Monday, September 20, 2010

End of Discussion Questions

1. Do you believe the actions Leopold took against the people in Congo were necessary for what Leopold wanted to achieve?

I believe that Leopold’s were not necessary for what Leopold wanted to achieve. I believe that if he went into Africa with a different attitude about who the Africans were, they could have worked out a deal to get what he wanted. But since Leopold never made the journey to Africa, he had to go on what Henry Morton Stanley was saying. But I can also understand why Leopold did what he did. With his use of force, he was able to control the people of Africa for himself. He was able to gain more control over the area faster. Though I believe what he did was morally wrong, I understand that he wanted to see profit coming in from Africa.

2. What went well and how could we improve on the discussion:

What went well during the discussion is almost everyone talked. Though one person did not talk that much I believe that it was a much calmer environment which allowed everyone to feel to share. The ways we can improve is trying to stay on task. I believe that sometimes we would end up getting off task, but I we always got back on track. I believe that every comment was thought about thoughtfully despite one persons view that his comments would not be thought about thoughtfully.

Sunday, September 19, 2010

King Leopold’s Ghost: Discussion Questions Homework

1. Is King Leopold brilliant, or is he ignorant?

I believe that King Leopold was both brilliant and ignorant at the same time. What made him so brilliant was how he was able to manipulate a situation to make it better for what he wanted to achieve, and he wanted to conquer Congo. I find it interesting that even though people wrote letters and articles about what is actually going on in Congo, people still believed Leopold was not lying to them and that his work in Congo was for the betterment of the people in Congo. What made Leopold ignorant was that he didn’t care about the people of Congo. He did not realize that the Africans were just like him. Though they did not believe in the same thing, they were still people and not animals.


2. Do you believe the actions Leopold took against the people in Congo were necessary for what Leopold wanted to achieve?

I believe that Leopold’s were not necessary for what Leopold wanted to achieve. I believe that if he went into Africa with a different attitude about who the Africans were, they could have worked out a deal to get what he wanted. But since Leopold never made the journey to Africa, he had to go on what Henry Morton Stanley was saying. But I can also understand why Leopold did what he did. With his use of force, he was able to control the people of Africa for himself. He was able to gain more control over the area faster. Though I believe what he did was morally wrong, I understand that he wanted to see profit coming in from Africa.


3. If Africans weren’t fighting Africans before Leopold showed up, do you believe that they would be able to defeat Leopold’s Army?

I believe that could have gone either way. I believe that if all the Africans were able to meet up and fight against Leopold, they would have a shot to defeat them. But since only small groups were getting together to try and stop Leopold, they were unsuccessful. I also believe that the Africans would have a difficult time going against the Army’s firepower. Since the Africans were nowhere close to the firepower that Leopold’s army had, it would be almost impossible to be victorious.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

King Leopold's Ghost: 32-60

1: King Leopold Quote: "I am very busy here going through the Indies archives and calculating the profit where Spain made then and makes now out of her colonies." The man whose future empire would be intertwined with the twentieth-century multinational corporation began by studying the records of the conquistadors. (27)

-This is a quote that leads up to what King Leopold wanted to do while he was King of Belgium. First, he wanted to make Belgium the riches colony and the way he would be doing that is by force.

2: Henry Morton Stanley Quote: "Stanley was always uncomfortable with anyone whose talents might outshine his own. From the twelve hundred men who applied to join the expedition, some of them highly experienced travelers, he chose three unsuitable companions.... None of the three had had any experience exploring" (49)

-This quote explains Stanley perfectly because he always wanted to be the famous man. When everyone was looking for him he vanished, but then made a grand entrance when he sent a letter needing help. When he came back from the trip he was found to be telling lies about part of the trip. When Leopold picked him for his next expedition, this quote came in.

3. Affirmative Quote: "Leopold's letters and memos, forever badgering someone about acquiring a colony, seem to be in the voice of a person starved for love as a child and now filled with an obsessive desire for an emotional substitute, the way someone becomes embroiled in an endless dispute with a brother or sister over an inheritance, or with a neighbor over a property boundary". (38)

-I agree with this quote because I believe that Leopold was missing something in his life sense he did not have a good childhood. He was left with the feeling of wanting more and what he wanted was power. When he heard of other countries creating a colony in a country, he was upset that Belgium was not getting rich off another colony.

Questions:

1. Why did King Leopold and Henry Morton Stanley have a strong connection?
2. What do you think the Africans reaction was to Henry Morton Stanley?

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

King Leopold's Ghost: 1-32

For the first time in a long time, I was intrigued by an history reading. During the introduction and the first chapter, it talked about Europeans and the Portuguese taking over Africa. It also shed light on the well know expeditioner Henry Morton Stanley (John Rowlands).

The quote that intrigued me the most during this reading was on page 12.

"But virtually everything we know about this part of Africa for the next several hundred years comes to us from its white conquerors, King Affonso I provides something rare and valuable: an African voice"

This quote intrigued me because I really started looking into King Affonso. What I began to realize was that, Europeans began to take notice in him because he was educated. They could not believe that he was more like them than any other African. With this education, King Affonso understood that the African people were being taken advantage of. Though he tried to argue with the European Kings, he could not win. He knew that he couldn't do anything about slavery because he didn't have the resources and man power to fight the Europeans.


Questions:

1. If it wasn't for the myths, do you believe that the Europeans would still be intrigued with Africa?

2. If the African people had the same education as the Europeans, like King Affonso, do you believe they would still be taken as slaves?

Thursday, September 2, 2010

HIstory Notes: 9/2

1. During today's class, I learned the main difference between New Imperialism vs Old Imperialism. I learned that trade became a huge influence in 1871-1914. The more land you had, the more resources you had = the more money + more power. People would be manipulated to think that they weren't being taken advantage of because of the building of schools and hospitals, and financial aid. I learned that the industrial revolution created a haves, and haves not.

2. Questions that I still have:
a. How did travel affected Imperialism?