So we all agree that Achebe is a whiny cunt and that this is a masterpiece, right?
>>7647410
It is a masterpiece, but he's not wrong about it being racist.
>>7647414
/thread
What's the matter, OP? Couldn't handle a few yams?
>>7647430
http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/50799-Democratic-Republic-of-Congo-Lubumbashi-to-Kinshasa/page1
It's not racist if it's true.
>>7647525
By that logic, racism doesn't exist
>>7647525
>http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/50799-Democratic-Republic-of-Congo-Lubumbashi-to-Kinshasa/page1
Holy shit. I remember reading this when it was posted on Expedition Portal. Fucking legendary.
That being said, it's definitely not evidence of racism.
>>7647557
it doesn't
glad we're on the same page
>>7647557
I've got some bad news for you son.
>>7647611
If that's not evidence of racism, then neither is HoD. Both of them are describing the exact same thing re: Darkest Strike.
>>7647646
Achebe considers HoD racist because it doesn't give African peoples a voice; they have barely any dialogue ("mista kurtz, he dead") and are objects in the story (the forest of death, etc.). The Expedition Portal story may not have much dialogue from the Congolese, but there aren't many opportunities for it insofar as it is an un-doctored (hopefully) travel account. They do receive a large book of testimonials about militia violence in the Congo, which constitutes quite a large voice for Congolese people. Yet to my knowledge they never published or made public that book of testimonials. I would definitely like to read it if its available somewhere.
>>7647410
How could it be racist if it uncovered the horrible atrocities committed by white people in Leopold II's Congo?
>>7649597
It's "racist" in the same way the Three-Fifth's Compromise was.
Modern people think that the 3/5ths comp. was an attempt to make Black people's voices not count, however, it was just the opposite. This was pre-emancipation, so the vast majority of black people were slaves. No slave is going to vote against his master's wishes for fear of death, so a 1 slave = 1 vote system would have resulted in RIDICULOUS amounts of ballet stuffing for pro-slavery people.
In the same way, HoD is racist because nobody fucking understands what zeitgeist is.
the book itself is not necessarily racist but the characters definitely have racist views.
>>7647525
Holy shit, this is long. I'm 15 pages in and I'm not sure if it's going anywhere. Can someone summarize the highest points in the story?
>>7647414
This
>>7647410
Heart of Darkness is a masterpiece that portrays Africans as caricatures that, while racist, the message of the novel was progressive for its time. Things Fall Apart is also a masterpiece, and portrays life in Africa more realistically.
>>7649623
Slaves didn't have a vote. The compromise determined how much slaves counted towards a state's population, which in turn determines how many seats a state has in the House.
>>7650149
>portrays Africans as caricatures
this ignores the way the novel was highly stylized. it's not like when we turn to the conversation of white characters we get Jane Austen. Black or white, characters in Conrad are all surprisingly empty
Recommending this book, easy to pirate for those who care.
The congo is the last place I want to go on earth.
>>7647525
thats a pretty fascinating read
A dead white European male was teaching a class on English literature, known tool of imperialist oppression.
“Before the class begins, you must get on your knees and worship King Leopold II, greatest monarch the world has ever known, even greater than James Monroe!”
At this moment, a black, female, transgendered, cis-hetero-homoflexible Latino transvestite man who has over 20,000 Tweets and 12,000 Tumblr posts stood up and held up a novel.
“What is this book?”
The professor smirked oppressively and smugly replied “Heart of Darkness, by Polish-British writer Joseph Conrad, an intelligent and insightful study of the primitive mind of the African peoples.”
“Wrong. The book is a racist and oppressive piece of propaganda designed to dehumanize the proud peoples of the African continent. Conrad is a bigot. If the book truly had merit as you claimed, Oprah would’ve reviewed it on her show already.”
The professor was visibly shaken, and dropped his chalk and Iron Cross. He stormed out of the room crying those DWEM crocodile tears.
The students applauded and all registered Marxist that day and accepted Martin Luther King Jr. as their lord and savior. An okapi pounced into the room and stood next to a south-up map centered around Africa. The students joined hand in hand and sang Toto’s Africa several times, and Jesse Jackson, king of all black people, showed up to enact affirmative action across the country.
The professor lost his tenure and was fired the next day. He was beaten to death with yams by villagers and was tossed into the Sahara desert for all eternity.
That student’s name? Chinua Achebe.
Hakuna Matata.
