Reflection Paper: “Blood Diamonds” by Edward Zwick Essay

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Introduction

Blood Diamond is a political war film which acquired its title from the diamonds mined in the African war torn areas. The starring in the movie is Leonardo DiCarprio. The movie also features Jenniffer Connelly and Djimon Hounsou. The movie is directed and produced by Edward Zwick.

There are many themes in the movie. The title introduces the main theme in the movie. From its title, it becomes clear that the diamonds mined in Africa are used to finance conflicts. The film ably depicts a conflict between the government soldiers and the rebels. The direct effect of the said conflict to the citizens is witnessed. Ordinary citizens are terrorized and forced to harvest diamonds by the rebels.

The most striking part of the film is portrayed when Solomon Vandy discovers a piece of diamond and hides it. His life changes from that moment. His family is taken away from him, and he is detained. His hope to see his family rests on his ability to locate where he buried the diamond.

His son becomes a child soldier under the command of Captain Poison. The movie indicates that the armed conflict in African states is funded by diamond companies. The lives of citizens in those countries are adversely disrupted by the conflicts.

In Blood Diamond, Solomon’s son becomes a child soldier hence missing a chance to get basic education. Poverty is evidenced which is aggravated by the endless conflicts. The movie shows the role played by developing countries in financing armed conflict in African countries.

How the book relates to the movie

The book, Bottom Billion by Paul Collier, directly relates to the events seen in the movie. The book focuses on the economic situations in Africa. Collier draws a distinction between the developing and the developed countries. The author argues that developing countries have experienced a growth while developing countries have been affected by poverty.

His book points out that developing countries have become poorer than they were in the previous years. In relation to the movie, Collier discusses the four traps that the developing countries face. He argues that natural resources in developing countries are used to facilitate conflicts.

Collier avers that developing countries experience distortions which target their natural resources. His research shows that armed conflict is a key economic impediment in developing countries. He vehemently denies the argument that conflicts in developing countries are caused by poverty.

According to him, civil war is a trap which hinders economic growth. He also examines the role played by natural resources in encouraging conflicts. He states that armed conflict is inevitable in developing countries. Collier argues that natural resources generate a lot of money, and developing countries under poverty traps are unable to manage the said income.

They use the proceeds of the resources to finance civil wars. This has been witnessed in the movie, Blood Diamonds. Collier observes that developed countries play a role in the said conflict. For economic reasons, poor governance has been encouraged by rich governments in exchange for natural resources.

Conclusion

The movie summarizes the causes and effects of armed conflict in African states. The role of mining companies in the said conflict is explained. Collier’s arguments present four traps, which developing countries go through.

The said traps include poverty, poor governance and armed conflict. He observes that there are developed countries which finance and benefit from the armed conflict. The same arguments have been evidenced in the movie, Blood Diamonds.

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IvyPanda. (2019) 'Reflection Paper: “Blood Diamonds” by Edward Zwick'. 15 April.

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IvyPanda. 2019. "Reflection Paper: “Blood Diamonds” by Edward Zwick." April 15, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/reflection-paper-blood-diamonds-by-edward-zwick/.

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IvyPanda. "Reflection Paper: “Blood Diamonds” by Edward Zwick." April 15, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/reflection-paper-blood-diamonds-by-edward-zwick/.

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