Susan Sitoula Mr. John Stanlake Reading 7 December 2014 Cultural Imperialism According to the Cambridge dictionary, the fact of the culture of a large and powerful country, organization, etc. having a great influence on another less powerful country, etc is known as cultural imperialism. There are many ways in which a stronger country can have power over a weaker one like through military force. However, in the 21st century, the expansion of one’s culture, beliefs and ideologies is the most effective and easily applicable one which the U.S has been following. Spreading one’s own influence over others surely does take time. The U.S. has had a very powerful influence on many countries of North America, Europe and Asia, including Nepal since …show more content…
It is so widespread that the first country that comes to our head when talking about imperialism is the United States. American ideologies are accepted blindly in Nepal as a result of the confidence that Americans have in their ideologies, culture and economy and the lack of this exact feeling in the Nepalese. While many countries in South Asia are on their way to development, Nepalese want to develop themselves. But the fault here is that Nepalese think that they’re developing when they follow the western cultures. They think wearing western clothes, eating western food or watching western productions and going abroad to study empowers them or leads them to development when all that they are doing is unintentionally following the new trends set forward by the supreme powers. Being aware of the intentions of the power nations is very essential in a situation like this. Everyone wants to watch and listen to whatever they like, study wherever they want and they should. Not giving them this freedom would be against the rights that people hold. But we should not let go of own customs and rituals when going after anything foreign. We should not be so much into things that are foreign that we lose our own individuality and originality that only, we, Nepalese have. Works Cited "Cultural Imperialism." Cambridge Dictionaries Online. Cambridge University Press, n.d. Web. 6 Dec. 2014. "Nepal." Countries and Their Cultures. Advameg, n.d. Web. 6 Dec. 2014. Galeota, Julia. “Cultural Imperialism: An American Tradition.” The Humanist. N.p., May-June 2004. Web. 6 Dec. 2-14. Cummings, William K., Cheung So Wing. “The Preference Of Asian Overseas Students For The United States: AN Examination Of The Context.” Higher Education 14 (1985): 403-23. Web. 6 Dec
As stronger nations exercise their control over weaker ones, the United States try to prove their authority, power and control over weaker nations seeing them as unable to handle their own issues thereby, imposing their ideology on them. And if any of these weaker nations try to resist, then the wrath of the United States will come upon them. In overthrow the author Stephen Kinzer tells how Americans used different means to overthrow foreign government. He explains that the campaign & ideology of anti- communism made Americans believe that it was their right and historical obligation to lead forces of good against those of iniquity. They also overthrew foreign government, when economic interest coincided with their ideological ones (kinzer.215). These factors were the reasons behind America’s intervention in Iran, Guatemala, South Vietnam and Chile to control and protect multinational companies as well as the campaign against communism with little or no knowledge about these countries.
Imperialism is a policy by which a country gains power over the world or other countries. It begun in 1865 and it caused US to expand. America had “Thirst for New Market”. The business in The United States was developing rapidly so it needed more supplies (trade) from other countries. The United States used different methods such as Jingoism/Racism, Economic Expansion and American superiority over Europe, but however, economic expansion contributed most for the US Imperialism. This meant more money and power compare to other countries.
Imperialism is the practice by which powerful nations or peoples seek to extend and maintain control or influence over weaker nations or peoples. By the 1800’s, the Western powers had advantages in this process. They led the world in technological advances, giving them a dominance when conquering other countries. The European Imperialists made attempts to conquer China and Japan. In this process, they succeeded by influencing Japan greatly. However, they were not as successful with China.
Throughout the course of history, nations have invested time and manpower into the colonizing and modernizing of more rural governments. Imperialism has spread across the globe, from the British East India Company to France’s occupation of Northern Africa. After their founding in 1776, the United States of America largely stayed out of this trend until The Spanish-American War of 1898. Following the war, the annexation and colonization of Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines ultimately set a precedent for a foreign policy of U.S. imperialism.
From western expansion to foreign imperialism the United States has always been an expansionist country. Early America’s focus was to conquer the natives and obtain western land within North America, but in the latter of America’s history, specifically in the nineteenth and twentieth century, foreign imperialism became the new focus. America’s activity in foreign imperialism was a continuation and departure of the United States’ early expansionism. It was a continuation in terms of manifest destiny, the spread of Christianity, and by the concept of “the city on a hill” and a departure in terms of foreign involvement.
During the late nineteenth century, the United States pursued an aggressive policy of expansion, extending its political and economic influence throughout the world especially Cuba and Hawaii. American imperialism is the most widely used type of expression used by the United States to describe a history of United States foreign policy actions and doctrines that demonstrate an unequivocal intent to interfere in events around the world that favor their own economic, political, and economic interest strategies.
After the civil war, United States took a turn that led them to solidify as the world power. From the late 1800s, as the US began to collect power through Cuba, Hawaii, and the Philippines, debate arose among historians about American imperialism and its behavior. Historians such as William A. Williams, Arthur Schlesinger, and Stephen Kinzer provides their own vision and how America ought to be through ideas centered around economics, power, and racial superiority.
Imperialism, defined by Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary, is "the policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion of a nation especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining indirect control over the political or economic life of other areas"(Merriam-Webster). During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the United States pursued an aggressive policy of expansionism, extending its political and economic influence around the globe. The United States has become an empire. Although the United States has less power – in the sense of control over other countries’ internal behavior – than Britain did when it ruled a quarter of the globe, the United States now has more power resources relative to other countries than Britain had at its imperialistic peak. American Imperialism was driven by a need for markets and raw materials, as well as the desire for power and success. The United States increasingly appears to be an imperial power.
Imperialism in America At the turn of the century, America and the views of its people changed. Many different ideas were surfacing about issues that affected the country as a whole. The Republican Party, led by William McKinley, was concentrating on the expansion of the United States and looking to excel in power and commerce. The Democratic Party at this time was led by William Jennings Bryan, who was absorbed in a sponge of morality and was concerned with the rights of man.
Cultural Appropriation and Its Effects On Other Cultures This past Halloween I dressed up as a China Doll; in my black traditional Asian dress, white painted face, rosy pink cheeks, black eyeliner, and my hair held up in a bun with chopsticks. I originally thought that this costume would be rather attractive and fun. However, I began to question myself after a young lady approached me and asked, "Are you suppose to be an Asian person? " I immediately replied, "No, I am a beautiful China Doll".
In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, Imperialism was a popular trend among the large, powerful countries. Imperialism is defined as “The policy of extending a nation's authority by territorial acquisition or by the establishment of economic and political hegemony over other nations” Imperialism cannot be said as either good or bad, but as a general rule; If you live in an annexed country, imperialism is not good, if your country annexes smaller ones to gain profit, land, and respect, then imperialism is good. The United States was not much of an imperialistic country until we won the Spanish-American war. As a result of this war, we annexed Guam, The Philippines, and Puerto Rico. This is the point at which the US becomes and imperialistic nation, and though it was a hard struggle to keep these annexed countries under control and eventually gave them all back to their rightful owners. The importance of taking these countries is that we then could have coal stations around the world to fuel our navy, and we got respect from other countries around the war. This respect and intimidation helped the allied powers defeat the central powers during World War II. Ever since the US became the most powerful nation after the Spanish-American war, we have retained the title.
Cultural appropriation should be understood that it is not the same as cultural appreciation and why it is so wrong. Taking someone else's culture and turning it to fashion or a trend is not just disrespectful but downright offensive. Cultural appropriation is defined as the act of taking or using things from a culture that is not your own. But then does that not mean we can not learn about other cultures other than our own? Sure we can, it is just how we decide to understand one's culture by the tradition and history.
n his paper, “From Cultural Exchange to Transculturation: A Review and Reconceptualization of Cultural Appropriation” Richard A. Rogers defines cultural appropriation as being, “inescapably intertwined with cultural politics. It is involved in the assimilation and exploitation of marginalized and colonized cultures and in the survival of sub orientated cultures and their resistance to dominant cultures” (Rodgers 474). To put it simply cultural appropriation usually is when the majority race, white, try to adapt some form of a minority culture and often turning it into a sort of trend. This can happen to a variety of races in a multitude of ways, the use of Japanese kimonos, cornrows that are associated with the black community turning into
Cultural imperialism is something that can really mess with people’s perception on how they view other cultures they aren’t familiar
Albert Turner 27 March 2017 Fiction Essay: The Appropriation of Cultures In the short story, Appropriation of cultures, the protagonist used resistance against racial formalities to structure a new ideal, about symbols that many found offensive or viewed as negative. For instance, the protagonist, Daniel, was asked to sing a “racist” melody. When faced with something like this, a typical African American individual can feel some sort of tension, which he did feel at first. However, instead of acting on this feeling of anxiety and intimidation, he chose to overcome the internal conflict at hand. He created his own musical influence, by ignoring the negative connotation attached to the original musical production. These actions