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Imperialism

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For the computer game, see Imperialism (computer game).
Cecil Rhodes: Cape-Cairo railway project. Founded the De Beers Mining Company and owned the British South Africa Company, which established Rhodesia for itself. He liked to "paint the map British red", and declared: "all of these stars ... these vast worlds that remain out of reach. If I could, I would annex other planets".
Cecil Rhodes: Cape-Cairo railway project. Founded the De Beers Mining Company and owned the British South Africa Company, which established Rhodesia for itself. He liked to "paint the map British red", and declared: "all of these stars ... these vast worlds that remain out of reach. If I could, I would annex other planets".[1]

Imperialism has two meanings, one describing an action and the other describing an attitude. Most commonly it is understood in relation to Empire building, as the expansion of a nation's authority by territorial conquest establishing economic and political powers in other territories or nations, and when such encompasses non-contiguous "colonies" or "protectorates" then the term also subsumes Colonialism. In that sense, most European seafaring powers were at one time or another Colonialistic and therefore Imperialistic, regardless of their exploitation or benevolence toward their colonial possessions and people.

In its second meaning the term describes the imperialistic attitude of superiority, subordination and dominion over foreign people— a chauvinism and comportment relegating foreign people to a lesser social and or political status. To clarify the distinction, the French colonies in North America treated the native races with great diplomacy,[citation needed] whereas the British colonies early on began treating native Americans chauvinistically, as savages and lesser creatures.[citation needed]

Imperialism is often autocratic, e.g. in early 20th century Japan,[2] and sometimes monolithic [3] in character. While the term imperialism often refers to a contiguous political or geographical domain such as the Ottoman Empire[4] the Russian Empire,[5] or the British Empire,[6] etc the term can equally be applied to domains of knowledge, beliefs, values and expertise, such as the empires of Christianity (see Christendom)[7] or Islam (see Caliphate).[8]

Contents

[edit] Overview

Imperialism is found in the ancient histories of the Roman Empire, Greece, the Persian Empire, the Ottoman Empire (see Ottoman wars in Europe), ancient Egypt, the Aztec empire, British Empire, Genghis Khan, and other areas. Although the practice has existed for thousands of years, the term "Age of Imperialism" refers to the Scramble for Africa, along with the 'Scramble for India.' The term 'Imperialism' was coined in the sixteenth century,[9] reflecting what are now seen as the imperial policies of Portugal, Spain, Britain, France, and the Netherlands in Africa, Asia, and the Americas.

Currently, there is an effort to broaden the definition of "imperialism" so it applies to any instance of a greater power acting or being perceived to act at the expense of a lesser power. Including 'perception' in the definition makes it circular, solipsistic, and subjective. Under this broader definition, 'imperialism' not only describes colonial, territorial policies;but also describes economic dominance and influence.

European dominance of the east through economic exploitation and political rule, (as distinct from the word colonialism, which usually implied establishment of settler colonies often with slavery as the labor system), the word was coined in the mid-nineteenth century.

[edit] See also


[edit] References

  1. ^ S. Gertrude Millin, Rhodes, London, 1933, p.138
  2. ^ http://www.global-labour.org/katayama1.htm Sen Katayama, The Labor Movement in Japan, Global Labour Institute
  3. ^ http://pubs.socialistreviewindex.org.uk/isj93/rees.htm John Rees, Imperialism: globalisation, the state and war, International Socialism Journal 93, Winter 2001
  4. ^ http://i-cias.com/e.o/ottomans.htm Ottoman Empire, Encylcopaedia of the Orient
  5. ^ http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/empire/ The Empire that was Russia, Library of Congress
  6. ^ http://www.britishempire.co.uk/ The British Empire
  7. ^ http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=3350 John B Cobb, Christianity and Empire,
  8. ^ http://www.pbs.org/empires/islam/ Islam Empire of Faith
  9. ^ Oxford English Dictionary online (subscription required

[edit] Further reading

  • Guy Ankerl, Coexisting Contemporary Civilizations: Arabo-Muslim, Bharatai, Chinese, and Western, Geneva, INU PRESS, 2000, ISBN 2-88155-004-5.
  • Robert Bickers/Christian Henriot, New Frontiers: Imperialism's New Communities in East Asia, 1842-1953, Manchester, Manchester University Press, 2000, ISBN 0-7190-5604-7
  • Barbara Bush, Imperialism and Postcolonialism (History: Concepts,Theories and Practice), Longmans, 2006, ISBN 0582505836
  • John Darwin, After Tamerlane: The Rise and Fall of Global Empires, 1400-2000, Penguin Books, 2008, ISBN 0141010223
  • Niall Ferguson, Empire: How Britain Made the Modern World, Penguin Books, 2004, ISBN 0141007540
  • Michael Hardt and Toni Negri, Empire, Harvard University Press, 2000, ISBN 0-674-00671-2
  • E.J. Hobsbawm, The Age of Empire, 1875-1914, Abacus Books, 1989, ISBN 0349105987
  • E J Hobsbawm, On Empire: America, War, and Global Supremacy, Pantheon Books, 2008, ISBN 0375425373
  • J A Hobson, Imperialism: A Study, Cosimo Classics, 2005, ISBN 1596052503
  • Michael Hudson, Super Imperialism: The Origin and Fundamentals of U.S. World Dominance, Pluto Press, 2003, ISBN 0745319890
  • V I Lenin, Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism, International Publishers, New York, 1997, ISBN 0717800989
  • Edward Said, Culture and Imperialism, Vintage Books, 1998, ISBN 0099967502
  • Simon C Smith, British Imperialism 1750-1970, Cambridge University Press, 1998, ISBN 052159930X

[edit] External links

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