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Book report: King Leopold's Ghost (part 1)
Mar. 1st, 2007 08:19 pmSeems like almost everyone was forced to read Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness during high school. I barely remember it, so I was dubious when someone recommended King Leopold's Ghost by Adam Hochschild. If Conrad couldn't make the Belgian Congo of 1890 memorable in fiction, surely the mere facts would be less interesting still.
As it happens, the facts of the case are more interesting than the fiction. It's a surprisingly modern story in many ways. There's greed and financial chicanery on a massive scale, celebrities visiting Africa, enormous numbers of civilian deaths, atrocities, spin control, and official coverups spanning decades.
The story starts with King Leopold of Belgium, a king who might have been happier as a con man, and his search for a colony. All the other cool countries in Europe had at least one, and Leopold was determined not to be left out. There was just one problem; there weren't many suitable places left. Through the use of front groups and a variety of tricky manoevers, Leopold managed to obtain title to a vast area of central Africa that was nearly inaccessible at the time.
Stay tuned for part 2...
As it happens, the facts of the case are more interesting than the fiction. It's a surprisingly modern story in many ways. There's greed and financial chicanery on a massive scale, celebrities visiting Africa, enormous numbers of civilian deaths, atrocities, spin control, and official coverups spanning decades.
The story starts with King Leopold of Belgium, a king who might have been happier as a con man, and his search for a colony. All the other cool countries in Europe had at least one, and Leopold was determined not to be left out. There was just one problem; there weren't many suitable places left. Through the use of front groups and a variety of tricky manoevers, Leopold managed to obtain title to a vast area of central Africa that was nearly inaccessible at the time.
Stay tuned for part 2...
