Imperialist View Of Imperialism

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Views of Imperialism Betwixt the Imperialized and Imperialists
Imperialism has been around since the dawn of time. It is the “grass is always greener on the other side” mentality -- what one has, another wants. By definition, imperialism is a principle of action that extends a country's power and hold by use of militant and/or diplomatic forces. In 1760, arguably the biggest trend of imperialism across the globe started, appropriately named The Age of Imperialism. This trend lasted for many years, even well into the 20th century. The industrialized nations, which are mainly perceived to be of Europe back then, began to take over other countries and even continents. They colonized, conquered, and dominated both socially and economically. This …show more content…

In order to be “better,” the European powers thought that the native people had to be more like the them. As an Africa proverb says, “When the whites came to our country, we had the land and they had the Bible. Now we have the Bible and they have the land.” This shows that before the Europeans came, the natives were thriving amongst themselves; when the Europeans took over, not only did they take their property, but also imposed their religion on them. They oppressed them socially, economically, and even culturally. Moreover, the European nations also assumed power of all the governmental positions, leaving the natives powerless in their own land. In a political cartoon from an anonymous source, this idea of Europe “civilizing” the natives is depicted perfectly from the native’s point of view. In the image, there are two people who appear to be men, one of which seems to be of Japanese descent, and the other of African descent. These men are pulling a chariot with a man in full military garb, who seemingly represents imperial power. The Japanese man is turned to the African and says “Learning civilized ways is hard work.” This shows that the Europeans claimed to be civilizing the natives, yet in reality were just enslaving them to their beliefs and cultures. When they believed they were helping humanity, they were really crippling the native people, and “failing to provide the African with sufficient preparation [to run their own country]” (G. Kimble). The natives were left with no land, no power, no control, and imposed religion and culture after the Europeans came and left their land. From the natives point of view, the imperialists did nothing but selfishly serve themselves, while simultaneously ruining the natives and their

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