DBQ: Non-Europeans as Viewed by Europeans

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European views of non European people reflect the intellectual changes from 1760s to the 1910s. European views of non-European people in the 1760s through 1910s were largely based off of the idea of survival of the fittest, the education of the non-europeans to Europeans, and the thought of Europeans as being superior. These three factors show how intellectual changes in Europe shape the way Europeans viewed non-europeans. The idea of survival of the fittest goes back to Darwin in his evolutionary theory, and Europeans used the same analogy to describe them and other nations. In document 6, William Schallmayer says that “competition makes some nations and races powerful and brings other, backward nations and races into decline”. In this statement, …show more content…

When they first saw the native americans lack of technology and politics, they thought of themselves as superior. In document 4, this thought is enforced by the prime minister of french. He says,” superior races have a duty to civilize inferior races,” and that France should “spread her influence over the world.” This shows how this mindset of Europeans correlated with European views of non Europeans, and how Europeans felt a duty as the superior race to enforce themselves upon non-europeans. In document 7, a british consul general shares his views of the Egyptians as the ruler of the country. He states that,” Egyptians lack initiative and without europeans will lose the veneer of civility.” This general feeling of superiority of europeans compared to non-europeans is felt through many europeans, and shows why the thought of how Europeans are superior results in their views of other civilizations. In document 2, a medallion is shown of a black man on his knees in chains, with the appearance of him begging. This shows how Europeans are the dominant race at the time, and how other races are being treated as the result of european views of non-europeans, and how this view of them being superior can influence the treatment of other civilizations by

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