Andrew Joins the Discussion

A freshman in Professor Hunt's African history class, Andrew Goddeeris wrote that Curse "...utilizes a constant symbiotic relationship between images and words to weave a complex narrative about the oil industry in Nigeria and its disastrous effects on the environment, politics, and citizens. Kashi and Watts’ book is able to both captivate and alarm, fascinate and anger, bewilder and outrage."

"One of the book’s most powerful and important images [cover & spread pgs. 66-67]...Two men, faces unseen, stand a few feet from the camera, soaked in oil, as they take a break from haphazardly cleaning up an oil spill. The photo is a remarkable metaphor for the role of oil in Nigeria as a whole. Clogging each pore, covering every inch of skin, the oil clings to the men, coating them in a substance with immense value, but a substance whose economic benefits they have yet to receive. The men are Nigeria. Just as they are drenched with oil, so to is Nigeria."

"If this incredibly powerful image is a metaphor for the larger picture of oil in Nigeria, the piece 'Oil Fever' by Nnimmo Bassey (p. 90-1) provides a razor-sharp insight into a specific aspect of the nature of the oil industry. ...one dominated by disaster capitalism...As long as disaster is profitable for such a wide range of powerful people...there is little incentive for those same people to increase transparency and operate with the interests of the people of Nigeria in mind."

Andrew's comments on Ibiwari Ikiriko's poem “Under Pressure”, identified the use of "...short, simple syntax and striking exclamations of 'Danger!' 'Death!' and 'Warning!'...to paint a picture not only of the daily hazards Nigerians face as a result of the oil companies, but also of a way of life changed by the invading petrol giants... ...with the words [from the poem]...hauntingly located next to a startling picture of an oil fire blazing out of control...The effect is a palpable sense of heat, or danger, and of wanton neglect for the safety of the Nigerian people by the oil companies and government."

"The combination of Ed Kashi’s remarkable images and the articles and poetry assembled by Professor Michael Watts in Curse of the Black Gold provokes not only a much deeper understanding of the horrible situation of oil in Nigeria, but it also provokes anger and indignation at the atrocities committed in the Niger Delta in the name of oil and the urgent need to effect change."

Andrew, thank you for your contribution and eloquent words.

Please read all of Andrew's essay by clicking below.

Andrew Goddeeris
CAAS 247-003

Images and Text in Curse of the Black Gold

Photographer Ed Kashi and Professor Michael Watts’ stunning book Curse of the Black Gold utilizes a constant symbiotic relationship between images and words to weave a complex narrative about the oil industry in Nigeria and its disastrous effects on the environment, politics, and citizens. Through rich, moving photographs from Kashi’s expedition to the oil-rich Western African nation and vibrant, passionate pieces from African authors, Curse of the Black Gold becomes a powerful statement on the destructiveness of the extractive petro-economy. Curse of the Black Gold is a triumph of the relationship between photographs and words and their ability to arouse indignation and inspire change. By combining startling, fantastic visual aids with concrete, quantifiable written pieces, Kashi and Watts’ book is able to both captivate and alarm, fascinate and anger, bewilder and outrage.

One of the book’s most powerful and important images is featured prominently on the cover, and is also found as a stunning two page spread on pages 66 and 67. Two men, faces unseen, stand a few feet from the camera, soaked in oil, as they take a break from haphazardly cleaning up an oil spill. The photo is a remarkable metaphor for the role of oil in Nigeria as a whole. Clogging each pore, covering every inch of skin, the oil clings to the men, coating them in a substance with immense value, but a substance whose economic benefits they have yet to receive. The men are Nigeria. Just as they are drenched with oil, so to is Nigeria. Oil is commerce, is politics, is a way of life. Oil is omnipresent in Nigeria, dictating and shaping life in the cities and Delta alike. The men cannot clean themselves of the oil that permeates their skin, and Nigeria cannot rid itself of the oil that lies beneath its soil. The men have been hired to clean up an oil spill, and this signifies how, for seemingly many, many years to come, Nigerians will be cleaning up after the careless, destructive oil companies that are happy to abuse Nigeria for profit.

If this incredibly powerful image is a metaphor for the larger picture of oil in Nigeria, the piece “Oil Fever” by Nnimmo Bassey (p. 90-1) provides a razor-sharp insight into a specific aspect of the nature of the oil industry. The article explains that the oil industry is one dominated by disaster capitalism, that is companies that benefit from gas flaring, oil spills, and the other associated natural and manmade disasters that stem from oil extraction and production. As long as disaster is profitable for such a wide range of powerful people – from government officials to C.E.O.s – there is little incentive for those same people to increase transparency and operate with the interests of the people of Nigeria in mind. With the image of two oil-slick men fresh in the reader’s mind, this article enforces the desperation of the situation and the crucial need for power to be restored to the people of Nigeria in lieu of the oil cartels and their beneficiaries. While the image arouses notions of an extensive, corrupt industry that pays locals to clean up its messes, the article solidifies and consolidates outrage against the oil institution that is so predatory and grossly capitalistic in its methods and practices by putting a face on the perpetrators of such heinous and destructive acts and the damage they cause.

One of the most moving pieces in Curse of the Black Gold is the poem by Ibiwari Ikiriko entitled “Under Pressure” (p. 98). Using short, simple syntax and striking exclamations of “Danger!” “Death!” and “Warning!” Ikiriko paints a picture not only of the daily hazards Nigerians face as a result of the oil companies, but also of a way of life changed by the invading petrol giants. “Trespassers will be compressed. Roasted. Melted.” The words are hauntingly located next to a startling picture of an oil fire blazing out of control. The effect is a palpable sense of heat, or danger, and of wanton neglect for the safety of the Nigerian people by the oil companies and government. One gets the sense that people truly are roasted or melted by the pipelines, and the combination of strong, startling words with an actual application of the words in a very real setting has the effect of impressing upon the reader not only the constant danger facing Nigerian people but also the lawlessness oil companies operate under and the failures of government to protect its citizens.

By combining startling, fantastic visual aids with concrete, quantifiable written pieces, Kashi and Watts’ book is able to both captivate and alarm, fascinate and anger. These images and pieces illuminate two very important aspects of the oil industry in Nigeria. First, oil is all encompassing, playing a massive role in commerce, politics, and daily life. Because of this huge spectrum of influence, oil is a remarkably profitable industry, and one that is self-reproducing precisely because of things like the profitability of its disasters. When companies and government win in all cases, even disaster, not only is there no incentive to avoid disaster, but also more importantly there is no incentive to change the atrocious status quo. Secondly, the oil industry is remarkably destructive and dangerous, and it is largely the failings of government that allow the environment to be ravaged and Nigerians to be burned, maimed, and killed. The combination of Ed Kashi’s remarkable images and the articles and poetry assembled by Professor Michael Watts in Curse of the Black Gold provokes not only a much deeper understanding of the horrible situation of oil in Nigeria, but it also provokes anger and indignation at the atrocities committed in the Niger Delta in the name of oil and the urgent need to effect change.