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.