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Den liberale barbaren Leopold II - Narrativ kring civilisationsstandard i Kongofristaten

Frendin, Harald LU (2021) STVK02 20211
Department of Political Science
Abstract (Swedish)
Invasion, mass warfare, foreign hordes, slaughter and pure evil. When pondering these words one will usually attribute them to the traditional conception of the barbarian, and not to something as seemingly distant as Western civilization.

In this paper I aim to discuss the rare combination of liberal European civilization and its relation with barbarism in general, specifically focusing on the case of the Congo Free State. In late 19th century Europe, the narrative employed by Leopold II, King of the Belgians, sought to legitimize himself as a proponent of civilization and progress, and as a direct consequence cemented his successful candidacy as the owner of the Congo Free State. In the aftermath that followed the end of Leopold’s... (More)
Invasion, mass warfare, foreign hordes, slaughter and pure evil. When pondering these words one will usually attribute them to the traditional conception of the barbarian, and not to something as seemingly distant as Western civilization.

In this paper I aim to discuss the rare combination of liberal European civilization and its relation with barbarism in general, specifically focusing on the case of the Congo Free State. In late 19th century Europe, the narrative employed by Leopold II, King of the Belgians, sought to legitimize himself as a proponent of civilization and progress, and as a direct consequence cemented his successful candidacy as the owner of the Congo Free State. In the aftermath that followed the end of Leopold’s reign as their absolute sovereign, the totality of the terror his rule brought upon Congo was uncovered, and as such the contrary narrative generated inside his domain becomes another fundamental aspect of this paper. The alternative narrative tailored by Leopold II is manifested in a system where liberal barbarians take the stage. (Less)
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author
Frendin, Harald LU
supervisor
organization
course
STVK02 20211
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Leopold II, Kongofristaten, narrativ, civilisationsstandard, liberal barbarism
language
Swedish
id
9041861
date added to LUP
2021-05-12 12:14:04
date last changed
2021-05-12 12:14:04
@misc{9041861,
  abstract     = {{Invasion, mass warfare, foreign hordes, slaughter and pure evil. When pondering these words one will usually attribute them to the traditional conception of the barbarian, and not to something as seemingly distant as Western civilization.
 
In this paper I aim to discuss the rare combination of liberal European civilization and its relation with barbarism in general, specifically focusing on the case of the Congo Free State. In late 19th century Europe, the narrative employed by Leopold II, King of the Belgians, sought to legitimize himself as a proponent of civilization and progress, and as a direct consequence cemented his successful candidacy as the owner of the Congo Free State. In the aftermath that followed the end of Leopold’s reign as their absolute sovereign, the totality of the terror his rule brought upon Congo was uncovered, and as such the contrary narrative generated inside his domain becomes another fundamental aspect of this paper. The alternative narrative tailored by Leopold II is manifested in a system where liberal barbarians take the stage.}},
  author       = {{Frendin, Harald}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Den liberale barbaren Leopold II - Narrativ kring civilisationsstandard i Kongofristaten}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}