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"Beasts of No Nation" : Afropessimism and the Rationality of Warfare in Africa

Title data

Sändig, Jan:
"Beasts of No Nation" : Afropessimism and the Rationality of Warfare in Africa.
In: Hamenstädt, Ulrich (ed.): The Interplay between Political Theory and Movies : Bridging two Worlds. - Cham : Springer , 2019 . - pp. 195-215
ISBN 978-3-319-90731-4
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90731-4_13

Abstract in another language

Western-made films on warfare in Africa have tended towards afropessimism by creating the image of the entire Africa and of ‘Africans’ as prone to irrational and senseless bloodshed. This contribution examines if Beasts of No Nation (2015), as the most important recent addition to this film genre, continues this trend. The analysis relies on key theoretical strands from armed rebellion research, in particular the ‘greed and grievances’ debate. The chapter shows that the film reproduces the generalised image of Africa as war-ridden. Yet it evades the simplistic culturalist explanations that have also been widely discredited in research on armed conflict. Instead, the film can be read as a nuanced and in many ways historically accurate representation of the setting, causes, and dynamics of the civil war in Sierra Leone (1991–2002).

Further data

Item Type: Article in a book
Refereed: Yes
Institutions of the University: Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies > Chair Sociology of Africa > Chair Sociology of Africa - Univ.-Prof. Dr. Jana Hönke
Faculties
Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies
Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies > Chair Sociology of Africa
Result of work at the UBT: No
DDC Subjects: 300 Social sciences > 300 Social sciences, sociology and anthropology
300 Social sciences > 320 Political science
300 Social sciences > 360 Social problems, social services
Date Deposited: 31 Jul 2020 09:30
Last Modified: 31 Jul 2020 09:30
URI: https://eref.uni-bayreuth.de/id/eprint/56208