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In the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz Michela Wrong 9781841154220 Books

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In the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz Michela Wrong 9781841154220 Books

Colonialism, underdevelopment, kleptocracy, autocracy, violent cruelty and corruption - In The Footsteps Of Mr. Kurtz is a horrifyingly fascinating and well-told case study of the all-too-human workings of our international political economic system. It is a case study of what has been called “under-development” in the academic literature (harking back to works by Gunder Frank, Baran and Sweezy, Amin, Wallerstein and others) - ways in which a newly created “national” political economy is integrated into the world economy and the shaping of that national political economy through the blending of local cultural factors with international intrusions and extractions of things valued in the larger system.

Ms. Wrong has given us vivid portrayals of:
- the cruelly efficient Belgian colonial period;
- disruption of that colonial arrangement by changing attitudes and power within the world system;
- emergence of a Congolese democracy quickly quashed by the Cold War’s power players;
- rise of the skilled, charismatic, and seemingly pliable Mobutu;
- growth of big-man kleptocratic redistribution as the glue to the national system;
- internationalization of the Congolese elite;
- apparent failures of international organizations to prevent the obvious “theft” of a large proportion of international aid and investment (although, we see, too, that this ‘apparent failures’ may have simply been the result of managing towards unacknowledged goals of the external players).

Wrong has woven her tale focused on the rise, reign, and fall of Joseph Desire Mobutu, the leopard - corrupt despot, national provider, charismatic international character, family-man and tribal loyalist. Not quite a full national history, not quite a full biography, In The Footsteps Of Mr. Kurtz is a fascinating and informative read.


Tags : In the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz [Michela Wrong] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. A story of grim comedy amid the apocalypse and a celebration of the sheer indestructibility of the human spirit in a nation run riot: Michela Wrong's vision of Congo/Zaire during the Mobutu years is incisive,Michela Wrong,In the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz,Harpercollins Pub Ltd,1841154229,History: World

In the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz Michela Wrong 9781841154220 Books Reviews

Throughout history, Africa has claimed the moniker of the Dark Continent, originally due to its mysteriousness, wildness, and danger. However, there is a new darkness that has overtaken modern Africa, a darkness that plagues the content. This darkness is composed of governmental corruption, violent coups, genocide, ethnic cleansing, guerilla warfare and other forms of exploitation and violence.

One of the most blatant examples of this impinging darkness was the rule Zaire's President Mobutu. His insatiable thirst for cruelty brought Zaire, a nation with massive potential for wealth and prosperity, to its knees and subsequently destroyed the will of his own proud people.

Michaela Wrong follows the rise of Mobutu, the once obscure military aide, and chronicles his nearly instinctual political maneuvers which finally consolidated his grip on the throat of Zaire. Wrong also illustrates the effects of Mobutu's "kleptocracy" which essentially bled the nation and its people dry of any wealth, and economic potential.

Apart from bankrupting a nation, perhaps the saddest result of Mobutu's reign was destruction of a nation's will. The people of Zaire not only grew disillusioned with Mobutu's leadership, but became disillusioned with the hope of betterment. In the minds of many of those living in Zaire under Mobutu, the thought of struggling everyday to eek out a living seemed pointless. At the end of that day, the Mobutu government would come and reap all that was so painfully sown.

The title of book is In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz, named after the power hungry character in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Wrong does draw vague parallels between the two. Still, the parallels do lend an interesting twist to the work. Both Mobutu and Kurtz were corrupted by power and the vast wealth hidden in the darkest Africa, and once they tasted those sweet riches, their appetites became insatiable and cost Africa dearly.
Though I read Hochschild's "King Leopold's Ghost" many years ago, I feel like it would be great to read that dark saga and then move on to this jagged, paranoid collection of stories. One reason to do this would be to simply compare literary styles. I really enjoy Wrong's writing style - portraits of ironic and manipulative kleptocrats residing around a sweating table - but do think it sometimes takes center stage while the narrative of Mobutu and the aching Congo waits patiently for its turn. Another reason would be the more obvious one - the books work together chronologically and Mobutu's Congo makes more sense once you understand King Leopold's Congo. Of the Mobutu books, this one is the best.

One of Wrong's attractions are the green and sweaty flourishes used to describe the International hotel, the crumbling and vivid mines of Lubumbashi, the crippled smuggler on a rusty ferry. These make for some tantalizing scenery. The book is divided into chapters that are basically individual journalistic snapshots of the Congo's economy or of one of Mobutu's phases. They read like news magazine articles that are zongo enough to be squeezed into Rolling Stone. The good stuff and the mediocre stuff are tossed up in a salad that is overall pretty consistent. My favorite chapter was the one describing Mobutu's excesses in the Gbadolite - the forbidden city in the jungle looted, snarled, and crumbling after Kabila took office. I spent a whole night roaming Google Earth looking for snapshots.

I would have liked more of a consistent pace, a clearer narrative, and a finer closing. I did enjoy reading it just for the sake that it was well written, but the content was also quite good. I am an Africanist and work in West Africa, so I do have a keen interest in African affairs. I do feel like the average, curious reader will find much to chew on here.
Colonialism, underdevelopment, kleptocracy, autocracy, violent cruelty and corruption - In The Footsteps Of Mr. Kurtz is a horrifyingly fascinating and well-told case study of the all-too-human workings of our international political economic system. It is a case study of what has been called “under-development” in the academic literature (harking back to works by Gunder Frank, Baran and Sweezy, Amin, Wallerstein and others) - ways in which a newly created “national” political economy is integrated into the world economy and the shaping of that national political economy through the blending of local cultural factors with international intrusions and extractions of things valued in the larger system.

Ms. Wrong has given us vivid portrayals of
- the cruelly efficient Belgian colonial period;
- disruption of that colonial arrangement by changing attitudes and power within the world system;
- emergence of a Congolese democracy quickly quashed by the Cold War’s power players;
- rise of the skilled, charismatic, and seemingly pliable Mobutu;
- growth of big-man kleptocratic redistribution as the glue to the national system;
- internationalization of the Congolese elite;
- apparent failures of international organizations to prevent the obvious “theft” of a large proportion of international aid and investment (although, we see, too, that this ‘apparent failures’ may have simply been the result of managing towards unacknowledged goals of the external players).

Wrong has woven her tale focused on the rise, reign, and fall of Joseph Desire Mobutu, the leopard - corrupt despot, national provider, charismatic international character, family-man and tribal loyalist. Not quite a full national history, not quite a full biography, In The Footsteps Of Mr. Kurtz is a fascinating and informative read.