Taking its title from Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness", this study traces Europe's dark history in Africa. It is written both in the form of a travel diary and as a historical examination of European imperialism and rascism over the past two centuries.
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'This book is important...we, our rulers, and their stooges should read it...it contains a message for our future' Nicholas Lezard, Guardian 'The chilling title of this excellent book is the line from Conrad's Heart of Darkness that concludes Kurtz's report on the task of the white man in Africa' Mail on Sunday 'Here is a book which has come out of risk and years of thought' John Berger
About the Author
Sven Lindqvist was born in Stockholm in 1932 and has travelled extensively through Asia, Africa and Latin America.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a book to make you cry and reform your life. Lindqvist meticulously and mercilessly traces the development of excuses and justification that lead to unspeakable massacres (in the league of the nazi concentration camps or the Battle of Omdurman) - it is about what people slaughtering the underdog in the most soul-destroying manner tell themselves while doing it. By way of style, it is flawless. Lindqvist stays well away from the moral high ground and self-righteousness, and subtly makes us realise that we all harbour the mind-patterns of an executioner.
It is also extremely readable and intersperses a Saharan travelogue through the history of the ideology and science of racism and violence.
It is also extremely readable and intersperses a Saharan travelogue through the history of the ideology and science of racism and violence.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
By Dobester
Format:Paperback
This book is a terrifying account of how the Holocaust was a replay in Europe of the hideous, murderous assault on africans by the imperialists of the late nineteenth century. It spares nobody - those who think the Holocaust was the product of a purely German exterminationist racism, neo-imperialists who look back on "Empire" as a golden age, believers in the benevolence of the Christian church and its missionary work in the "dark continent".
One of the most powerful books on racism ever written, and a gem of concision. Buy it and be awed and shocked by the depth of Europe's brutality a century ago, and wonder why it has taken so long for this story to reach us.
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
By Alan Miller
Format:Paperback
Strictly chronological retellings of history can be a little dull, and reminiscent of the stuffy school classroom. Lindqvist's approach is very different - he mixes up history, theory, travel writing, and his own dreams to create the effect that you are discovering history with him. The conclusions he draws - or rather, invites the reader to draw - are surprising, and should make sobering reading for anyone who mourns the decline of the British (or French, or Spanish) empire. He links the origins of Darwinian theory through to the eugenics of the Third Reich, showing how science can be misused to further misguided and murderous projects. If it has lost any impact in the translation, it isn't missed.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good stuff
From the moment I started this book it was clear the author has no positive biases towards European imperialism (which many of us still have today), which allows him to examine the... Read more
Published on 10 Oct 2010 by Thomas Fletcher
5.0 out of 5 stars
Read in a day, improve your attitude in a day
Quite Eurocentric - but then we are trailblazers of mass murder aren't we? A short and disturbing read, it shows you the depth and danger of our tribal intolerance. Read more
Published on 8 Feb 2010 by Mr. N. Foale
5.0 out of 5 stars
Racism, genocide and the battle for resources
I began reading this book out of curiosity, but very quickly became totally engrossed in it. Although set within the context of a travel book in the deserts of Africa, it is... Read more
Published on 2 Jan 2010 by D. A. Kennedy
5.0 out of 5 stars
Life changing
If you want to understand anything about Africa this book is THE place to start- probably the best book about Africa i've ever read that wasn't written by an African! Read more
Published on 24 July 2009 by M. Rooney
3.0 out of 5 stars
Stylistically poor, interesting in parts
This book is let down by the author's informal and highly idiosyncratic 'travel diary' narrative style. Read more
Published on 29 July 2007 by Ian
5.0 out of 5 stars
A journey through Africa's colonial history
The author travels through Africa with his laptop full of historical data. His journey is both historical and personal. Read more
Published on 15 April 1999
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