Imperialism

For the computer game, see Imperialism (video game).

AWSOME!!

Territories that have been, at one time or another, part of the British Empire

Imperialism, defined by the Dictionary of Human Geography, is “the creation and maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural and territorial relationship, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination.” Imperialism, in many ways, is described as a primarily western concept that employs “expansionist – capitalist – and latterly communist – systems."

Imperialism is considered the control by one state of other territories. Through political or more often military means (direct imperialism), the imperial power may take over the government of a particular territory, or through economic processes (indirect imperialism), in which the concerned region is officially self-governing but linked to the imperial power by (often unequal) trade relations. Furthermore, the notion of cultural imperialism is indicated by “existing or traditional ways of life and ways of thinking [that] are subordinated to the culture of the imperialists.”

The term imperialism commonly refers to a political or geographical domain such as the United States of America, the Ottoman Empire, the Spanish Empire, the French Empire the Russian Empire, the Chinese Empire, or the British Empire, etc., but the term can equally be applied to domains of knowledge, beliefs, values and expertise, such as the empires of Christianity (see Christendom) or Islam (see Caliphate). Imperialism is usually autocratic, and also sometimes monolithic in character.

Justification

A controversial aspect of imperialism is the imperial power’s defence and justification of such actions. Most controversial of all is the justification of imperialism done on scientific grounds. J. A. Hobson identifies this justification: “It is desirable that the earth should be marissa, governed, and developed, as far as possible, by the races which can do this work best, i.e. by the races of highest 'social efficiency'.” This is clearly the racial argument, which pays heed to other ideas such as the “White Man’s Burden” prevalent at the turn of the nineteenth century.

Written in 1899 by Rudyard Kipling (a man born in India of English parents during the heyday of the British Empire), the “White Man’s Burden” is a poem that states that while it may be troublesome for the white man to create empires, it is what they need to do. This poem takes the approach that it is the burden of the white man to civilize natives, who only benefit from the wealth of the white man. This poem makes the reader feel as though it is the lives of the whites that are interrupted, rather than the natives who are expected to change their entire lifestyle and culture.

The principles of imperialism are often deeply connected to the policies and practices of British Imperialism "during the last generation, and proceeds rather by diagnosis than by historical description." British Imperialist strategy centred on the fundamental concept of terra nullius (Latin expression which stems from Roman law meaning ‘empty land’). The country of Australia serves as a case study in relation to British imperialism. British settlement and colonial rule of the island of Australia in the eighteenth century was premised on terra nullius, for it was seen as a land that was ‘empty’ of inhabitants. Despite British claims, an estimated 350000 indigenous peoples were already living in Australia in the era of British conquest. The indigenous population suffered through years of political, social, and territorial oppression, however Aborigines were granted the right to vote comparatively early in Commonwealth elections, depending on whether their state allowed it. An example is in 1856, in NSW, where Aborigines were granted equal voting rights. It should be noted that the 1968 referendum only allowed the Commonwealth to count and administer Aborigines.

This form of imperialism can also be seen in British Columbia, Canada. In the 1840’s, the territory of British Columbia was divided into two regions, one space for the native population, and the other for non-natives. The indigenous peoples were often forcibly removed from their homes onto reserves. These actions were “justified by a dominant belief among British colonial officials that land occupied by Native people was not being used efficiently and productively.” The abovementioned examples of imperialism are consistently racially motivated, and it is, undoubtedly, a driving force behind the concept of imperialism in this era.

Criticism

"Imperialism has been subject to moral censure by its critics, and thus the term is frequently used in international propaganda as a pejorative for expansionist and aggressive foreign policy."

See also

• Capitalism
• Colonialism
• Cultural imperialism
• Empire
• Feudalism
• Hegemony
• Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
• John A. Hobson
• Imperialism in Leninist theory
• List of empires
  • List of largest empires
    • American Empire
    • British Empire
    • Chinese Empire
    • Roman Empire
• Neocolonialism
• New Imperialism
• Oil imperialism
• Scientific imperialism
• Super-imperialism
• The Accumulation of Capital: A Contribution to an Economic Explanation of Imperialism by Rosa Luxemburg
• Theories of New Imperialism
• Tropical geography
• Ultra-imperialism
• Uneven and combined development
• Violence

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

External links

• J.A Hobson, Imperialism a Study 1902.
• The Paradox of Imperialism by Hans-Hermann Hoppe. November 2006.
• Imperialism Quotations
• State, Imperialism and Capitalism by Joseph Schumpeter
• Economic Imperialism by A.J.P.Taylor
• Imperialism Entry in the Columbia Encyclopedia (Bartleby)
• [1] Imperialism by Emile Perreau-Saussine
• The Nation-State, Core and Periphery: A Brief sketch of Imperialism in the 20th century.
• Mehmet Akif Okur, Rethinking Empire After 9/11: Towards A New Ontological Image of World Order, Perceptions, Journal of International Affairs, Volume XII, Winter 2007, pp.61-93
• Imperialism 101, Against Empire By Michael Parenti Published by City Lights Books, 1995, ISBN 0872862984, 9780872862982, 217 pages