Mansah--a woman "without history" who was wrongfully enslaved, escaped to British-controlled territory, and then took her former master to court--takes place in the complex world of the Gold Coast at the onset of late nineteenth-century colonialism. Slavery becomes a contested ground, as cultural practices collide with an emerging wage economy and British officials turn a blind eye to the presence of underpaid domestic workers in the households of African merchants. The main scenes of the story take place in the courtroom, where Abina strives to convince a series of "important men"--a British judge, two Euro-African attorneys, a wealthy African country "gentleman," and a jury of local leaders--that her rights matter. "Am I free?" Abina inquires. Throughout both the court case and the flashbacks that dramatically depict her life in servitude, these men strive to "silence" Abina and to impose their own understandings and meanings upon her. The story seems to conclude with the short-term success of the "important men," as Abina loses her case. But it doesn't end there: Abina is eventually redeemed. Her testimony is uncovered in the dusty archives by Trevor Getz and, through Liz Clarke's illustrations, becomes a graphic history read by people around the world. In this way, the reader takes an active part in the story along with the illustrator, the author, and Abina herself.
Following the graphic history in Part I, Parts II-V provide detailed historical context for the story, a reading guide that reconstructs and deconstructs the methods used to interpret the story, and strategies for using Abina in various classroom settings.
179 pages, Paperback
First published September 2, 2011
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773 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 125 reviews
July 8, 2016
In general, I found this book to be highly accessible and fun. However, after having read 60 undergrad 100-level papers which involved analyzing this as both a primary and secondary source, the dangers of doing history in this way became strikingly apparent. Students, at least mine, were unable to recognize places where it should be clear that the author is inserting his interpretation of the events. The most frustrating of these places, and I think a poor choice on Getz's account, comes at the end of the graphic novel portion where he has Abina state that she "just wanted her story to be heard." Maybe she did, maybe she didn't. Unfortunately, I read essay after essay where students honed in on that sentiment and assumed it to be the entire reason Abina went to court. Should my students be more discerning and perceptive? Yes! But this repeated error demonstrates to me the inherent danger of imposing and ascribing a will where it is unknown(and cannot be discerned from the historical record) to historical figures, and then putting it in an accessible format and thus into the hands of individuals who do not have the skill set to spot these issues. Am I being annoyingly elitist? Probably! However, this present-ist model of thinking, that we can "know the past" is one of the more trepidatious and easy to succumb to elements of studying history. Books like these run the danger of of reinforcing these problems rather than correcting it.
That stated, I think Getz does a wonderful job of providing a historical context for Abina, and the inclusion of the actual transcript was fantastically helpful - I just wish he had set the book up so that it came first and not second, and then perhaps the students would have had an easier time seeing what was invented/imagined (within an appropriate historical framework). For lovers of graphic novels, I would definitely add it to your collection.
That stated, I think Getz does a wonderful job of providing a historical context for Abina, and the inclusion of the actual transcript was fantastically helpful - I just wish he had set the book up so that it came first and not second, and then perhaps the students would have had an easier time seeing what was invented/imagined (within an appropriate historical framework). For lovers of graphic novels, I would definitely add it to your collection.
March 27, 2024
I had never read a graphic non-fiction book, and I highly recommend this one as a start for others who haven't read many in this genre. It was given to my by my nephew, who as a curator of African Art often travels to Africa. He worked on his thesis in the same library in Ghana where this story first came to light, hidden for 125 years in the archives.
Abina was a wrongfully enslaved young woman on the West Coast of Africa in the 1870s who escaped to British territory where slavery had been outlawed; she actually had the courage to take her master to court and stated her case under intimidating circumstances. The book is divided into sections which make it enticing and interesting not only to the adult and young adult reader, but a compelling work for the classroom as well. Part I is the Graphic History of Abina which leads into Part II, the Transcript; Part III, Historical Context; Part IV, Reading Guide; and Part V, Abina in the Classroom, including a timeline and reading questions. Besides the graphic section, it is also well illustrated with Maps and Figures.
Despite being a graphic history, this is not a light read. The Graphic History section stands alone in telling the amazing story of this courageous young woman who stood up for her rights in an era and a place where the odds were stacked against her. The fact that this story came to light is a tribute to scholars and librarians everywhere.
Abina was a wrongfully enslaved young woman on the West Coast of Africa in the 1870s who escaped to British territory where slavery had been outlawed; she actually had the courage to take her master to court and stated her case under intimidating circumstances. The book is divided into sections which make it enticing and interesting not only to the adult and young adult reader, but a compelling work for the classroom as well. Part I is the Graphic History of Abina which leads into Part II, the Transcript; Part III, Historical Context; Part IV, Reading Guide; and Part V, Abina in the Classroom, including a timeline and reading questions. Besides the graphic section, it is also well illustrated with Maps and Figures.
Despite being a graphic history, this is not a light read. The Graphic History section stands alone in telling the amazing story of this courageous young woman who stood up for her rights in an era and a place where the odds were stacked against her. The fact that this story came to light is a tribute to scholars and librarians everywhere.
March 1, 2022
This is an intriguing peek into a piece of Gold Coast (Ghanaian) history. About half of the book is the graphic novelization itself, while the remainder of the book has source documentation, a section discussing the historical context of the events, a reading guide, & suggestions on how to use the book in classroom settings, ranging from about middle/high school to graduate students. (That said, I'm not quite sure who the best target audience would be... maybe high school?)
Abina's story is unique in that there are actual historical records of her lawsuit & proceedings, an unusual find given that she was an enslaved female who used the legal system to fight back. As we all know, history tends to be written by the winners/those in charge, so you don't often hear the stories of those without power.
Overall, an interesting slice of history (if a bit dryly presented at times).
Personally, I would like to see Abina's story through the eyes of a Ghanaian historian/author. A female historian/author too.
If graphic novels are not your thing & you are interested in a different, more complex enslaved woman's story (a fictional book based on historical events), check out The Infamous Rosalie (Haiti) by Evelyne Trouillot.
Abina's story is unique in that there are actual historical records of her lawsuit & proceedings, an unusual find given that she was an enslaved female who used the legal system to fight back. As we all know, history tends to be written by the winners/those in charge, so you don't often hear the stories of those without power.
Overall, an interesting slice of history (if a bit dryly presented at times).
Personally, I would like to see Abina's story through the eyes of a Ghanaian historian/author. A female historian/author too.
If graphic novels are not your thing & you are interested in a different, more complex enslaved woman's story (a fictional book based on historical events), check out The Infamous Rosalie (Haiti) by Evelyne Trouillot.
May 8, 2020
After reading Persepolis this month, I immediately went searching for other graphic novels.
I had attended a series of 3 online sessions of West African History before the 1600s, delivered by Toby Green and Trevor Getz, professors at UCL and San Francisco State. They were of such high quality that I bought books which each of them had published.
Abina and the Important Men is more than just a graphic novel. It's a 5 part analysis of the discipline of history itself. The author seeks to deconstruct Abina's tale by making the primary materials available to the reader who can form their own opinion on the veracity of the graphic content. The text is also accompanied by a concise academic history of the period in question as well as a transparent look at the way the novel was produced.
This allows the reader to make a judgement on both the facts and the way the historian has interpreted them. It does somewhat take away from the sense of being lost in a story. But a text which aims to be this meta is bound to trade in accuracy for excitement. I mean historians know their work is fascinating, but others don't always see it that way.
The tale is limited in scope, but Getz rightfully argues that it is necessary to highlight the plight of the oppressed, who's voices are so often drowned out by those who write history.
This is a useful tool for engaging a wider audience in the historical process.
I had attended a series of 3 online sessions of West African History before the 1600s, delivered by Toby Green and Trevor Getz, professors at UCL and San Francisco State. They were of such high quality that I bought books which each of them had published.
Abina and the Important Men is more than just a graphic novel. It's a 5 part analysis of the discipline of history itself. The author seeks to deconstruct Abina's tale by making the primary materials available to the reader who can form their own opinion on the veracity of the graphic content. The text is also accompanied by a concise academic history of the period in question as well as a transparent look at the way the novel was produced.
This allows the reader to make a judgement on both the facts and the way the historian has interpreted them. It does somewhat take away from the sense of being lost in a story. But a text which aims to be this meta is bound to trade in accuracy for excitement. I mean historians know their work is fascinating, but others don't always see it that way.
The tale is limited in scope, but Getz rightfully argues that it is necessary to highlight the plight of the oppressed, who's voices are so often drowned out by those who write history.
This is a useful tool for engaging a wider audience in the historical process.
August 31, 2014
A fascinating "graphic history" based on an 1876 court transcript of a West African woman who was enslaved, escaped to British-controlled territory, and took her case to court. The graphic history is followed by an insightful historical context of the story, a reading guide reconstructing and deconstructing the methods used to interpret the story, and strategies for using Abina in classroom settings of various levels. A great study for world history course.
September 26, 2025
While I approached this book as just another graphic novel, the cover states quite clearly that it is something different, a graphic history. It's kind of like a history textbook masquerading as a graphic novel, and I don't say that to criticize it, just to point out that the author and illustrator have different goals and ideas about what their text can accomplish.
In 1876, a woman named Abina demanded her day in court to prove that she was illegally enslaved. The Gold Coast, a part of West Africa where she lived, was controlled by the British, who had abolished slavery many years before. In theory, all of the various British colonies should have ensured that their resource-collecting and trading operations were not being facilitated by slave labour, but in practice, many administrators and "important men" were turning a blind eye in order to maintain a stable workforce and to keep the money flowing without delays or interruptions.
The primary source for this text is a court transcript wherein Abina is questioned by local leaders so they can determine whether she was actually a slave or merely another domestic worker. Abina's main contention, outside of the grey area of being "paid" in lodging, food, and cloth, is the demand that she marries a man that she doesn't know and has no interest in. Although the court eventually rules against her, Abina's testimony is dutifully recorded and her story becomes a tiny part of history that is eventually uncovered by the historians who wrote this book. It was rare for a "normal" person like Abina to have her name and words immortalized, and the authors believed that recreating her testimony in the form of a comic would be a valuable way of talking about history.
The book includes numerous sections explaining the historical context, the Gold Coast region, and the academic approaches to primary sources (like the court transcript) and how they inform secondary sources (like the graphic history). This is a very interesting project, and undeniably valuable for those interested in history and how it is shaped by those that tell it, but because the majority of the action happens inside a local courtroom, there isn't a lot of opportunity to take advantage of the comic format and create something visually interesting. As a result, the comic is informative, but a little bit dry. I think the authors accomplished what they set out to do, it just wasn't as engaging as I had hoped. Still, I haven't read anything quite like this before and I'm glad I decided to give it a shot.
In 1876, a woman named Abina demanded her day in court to prove that she was illegally enslaved. The Gold Coast, a part of West Africa where she lived, was controlled by the British, who had abolished slavery many years before. In theory, all of the various British colonies should have ensured that their resource-collecting and trading operations were not being facilitated by slave labour, but in practice, many administrators and "important men" were turning a blind eye in order to maintain a stable workforce and to keep the money flowing without delays or interruptions.
The primary source for this text is a court transcript wherein Abina is questioned by local leaders so they can determine whether she was actually a slave or merely another domestic worker. Abina's main contention, outside of the grey area of being "paid" in lodging, food, and cloth, is the demand that she marries a man that she doesn't know and has no interest in. Although the court eventually rules against her, Abina's testimony is dutifully recorded and her story becomes a tiny part of history that is eventually uncovered by the historians who wrote this book. It was rare for a "normal" person like Abina to have her name and words immortalized, and the authors believed that recreating her testimony in the form of a comic would be a valuable way of talking about history.
The book includes numerous sections explaining the historical context, the Gold Coast region, and the academic approaches to primary sources (like the court transcript) and how they inform secondary sources (like the graphic history). This is a very interesting project, and undeniably valuable for those interested in history and how it is shaped by those that tell it, but because the majority of the action happens inside a local courtroom, there isn't a lot of opportunity to take advantage of the comic format and create something visually interesting. As a result, the comic is informative, but a little bit dry. I think the authors accomplished what they set out to do, it just wasn't as engaging as I had hoped. Still, I haven't read anything quite like this before and I'm glad I decided to give it a shot.
October 5, 2017
Read this for class, didn't love it. It's a very creative take on history which is cool and all, but it was hard not to be critical of.
March 20, 2013
A bit more about this on my blog.
Outstanding. This book seems to have gone under-the-radar in the broader world and it shouldn't have. I had seen something about it a while back and finally had the time to read it and it is fantastic. It is, as the subtitle indicates, a graphic history. That is, it is a history book and one unapologetically didactic. And as far as I know, pretty unique.
The book consists of several parts. The first is an illustrated "graphic history" (so described in the flap copy) based on the 1876 court transcript of an attempt by Abina, a young West African woman in what is now Ghana and was then termed the Gold Coast to convince the "important men" of the court (jury, judge, lawyers, etc) that she was a free woman not enslaved. It might seem to have been a simple case, but it was not. What the author and illustrator do remarkably well is articulate the complexity of the situation. That is, while slavery by then had been long ostensibly been outlawed in the British Empire (of which the Gold Coast was part) there had also been tacit overlooked versions of it being maintained by wealthy men who helped supply the palm oil then eagerly wanted in Europe. The graphic novel part of the book is moving, compelling, and riveting. The art is well done and artist and author have done an excellent job weaving together what they know with what they imagined about the case and Abina. ( The author says this isn't historical fiction and I suppose it isn't a novel, but he and the illustrator have had to imagine things so I'm not sure what it is then.)
But that isn't all. The graphic story is followed by a facsimile of the transcript, and then a section titled "Historical Context" that provides a clear series of essays on a variety of relevant topic such as "The British Civilizing Mission," "Slavery in the Gold Coast," and "The Atlantic Slave Trade and Abolition." Next comes a section titled "Reading Guide" that is fantastic. The author unpacks the many troubling aspects of attempting to consider the many aspects of the story. And so he considers "Whose Story is This?," "Is this a 'True' Story?," and "Is This 'Authentic' History?" Finally, there is a section on "Abina in the Classroom" with different ways of using it. While the focus is on college teaching, it is clearly accessible to high school students too. The book closes with excellent back matter including the preliminary sketches by the artist for the comic.
There are many, many reasons to find and read this book and to get it into the hands of teens, those who teach high school world history, and more. Not to mention it seems perfection for those needing to address Common Core issues. (For those interested in classroom use I recommend exploring H-Net's Abina Forum which has a number of posts related to its use in the college classroom.)
The most important reason for me is that this is a smart and beautifully done attempt to bring to life one of the silenced. As the author notes, history is told by use of material that we have about the past and too often we don't have anything about so many because they did not leave paper trails. We happen to know about Abina because someone left a transcript of her court case. And because Getz made it his mission to get it out to us.
Highly, highly HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Outstanding. This book seems to have gone under-the-radar in the broader world and it shouldn't have. I had seen something about it a while back and finally had the time to read it and it is fantastic. It is, as the subtitle indicates, a graphic history. That is, it is a history book and one unapologetically didactic. And as far as I know, pretty unique.
The book consists of several parts. The first is an illustrated "graphic history" (so described in the flap copy) based on the 1876 court transcript of an attempt by Abina, a young West African woman in what is now Ghana and was then termed the Gold Coast to convince the "important men" of the court (jury, judge, lawyers, etc) that she was a free woman not enslaved. It might seem to have been a simple case, but it was not. What the author and illustrator do remarkably well is articulate the complexity of the situation. That is, while slavery by then had been long ostensibly been outlawed in the British Empire (of which the Gold Coast was part) there had also been tacit overlooked versions of it being maintained by wealthy men who helped supply the palm oil then eagerly wanted in Europe. The graphic novel part of the book is moving, compelling, and riveting. The art is well done and artist and author have done an excellent job weaving together what they know with what they imagined about the case and Abina. ( The author says this isn't historical fiction and I suppose it isn't a novel, but he and the illustrator have had to imagine things so I'm not sure what it is then.)
But that isn't all. The graphic story is followed by a facsimile of the transcript, and then a section titled "Historical Context" that provides a clear series of essays on a variety of relevant topic such as "The British Civilizing Mission," "Slavery in the Gold Coast," and "The Atlantic Slave Trade and Abolition." Next comes a section titled "Reading Guide" that is fantastic. The author unpacks the many troubling aspects of attempting to consider the many aspects of the story. And so he considers "Whose Story is This?," "Is this a 'True' Story?," and "Is This 'Authentic' History?" Finally, there is a section on "Abina in the Classroom" with different ways of using it. While the focus is on college teaching, it is clearly accessible to high school students too. The book closes with excellent back matter including the preliminary sketches by the artist for the comic.
There are many, many reasons to find and read this book and to get it into the hands of teens, those who teach high school world history, and more. Not to mention it seems perfection for those needing to address Common Core issues. (For those interested in classroom use I recommend exploring H-Net's Abina Forum which has a number of posts related to its use in the college classroom.)
The most important reason for me is that this is a smart and beautifully done attempt to bring to life one of the silenced. As the author notes, history is told by use of material that we have about the past and too often we don't have anything about so many because they did not leave paper trails. We happen to know about Abina because someone left a transcript of her court case. And because Getz made it his mission to get it out to us.
Highly, highly HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
April 21, 2012
A court case in Cape Coast in 1876 is brought to life as a graphic narrative. This book is obviously meant to be used in educational institutions at all levels from high school to university. I found it very interesting and challenging, yet written in such a way that is easy to understand.
January 12, 2024
if every history class let us read graphics to learn history i might’ve remembered more history
December 20, 2021
I'm sure by this point there are other graphic histories like this one, but this is the first I have read, and according to the book's own description, it is the "first of it's kind." It is a collaboration between a historian (Trevor Getz) and an artist (Liz Clarke). The book presents the story of Abina Mansah, a West African woman of the late 19th century. The book is divided into five parts. The first part is the graphic history, and is obviously the focal point for the book. It presents the story in a way that a comic book or graphic novel would, with minimal explanation or set up. Then the next section presents the transcript of the court case involving Abina, which is the key primary source on which the graphic history is based. Then the next section sets up the historical context with an an overview of the region of the Gold Coast (modern day Ghana) and European colonialism in the region. Part four is a reading guide which presents some interesting topics in historical study, philosophy, and ethics that are key to understanding how we write about and learn about history. Last of all, part five is about how to use this book in the classroom. A reader could tackle any of these sections, depending on interest and is laid out in order based on the likely interest of readers.
As a college instructor myself, at the time of this writing, I am considering using this book in my Modern World History survey course. I think it would be quite a good book to use in this way, but also anyone interested in West Africa, world history, or the graphic history approach would find this interesting.
As a college instructor myself, at the time of this writing, I am considering using this book in my Modern World History survey course. I think it would be quite a good book to use in this way, but also anyone interested in West Africa, world history, or the graphic history approach would find this interesting.
November 17, 2020
I had to read this for a class and it was very interesting to read a non-fiction graphic novel. I like that the author decided to do that because it makes a tough and complicated story more easy and accessible to people of all ages. I think that this is a great book to introduce the Transatlantic Slave Trade to younger kids (maybe around the middle school age). I am so happy that Abina’s story was found. There are very few personal stories that exist from the Transatlantic Slave Trade. It is extraordinarily important that we hear these stories and learn more about what African slaves went through.
August 24, 2024
An interesting graphic history covering the case of the enslaved Abina Mansah, who attempted to use the British colonial legal system as an avenue of liberation against her enslaver in the late 1800s British Gold Coast colony. Aside from the story itself, somewhat of a fictionalized account, there is also some of the most accessible discussions of the ideas of Michel-Rolph Trouillet, deconstruction as a historical method (and contrasting it with Derrida's more extreme methods).
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June 5, 2019This short graphic novel shows how evil and oppression can play around the scales of justice, and slavery can mask itself as a legal marriage. It also shows how the writing of history possesses the power to pick and erase certain people.
May 16, 2023
The book was short and simple, I liked how she wanted to make a change in her life. She got tired of her slave owner and decides to revolut.
April 14, 2024
Here is a reflection paper I wrote for a class called "The Historian's Craft." TL;DR: Getz and Clarke's graphic history is a product of intense critical fabulation and embellishments when compared to the court document and Getz tells us what we know for certain with context in the sections after the graphic history.
Question 37 in the 3rd edition: “The author has striven to represent Abina’s story in this volume as more of a “forum” than a “temple.” Do you think this volume succeeds as a forum? Why, or why not? What are the advantages and disadvantages of this approach?”
Abina and the Important Men is much more than just a “graphic history” as labeled on the cover of the book. While the graphic history ended up as a “temple,” or celebratory heritage piece, due to the author’s stance on slavery and want to empower Abena Mensah to counter the oppression she faced from the important men and Ghanaian society in general, the discussions in the pages after it try to reverse the celebratory nature of the graphic history and create a “forum” atmosphere where debates are encouraged and what we know for certain is highlighted along with what is speculation. As you continue to read the entire book, more and more becomes clear about Abena Mensah, Regina v. Quamina Eddoo, and 19th-century Ghanaian society with proper context for what had transpired in the graphic history.
Abina and the Important Men features a spectrum of interpretations for the same events. The first part (the graphic history) is Trevor Getz’s personal interpretation with some retrospectively clear embellishments filling in the gaps for dramatic and narrative effect. He says in his letter to the reader that “Abina and the Important Men [...] is not a work of historical fiction, but instead a history, because it aims for accuracy and authenticity even while recognizing that all historical works are at some level speculative and subjective” (xiv). However, after reading the transcript document, Getz clearly embellished for the sake of telling a story. From pages 8 to 14, for example, the exact dialogues are lost to time and by proxy all the other moments that aren’t in court too. Even then, Getz’s script also differs from the verbatim words in the transcript, as he decided to have Mensah stand up and yell on page 37 despite the fact that there is no proof she actually did that. If Getz wanted the graphic history portion to be more historically accurate, he would have to go against the storytelling practice of showing and not telling, having narration boxes tell the parts that weren’t in the transcript or many footnotes. The former could potentially be executed effectively, however, as there could still be pictures but just not putting words in characters’ mouths except for the ones they actually say. Getz and Clarke humanize Mensah and put her in an engaging and accessible story but at the expense of the historical integrity of the graphic history as a standalone source. However, the more historically accurate parts are after the graphic history, and while not everyone may end up reading them, those who admired the Trojan Horse of the graphic history can learn from the history behind it.
The transcript is the raw primary source that Getz and Clarke based the graphic history on. It is the only surviving documentation of Abena Mensah (or as it was written on the document, “Abina Mansah”). This is the material that the forum surrounds itself with. Parts of the transcript are subjects of debate, such as the scribe's intentions and biases, knowledge about if the court understood the significance of what Mensah meant by the cutting of beads and gifting of cloth, and how accurate the transcript really was since the scribe likely made an error when he wrote “They were all clothed and fed, but not fed” (93). Such debates are tackled in the fourth and fifth parts, but the transcript itself could be a talking piece just like the graphic history; it’s just that the transcript is supposedly less subjective.
The third part of Abina is the historical context for the setting of Abina and the Important Men: late nineteenth-century Ghana. This is further progression to forum territory as Getz is simply sharing the facts about life in Ghana to enhance the audience’s knowledge of the intricacies and nuances to get the audience thinking more critically about the trial and freedom status of Mensah along with how slavery was integrated in Ghana’s society. One of the questions that Getz asks the audience is “How can you, the reader, trust the work we have produced?” (115). This is a clear sign of a desire to initiate a forum setting with the audience. It is also worth noting how Getz goes out of his way to educate the remaining audience about historical terminology and practices like “historicization” (115) in multiple parts, including the letter to the reader.
The reading guide for Abina is structured to be multiphasic to engage the audience at different levels. Getz delves into the philosophy behind creating the graphic history, providing the audience with some of the tools to think for themselves. A prime example of this is when Getz says “Some scholars argue that reconstructing the past is impossible, and that both the tasks of reconstruction and deconstruction lead us only to create versions of the past that are meaningful to us but would be unrecognizable to people living in the past. They argue, in fact, that historians really only construct pasts” (149). Getz even included a short essay on the dichotomy of forums and temples in Level 3 of “Is This ‘Authentic’ History” (152-158) as well as why he prefers forums over temples. He ends the essay by saying “We offer Abina and the Important Men to you as a forum, for better or for worse. If we are authentic to no particular view of the past, we hope that we have given the reader something to think about” (p. 158). Getz didn’t have to acknowledge this ideology which would jeopardize his graphic history’s integrity, but he did for the sake of keeping a forum where each of the book’s parts add to the conversation. Some parts do a better job of this than others, however, as the graphic history alone presents itself as a pure history on the label and not a graphic novel interpretation of a historical document since Getz claimed he wanted it to be accurate, which isn’t really true. Of course, without Getz’s strong want to create a forum and not a temple, it is welcomed and even encouraged to critique his interpretation of Abena Mensah’s history.
The fifth and final part of the third edition actively practices the forum ideology, including multiple essays from other scholars about Mensah’s life as well as two critiques the second edition got from high school students. Before the essays, he proclaims “One way for historians to approach history as a forum rather than a temple is to consider historical works to be living documents rather than dead artifacts” (159). Getz and Clarke breathed new life into the surviving document with the graphic history and they are part of the reason Abena Mensah is still talked about today. Getz continues, “comments and other feedback helped us to refine our narrative and increase the accuracy of our interpretation and contextual information” (162). Instead of sweeping the incidents under the metaphorical rug, Getz acknowledges and responds to the criticism Abina and the Important Men got and refined the narrative he portrayed. “two students objected to the way we had portrayed the magistrate, William Melton. Specifically, they rebelled against my phrase ‘History must not judge William Melton too harshly. He believed strongly in doing what was right.’ The students asked why readers should be expected to express empathy towards a colonizer and agent of an oppressive system. One student emphatically asked, ‘What right do you think you have as a historian to say that history cannot judge a colonizer?’” (p. 195). Getz then dissects where he went wrong in his wording when writing that narration for Melton. The other argument was about the exploitation of Black suffering for capital gain, but Getz defends the depictions and says how Mensah would want that part of her story told with the rest of her life. Getz evidently participates in the debates in this forum environment. Getz even puts his email on page 202 to keep the forum alive.
The graphic history portion of Abina and the Important Men does not practice the forum format as it asserts Getz’s personal beliefs about Mensah’s life. However, the rest of the book tries to get the remaining audience to think critically about the circumstances and come to their own conclusion on what to believe, bringing the forum atmosphere with it. The remaining audience is most likely retained because they are genuinely interested in the history and debate on the topics surrounding the case, but the ones who didn’t stay most likely just wanted to read it because of how it’s accessible to read a graphic novel over a history book. A forum is nothing without people to talk about subjects with, and not everyone who reads the graphic history portion will participate in the forum. Getz tried to make the history accessible to varying degrees of effectiveness, but he was honest and thorough and his efforts weren’t in vain because people are still talking about Abena Mensah in a forum.
Question 37 in the 3rd edition: “The author has striven to represent Abina’s story in this volume as more of a “forum” than a “temple.” Do you think this volume succeeds as a forum? Why, or why not? What are the advantages and disadvantages of this approach?”
Abina and the Important Men is much more than just a “graphic history” as labeled on the cover of the book. While the graphic history ended up as a “temple,” or celebratory heritage piece, due to the author’s stance on slavery and want to empower Abena Mensah to counter the oppression she faced from the important men and Ghanaian society in general, the discussions in the pages after it try to reverse the celebratory nature of the graphic history and create a “forum” atmosphere where debates are encouraged and what we know for certain is highlighted along with what is speculation. As you continue to read the entire book, more and more becomes clear about Abena Mensah, Regina v. Quamina Eddoo, and 19th-century Ghanaian society with proper context for what had transpired in the graphic history.
Abina and the Important Men features a spectrum of interpretations for the same events. The first part (the graphic history) is Trevor Getz’s personal interpretation with some retrospectively clear embellishments filling in the gaps for dramatic and narrative effect. He says in his letter to the reader that “Abina and the Important Men [...] is not a work of historical fiction, but instead a history, because it aims for accuracy and authenticity even while recognizing that all historical works are at some level speculative and subjective” (xiv). However, after reading the transcript document, Getz clearly embellished for the sake of telling a story. From pages 8 to 14, for example, the exact dialogues are lost to time and by proxy all the other moments that aren’t in court too. Even then, Getz’s script also differs from the verbatim words in the transcript, as he decided to have Mensah stand up and yell on page 37 despite the fact that there is no proof she actually did that. If Getz wanted the graphic history portion to be more historically accurate, he would have to go against the storytelling practice of showing and not telling, having narration boxes tell the parts that weren’t in the transcript or many footnotes. The former could potentially be executed effectively, however, as there could still be pictures but just not putting words in characters’ mouths except for the ones they actually say. Getz and Clarke humanize Mensah and put her in an engaging and accessible story but at the expense of the historical integrity of the graphic history as a standalone source. However, the more historically accurate parts are after the graphic history, and while not everyone may end up reading them, those who admired the Trojan Horse of the graphic history can learn from the history behind it.
The transcript is the raw primary source that Getz and Clarke based the graphic history on. It is the only surviving documentation of Abena Mensah (or as it was written on the document, “Abina Mansah”). This is the material that the forum surrounds itself with. Parts of the transcript are subjects of debate, such as the scribe's intentions and biases, knowledge about if the court understood the significance of what Mensah meant by the cutting of beads and gifting of cloth, and how accurate the transcript really was since the scribe likely made an error when he wrote “They were all clothed and fed, but not fed” (93). Such debates are tackled in the fourth and fifth parts, but the transcript itself could be a talking piece just like the graphic history; it’s just that the transcript is supposedly less subjective.
The third part of Abina is the historical context for the setting of Abina and the Important Men: late nineteenth-century Ghana. This is further progression to forum territory as Getz is simply sharing the facts about life in Ghana to enhance the audience’s knowledge of the intricacies and nuances to get the audience thinking more critically about the trial and freedom status of Mensah along with how slavery was integrated in Ghana’s society. One of the questions that Getz asks the audience is “How can you, the reader, trust the work we have produced?” (115). This is a clear sign of a desire to initiate a forum setting with the audience. It is also worth noting how Getz goes out of his way to educate the remaining audience about historical terminology and practices like “historicization” (115) in multiple parts, including the letter to the reader.
The reading guide for Abina is structured to be multiphasic to engage the audience at different levels. Getz delves into the philosophy behind creating the graphic history, providing the audience with some of the tools to think for themselves. A prime example of this is when Getz says “Some scholars argue that reconstructing the past is impossible, and that both the tasks of reconstruction and deconstruction lead us only to create versions of the past that are meaningful to us but would be unrecognizable to people living in the past. They argue, in fact, that historians really only construct pasts” (149). Getz even included a short essay on the dichotomy of forums and temples in Level 3 of “Is This ‘Authentic’ History” (152-158) as well as why he prefers forums over temples. He ends the essay by saying “We offer Abina and the Important Men to you as a forum, for better or for worse. If we are authentic to no particular view of the past, we hope that we have given the reader something to think about” (p. 158). Getz didn’t have to acknowledge this ideology which would jeopardize his graphic history’s integrity, but he did for the sake of keeping a forum where each of the book’s parts add to the conversation. Some parts do a better job of this than others, however, as the graphic history alone presents itself as a pure history on the label and not a graphic novel interpretation of a historical document since Getz claimed he wanted it to be accurate, which isn’t really true. Of course, without Getz’s strong want to create a forum and not a temple, it is welcomed and even encouraged to critique his interpretation of Abena Mensah’s history.
The fifth and final part of the third edition actively practices the forum ideology, including multiple essays from other scholars about Mensah’s life as well as two critiques the second edition got from high school students. Before the essays, he proclaims “One way for historians to approach history as a forum rather than a temple is to consider historical works to be living documents rather than dead artifacts” (159). Getz and Clarke breathed new life into the surviving document with the graphic history and they are part of the reason Abena Mensah is still talked about today. Getz continues, “comments and other feedback helped us to refine our narrative and increase the accuracy of our interpretation and contextual information” (162). Instead of sweeping the incidents under the metaphorical rug, Getz acknowledges and responds to the criticism Abina and the Important Men got and refined the narrative he portrayed. “two students objected to the way we had portrayed the magistrate, William Melton. Specifically, they rebelled against my phrase ‘History must not judge William Melton too harshly. He believed strongly in doing what was right.’ The students asked why readers should be expected to express empathy towards a colonizer and agent of an oppressive system. One student emphatically asked, ‘What right do you think you have as a historian to say that history cannot judge a colonizer?’” (p. 195). Getz then dissects where he went wrong in his wording when writing that narration for Melton. The other argument was about the exploitation of Black suffering for capital gain, but Getz defends the depictions and says how Mensah would want that part of her story told with the rest of her life. Getz evidently participates in the debates in this forum environment. Getz even puts his email on page 202 to keep the forum alive.
The graphic history portion of Abina and the Important Men does not practice the forum format as it asserts Getz’s personal beliefs about Mensah’s life. However, the rest of the book tries to get the remaining audience to think critically about the circumstances and come to their own conclusion on what to believe, bringing the forum atmosphere with it. The remaining audience is most likely retained because they are genuinely interested in the history and debate on the topics surrounding the case, but the ones who didn’t stay most likely just wanted to read it because of how it’s accessible to read a graphic novel over a history book. A forum is nothing without people to talk about subjects with, and not everyone who reads the graphic history portion will participate in the forum. Getz tried to make the history accessible to varying degrees of effectiveness, but he was honest and thorough and his efforts weren’t in vain because people are still talking about Abena Mensah in a forum.
October 12, 2015
I read this anticipating a graphic novel depicting the story of an African woman facing down "the Important Men" to get what she felt was her due. And I got that. But Abina and the Important Men is much more of a lesson on how to be a historian than it is a graphic portrayal of a historical event.
Getz does an admirable job---in my admittedly non-historian perspective---of showing how historians do their work: looking at primary sources of several varieties, piecing together the context for those sources, taking into consideration their own biases, painstakingly sketching in a deeper understanding of the past, and opening themselves to the critical assessments and alternate perspectives of their fellow historians. For that reason, I'd say that Abina is an excellent introduction for any hopeful future historians.
As a graphic novel, it's entertaining, but while Abina's story matters, it's only the beginning of a journey this book encourages its reader to undertake.
Getz does an admirable job---in my admittedly non-historian perspective---of showing how historians do their work: looking at primary sources of several varieties, piecing together the context for those sources, taking into consideration their own biases, painstakingly sketching in a deeper understanding of the past, and opening themselves to the critical assessments and alternate perspectives of their fellow historians. For that reason, I'd say that Abina is an excellent introduction for any hopeful future historians.
As a graphic novel, it's entertaining, but while Abina's story matters, it's only the beginning of a journey this book encourages its reader to undertake.
February 17, 2016
I only skimmed and browsed this book. Don't recall where I found it. The graphic part is kind of ... average and uninteresting, probably because it was meant to be serious. The entire book is a work of history, as it examines the persistence of slavery in the Gold Coast(now Ghana) in the later 19th century. I once had a conversation with a guy from Guinea(farther north along the W. African coast) who told me that his father had slaves. That was about 1998 and the guy was almost 60, so that would put the slave-owning at about 1940. It probably still exists in various places, even in the USA, where wealthy, immigrant East Indian families have been known to "possess" housekeepers.
February 27, 2021
This graphic history is an adaptation of a court transcript of a girl who took her slave owner to court in 1876 West Africa. She lost the case, but her story remained in that transcript until historian Trevor R. Getz teamed up with artist Liz Clarke to recreated Abina's life in this non-fiction graphic novel. I really enjoyed this book, especially with the historical context explained in the back. I don't read that many graphic novels, and I love how this book attempts to combine the lightness of a graphic novel with the complexity of history. I highly recommend this book if you're curious to learn more about African history but don't want to start with a big, scary textbook.
March 15, 2019
THIS EXCELLENT BOOK is comprised of three parts. The graphics, the transcripts, and a historical/reading guide/questions that address women's rights as well as racial inequality. A good gateway into colonialism and the collusion of some of Africans.
April 6, 2019
"Philosopher and historian Michel-Rolph Trouillot says that history is an act of silencing, in which those without power are silenced and those with power are able to speak. This silencing takes place in four stages: First, only some perspectives on the past are ever recorded as documents. Others--the perspectives of the poor, the powerless, the illiterate--are never heard. Second, only some documents ever make it to be archived. Others are lost to decay or consigned to the trash. Third, only some archived material is ever turned into histories by historians who decide what is important enough to write about, and what isn't. Finally, only some histories are chosen by the powerful to be in the canon, the list of great books and important topics that are widely read. Following her testimony, the book was closed on the story of Abina Mansah for 125 years. She was indeed silenced by history...As if nobody had heard her at all..." And then in 2012 this graphic history gets published and Abina's story finds itself at the center of a very interesting text. This book is half graphic history (comic format) and the other half is written in traditional text and contains academic research, including primary source material (court transcript), pedagogical on how to teach this text, and definitions related to the study of history and what it means to be a historian. I really like the comic portion of this text and I found myself wondering how Abina managed to gather the courage to sue her former master and I wanted more of her backstory. And, as a HUGE BONUS for all the research loving nerds out there, the resource material in the back is amazing and it really made me think about the study of history and the texts that are used to teach/study history. It also does an excellent addressing how one would go about vetting source material and dealing with bias, including one's own as it relates to the topic and source material.
June 26, 2022
As we progress through time, history accumulates, and what we end up learning in history class is generalized, and history from "the losers' perspective" falls through the cracks and rarely gets recognized. To begin with, my high school global history classes by no means covered African history. We mainly covered civilizations and countries from Europe, Latin America, and Asia. And, even when we dove into histories about war, we overlooked how painfully war impacted the people involved.. we forget that humans like us participated in this history.
The author's purpose of "Abina and The Important Men" is to highlight a micro-history... a story of a young Ghanan woman in 1876... during the recent British colonization of Ghana. Under British rule, slavery was deemed illegal, and Abina wanted to exercise this ruling to sue her master.
I found this story in the graphic novel section of a secondhand bookstore, and am so glad I did. This book not only tells a story(in some ways it is dramatized, just like any other day story), but the primary source from which the author depicted the story. The author also provides an explanation of the difference between primary and secondary sources, and how important it is for readers to interact with non-fiction texts... by being critical thinkers.... being skeptical... etc. .
Highly recommend this to English and History High School teachers. I am in ENL teacher, and would recommend to my high school counterparts if given the opportunity... and I would definitely lead a lesson about this. I am now looking for microhistory narratives like this among many cultures and ask for recommendations
The author's purpose of "Abina and The Important Men" is to highlight a micro-history... a story of a young Ghanan woman in 1876... during the recent British colonization of Ghana. Under British rule, slavery was deemed illegal, and Abina wanted to exercise this ruling to sue her master.
I found this story in the graphic novel section of a secondhand bookstore, and am so glad I did. This book not only tells a story(in some ways it is dramatized, just like any other day story), but the primary source from which the author depicted the story. The author also provides an explanation of the difference between primary and secondary sources, and how important it is for readers to interact with non-fiction texts... by being critical thinkers.... being skeptical... etc. .
Highly recommend this to English and History High School teachers. I am in ENL teacher, and would recommend to my high school counterparts if given the opportunity... and I would definitely lead a lesson about this. I am now looking for microhistory narratives like this among many cultures and ask for recommendations
October 18, 2017
History is more than a retelling of a story. There are always several points of view to consider. One must also recognize that just because a person was not wealthy, in a seat of power or a well-known citizen should not invalidate what perspective a person has to offer. We are realizing that people of low status or impoverished or slaves have often not had their stories archived. In the past it was was (sadly and horribly) thought that their stories would not have much to offer. However, we have realized that is wrong. Every single ancestor has something we can learn from their life.
Abina is the hope that this can be righted. Her story came from a manuscript of a trial she was a part of. Thanks to the historians/writers of this story her voice is no longer silenced. She can show us the being a slave did not have to mean one was beaten and starved. it simply meant she did not have the freedom to make her own decisions for her life.
This graphic novel form offers a great way to educate people via the story and artwork. Enjoyable and found this to be an important topic. One I cannot ignore.
Abina is the hope that this can be righted. Her story came from a manuscript of a trial she was a part of. Thanks to the historians/writers of this story her voice is no longer silenced. She can show us the being a slave did not have to mean one was beaten and starved. it simply meant she did not have the freedom to make her own decisions for her life.
This graphic novel form offers a great way to educate people via the story and artwork. Enjoyable and found this to be an important topic. One I cannot ignore.
April 23, 2019
An interesting book, both in its account of a girl/woman* enslaved in the Gold Coast in the last 1800s and of how stories like this are lost, found, and retold. The supplemental material takes up well over 1/2 the book but, while not engrossingly interesting, does add significantly to the story.
*Whether Abina Mansah is a girl or woman is very confusing. The text refers to her multiple times as a girl. She also says that, in the house where she was enslaved, the oldest other enslaved girl was 13. It is unclear whether the 13-year-old was older than Abina herself. The illustrations, however, clearly show Abina as a fully-grown woman (who also goes from being shirtless when her back is to the reader to clothed when she's forward-facing, all instantaneously and within the same scene). Either the illustrator, Liz Clarke, is collapsing "woman" with "girl" in a very sexist way or Clarke is "aging" a West African girl into adulthood, thereby perpetuating racist notions of Black children as older and more mature than they actually are.
Still, a book that is worth reading.
*Whether Abina Mansah is a girl or woman is very confusing. The text refers to her multiple times as a girl. She also says that, in the house where she was enslaved, the oldest other enslaved girl was 13. It is unclear whether the 13-year-old was older than Abina herself. The illustrations, however, clearly show Abina as a fully-grown woman (who also goes from being shirtless when her back is to the reader to clothed when she's forward-facing, all instantaneously and within the same scene). Either the illustrator, Liz Clarke, is collapsing "woman" with "girl" in a very sexist way or Clarke is "aging" a West African girl into adulthood, thereby perpetuating racist notions of Black children as older and more mature than they actually are.
Still, a book that is worth reading.
January 5, 2020
This graphic history is divided into five parts. The first part is the graphic history itself which is beautifully illustrated with compelling dialogue. In this graphic section, Abina, a West African slave in 1876 goes to court to protest her wrongful enslavement. The second section of the book is the actual transcript of the trial, allowing the reader to compare the graphic depiction with the archival material. The third section provides the historical context for the trial including information about West Africa, slavery and the British Civilizing Mission. The fourth section of the book is a reading guide, and the final section includes essays by noted experts in the field commenting on Abina and her place in history. Overall the book is extremely thoughtful and well executed. I recommend this book for nonfiction readers who are interested in exploring a graphic expression of history.
October 25, 2017
An extraordinary book that should be read as more than a graphic history. In fact, the graphic novel portion was far from what made the book great. While the illustrations help readers visualize and engage with the primary source, a fairly dry court transcript, the best parts of the book are where the writers go back through the process of creating the book and their approaches to writing this kind of history. In the second edition they even go so far as to engage with critics and responses to the books, adding a new section and literally going back and making changes based on feedback. The discussions of the local history, plus introductions to historical questions of gender, the colonial encounter and slavery add rich context for understanding the narrative. Rarely, if ever, have I encountered a book that is so transparent about the writing process as this one.
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September 8, 2024Read for class. I think it's fascinating that the author and illustrator were able to put together the history of a woman just through something as short as a court case. I think the entire reading guide section is the most important aspect of this book and cannot go ignored. All history is biased and objectionably untrue because it is made by people who were not physically there. Even if the narrative is based on primary sources like the court case, the court case transcription itself could be biased. But what's important is historians trying their best to empathetically and responsibly paint a picture of what could and most likely did happen. It's arduous but compelling and important work.
January 16, 2023
I was assigned this book in a 300 level uni class. I thought the graphic history was captivating and informative. I also found the preface and historical context(s) continuously reiterated HOW Abina’s story was constructed and why her story is so important. The latter was so refreshing and eye opening as we often get caught up studying leaders but not the people.
This is not something you read because you love graphic stories as the art wasn’t spectacular for me. You read this for history and to be critical of history and how we study it.
4.5 stars because any work of academia is never perfect, especially with its inaccessible language. This story did OK with language.
This is not something you read because you love graphic stories as the art wasn’t spectacular for me. You read this for history and to be critical of history and how we study it.
4.5 stars because any work of academia is never perfect, especially with its inaccessible language. This story did OK with language.
October 2, 2020
The graphic novel of this illustrates a long-forgotten case brought by a female slave in the Gold Coast after slavery was supposed to have been ended. I love nonfiction historical graphic novels, and this was accompanied by a transcript of the actual court case, a lot of historical background, discussion questions -- basically everything to make this a teaching unit for a school system. Really neat.
November 30, 2020
I really enjoyed reading this book and learning more about Abina`s story. This book does a great job of giving voice to someone in history that was once voiceless. The fact that this book was a graphic novel made it more interesting to read, Abina`s emotions were felt on each page. Through this book I was also able to see how gender, and money influences societies negatively which can initiate a lot of discussion amongst peers. The only downside was that much of the text is fictionalized.
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