Understanding Modern Imperialism

Modern colonialism has three distinct characteristics. The first is that the place being colonized is transformed to fit the needs of the colonizing power. The second feature is that the colonizers make little effort to integrate the cultures of both societies or assimilate in any means; instead, the society being colonized is expected to adopt the dominating culture. Lastly, the colonizing power believes in some sort of divine right to colonize, solidifying their belief in their superiority. Colonialists themselves also have three distinct features. They must believe that the “other,” usually non-European, is fundamentally different and inferior. This was done through religion and the sciences. The non-Europeans were seen as incapable of accomplishing any great feats and biologically inferior. The second feature of colonialist thought is pretty directly related to the first. Since non-Europeans were seen as dependent people who needed help, the colonialist believed that they were the ones that had to guide the inferior people. Lastly, colonialists’ believed in a utopia of non-politics, meaning they sought to reduce politics to routine, mundane structures. Human sentiments were kept out and societies were run by imperialism. The features of colonialism and of the people doing the colonizing are closely related and you need both to have an effective colonizing power. People’s beliefs are largely shaped by their own education and experiences. If you lived in a country that was doing the colonizing, you would learn to believe in your own superiority through the state. If everyone had the same mindset, little would be done to question imperialism. Both the state and the people believe that they have he divine right, or mandate, to “help” those they deem inferior.

One example is the rule of King Leopold from Belgium in the Congo. King Leopold used the Congolese people and their lands for his own benefit, fulfilling the first feature. Second, he did not integrate the societies, rather he oversaw the slaughter of thousands of Congolese. And lastly, he believed in the Congolese inferiority and made other believe he would do everything in his power to better the lives of those living in the area he controlled. This however, was a false pretense. Adam Hochschild does a great job of using personal accounts in King Leopold’s life to highlight the kind of ruler he truly was in his book, King Leopold’s Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa. King Leopold once said  “What I do there is done as a Christian duty to the poor African; and I do not wish to have one franc of all the money I have expended” (Hoschschild 106). Although this sounded great, King Leopold knew exactly what he was doing and manipulated others to prevent them from revealing the true atrocities. This also shows how he saw the Congolese as “other” and convinced his fellow colonialists to do this same, propelling his control over the Congo.

Modern imperialism extends into the world sphere. It aims to use colonies as “pawns in global power games” (Osterhammel, p. 21) in order to promote their own economic interests. This eventually leads to greater economic inequality throughout the world. Technology proved to be extremely important in dictating this economic inequality. According to Daniel Headrick, the early steamboats and gunboats were crucial in Britain’s victory over Chins in the Opium Wars. “It was steam that opened up the rivers and shallow waters of the world to the Europeans” (Headrick, p. 235). Although European powers were already powerful, it was innovations such as the steamboat that allowed full conquest over lands that were once difficult to enter. Headrick argues that Europeans were not superior by nature, as many early historians argued; rather it was technology that gave them the upper hand. In Africa, the Europeans were able to push past coastal towns (which had acquired advanced weaponry through trade) due to new medicines that combatted malaria and new guns.

It is important to note that early modern colonial powers were not able to achieve this, with the exception of the United States and Great Britain. This means that in early versions of colonialism, imperialism did not always coexist. Although early empires also spread their own culture and language, culture was a mixture between the existing society and the incoming rulers. This is shown through the spread of Hellenistic culture. Although the Greek language and culture spread throughout the places colonized, the new culture was a fusion. This is different than modern colonialism because colonizers do not want any fusion; they rather wipe out the existing culture and replace it with their own. Powers such as the United States and Britain had the means to acquire powerful new technology as well as the means to venture into new lands, ultimately colonizing them.

Working Definitions

Colonialism: When a country uses societies they deem inferior to their own benefit, while replacing the existing culture with their own. This is driven by their belief in a divine mandate.

Imperialism: When a power uses their colonies in the world arena in order to promote their own economic interests as well as promote economic inequality.

Colony: A state or region that is ruled by an external, dominating power for that power’s own interests

Empire: When one power extends its rule over a number of different countries/states

Colonialist Ideology: The colonialist ideology has three parts: believing in the inferiority of non-Europeans, believing in a divine right to help the inferior society, and believing in a utopia of non-politics.

Opium Wars: Two wars in the 1800’s between China and Great Britain, which sought to place China and its trade under Great Britain.

Steamboat: An innovation that allowed boat engines to run on steam; this allowed people to travel much faster and down various waterways.

Questions for Further Inquiry

1. How does the development of race play into early forms of colonialism?
2. How has technology continued to change modern day imperialism?
3. Is technology the most crucial element of colonialism?

About the Image

The image I chose is from the Harvard College Library. I chose this image because it reminded me of images I saw when learning about scientific racism. It was similar to the description of using biology to make one race seem inferior. The image name is: Die Bewohner des oberen Nilgebietes