Sean+J.

Imperialism (1800-1914) Imperialism is a period of time when European nations expanded their rule and influence to span the globe. They established colonies throughout the world and extend their spheres of influence into Asian nations. Almost all of Africa was dominated by European rule. The Europeans conquered and subjugated the local populace. Africa, Asia, Australia, and South America all felt the reaching hand of European Imperialism. 
 * = [[image:http://www.shs.d211.org/socialstudies/faculty/hxm/africa%20imperialism.gif width="293" height="334" align="center" caption="Most of Africa was subjugated by Europeans."]] ||= [[image:imperialism.jpg caption="The Reaching Hand of Imperialism"]] ||

Causes: __Economic Interests__-Wealth has been a powerful motivator for the entire history of the world, and the Imperialism period was no different. As the Industrial Revolution swept through Europe, nations were in need of more resources, resources that weren't always available in Europe. The search for these resources led them to scour the globe. When Europeans found resources in Africa among other places, they subjugated the local populace as miners and gatherers to fuel the European expansion.

__Politics__-Rivalry among European nations had been fierce since the middle ages. This meant that no one nation was going to allow itself to be outdone by its neighbors. Therefore the first nation to colonize and subjugate set of a chain reaction through all of Europe.

__Humanitarianism__-Many people believed that third-world tribal nations, such as African nations and south-east Asian nations, were socially and technologically inferior. They felt it was their duty to introduce these tribal nations to the "civilized" lifestyle that the Europeans enjoyed. The Europeans forced their religion, culture, and technology on people who were not ready for the culture shock, or did not want the European's "help."

__Social Darwinism__-Social Darwinism is a spin-off theory from Charles Darwin's theory of Evolution. It applies Darwin's ideas of natural selection to humanity in the social world. Europeans with this belief thought that just as strong animals ate the weaker ones, so should the stronger nations in the world dominate the weaker ones. Feelings on Imperialism: For:  In hindsight, some believe that Europe's Imperialistic expansion did much good for the world. It helped bring Africa and Eastern Asia into the (then) Modern Age. Before Imperialism, Asia and Africa hadn't industrialized, leaving them many years behind Europe technologically. This made life much easier for the Europeans when they invaded. After Imperialism however, Africa and Asia began advancing in technology, making it harder for future people to invade them successfully. As technology in these areas increased, people's standard of living improved greatly. It also made the world a smaller place, fostering global ties. As Cedric Belfrage said, “European imperialism long ago made Tahiti a distant suburb of Paris, the missionaries made it a suburb of Christ's kingdom, and the radio made it a suburb of Los Angeles ” Against: 

While Imperialism did bring Africa and other third-world countries into the modern age, many cultures were lost or damaged as the inhabitants of third-world countries were forced to westernize. Also, many Africans were put into forced labor to gather resources for their European taskmasters. As Charley Reese said, "The truth is that neither British nor American imperialism was or is idealistic. It has always been driven by economic or strategic interests," European countries did not care for the welfare of the countries that they subjugated and dominated. They only wanted to further themselves and didn't care who was pushed aside to further their goals.

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Sources:

Cartoon. __Imperialism and Colonialism__. 14 Apr. 2009 .

Ellis, Elisabeth Gaynor, and Anthony Esler. "The New Imperialism." __World Historyc____the Modern Era__. Boston, Massachusetts: Prentice Hall, 2007. 386-419.

European control of Africa. Map. __Carrie: Imperialism__. 3 Dec. 2008. 14 Apr. 2009 .

__European Imperialism in Africa__. __YouTube.com__. 14 Apr. 2009 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJe1W_HIWmA>.

"Imperialism Quotes." __BrainyQuote__. 2009. BrainyMedia.com. 14 Apr. 2009 <http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/imperialism.html>.

"Imperialism Quotes & Quotations." __Thinkexist.com__. 2006. ThinkExist. 14 Apr. 2009 <http://thinkexist.com/quotes/with/keyword/imperialism/>.

Updated 4/15/09 @ 10:53AM