Jürgen Kocka and other historians of capitalism rarely discuss domestic capitalism in Africa before the period of European colonization, implicitly...
GMAT Information and Ideas : (Ideas) Questions
Jürgen Kocka and other historians of capitalism rarely discuss domestic capitalism in Africa before the period of European colonization, implicitly presenting capitalism as external to and imposed on Africa. Crislayne Alfagali and other Africanist scholars have shown, however, that in parts of Africa, returns-focused investment, the establishment of open markets for wage labor, and other features of capitalism predated colonization. One reason for this discrepancy is that historians of capitalism tend to focus on longitudinal economic data drawn from archival records, which do not exist for much of precolonial Africa.
Which statement about Alfagali and other Africanist scholars is best supported by information in the text?
They likely make use of different types of evidence than historians of capitalism typically rely on.
They likely differ from historians of capitalism in the methods they use to derive longitudinal economic data from archival records.
They likely have a different view about which activities should be considered capitalist in nature than historians of capitalism do.
They likely view capitalism as having been more beneficial for Africa than historians of capitalism do.
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| 'Jürgen Kocka and other historians of capitalism rarely discuss domestic capitalism in Africa before the period of European colonization, implicitly presenting capitalism as external to and imposed on Africa.' |
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| 'Crislayne Alfagali and other Africanist scholars have shown, however, that in parts of Africa, returns-focused investment, the establishment of open markets for wage labor, and other features of capitalism predated colonization.' |
|
| 'One reason for this discrepancy is that historians of capitalism tend to focus on longitudinal economic data drawn from archival records, which do not exist for much of precolonial Africa.' |
|
Part B: Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Two groups of historians disagree about whether capitalism existed in precolonial Africa, partly because they rely on different types of evidence sources.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
- What's being asked? The question asks what statement about Alfagali and other Africanist scholars is best supported by the text.
- What type of answer do we need? We need an inference about these scholars based on information provided in the passage.
- Any limiting keywords? None
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- From our analysis, Africanist scholars have shown capitalism existed in precolonial Africa, while historians of capitalism rarely discuss this period
- The passage explains this discrepancy by noting that historians of capitalism focus on archival records, which don't exist for precolonial Africa
- This suggests that Africanist scholars must be finding their evidence somewhere else - they're not relying on the same archival records that historians of capitalism use
They likely make use of different types of evidence than historians of capitalism typically rely on.
✓ Correct
- This directly matches our analysis
- If historians of capitalism rely on archival records that don't exist for precolonial Africa, but Africanist scholars have still found evidence of precolonial capitalism, they must be using different types of evidence
They likely differ from historians of capitalism in the methods they use to derive longitudinal economic data from archival records.
✗ Incorrect
- This suggests Africanist scholars use different methods to work with the same archival records
- The passage clearly states that archival records do not exist for much of precolonial Africa
They likely have a different view about which activities should be considered capitalist in nature than historians of capitalism do.
✗ Incorrect
- This suggests they disagree about what activities count as capitalist
- The passage shows both groups recognize the same features as capitalist; they just disagree about whether these existed in precolonial Africa
They likely view capitalism as having been more beneficial for Africa than historians of capitalism do.
✗ Incorrect
- This introduces the concept of capitalism being beneficial, which the passage never discusses
- The disagreement is about existence/timing, not about whether capitalism was good or bad for Africa