Topic

THE IMPACT OF PHOTOGRAPHS IN HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE – A CASE OF CONGO

Instructions

Task:

This course examines the aesthetics of violence during the long nineteenth century. It considers the conventions that emerged across photography, illustrated journalism, and the fine arts for depicting wide-ranging forms of violence, from the criminal to the geopolitical.

For this essay, they must pick a topic based on the Lecture Sessions they have and then:

Design an essay title based on the topic
Write an outline of the essay structure/themes
Proceed to then write the final essay of 5000 words

Answer Preview

There are many well-documented incidents of violence perpetrated against locals of Congo Free State during the nineteenth century under the reign of King Leopold II (Sliwinski, 2006). The widespread atrocities were particularly associated with forced labour to meet the high demand for natural rubber in the western markets. The documented atrocities contributed not only to mass suffering, but also a disruption of social life and led to a drastic decline in population. While the decline in population during the period is disputable, it is believed to be over one million (Stanard, 2013). Abusive punishments, intentional killings and overall exploitation of Congolese were the primary causes of deaths. Since the major drive to the killings was to maximize profits from the sale of cotton, it is arguable whether the atrocities are adequately described by the term “genocide” (Provost & Akhavan, 2010, p. 33). However, Weisbord (2003) noted that Leopold’s attempts to reduce a particular fraction of the population qualify the atrocities as genocide, conforming to the UN convention on genocide. Evidence of atrocities in Congo led to widespread awareness, making it one of the major scandals characterizing the century (Heraclides & Dialla, 2016). The external intervention led to the ouster of Leopold in 1908, ending his long-standing colonial control of Congo Free State.

Word Count: 5700