Imperialism In The Twentieth Century Analysis

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Is change a good thing? Traditions should be valued and cherished as they have been passed down from generation to generation with special significance of the origins of the past. However, refusing the need to change and ditch old traditions can lead to being complacent and leaving no room to grow and strive for better. In Roberts, The Penguin History of the Twentieth Century, we explore the idea that imperialism is much more than a mother country and its colonies, but rather a way of changing old traditions. We will explore this idea through the culture, technology, and politics of the United States and the Ottoman Empire in the twentieth century. The once great Ottoman Empire led the world from the fifteenth century until the early twentieth …show more content…

The Ottoman Empire showed that sticking to traditions led to the downfall of the empire while America became one of the world’s strongest forces by being innovative and accepting change. Politics in these two imperial systems were very different; the Ottoman Empire believed in sticking with their hierarchy in which the sultan was the supreme ruler and the United States was a democracy in which the people elected a President. One can see that this allowed the citizens of the U.S. the option to elect someone they believed shared the same values as they did. Technology also played a large factor in the downfall and success of the two imperial systems. The United States was a leader in the field of technology during the twentieth century while the Ottoman Empire was very far behind. Because of the unwillingness to modernize the Ottoman Empire fell. The United States showed their dominance when they were able to put humans on the moon; this was a huge step for the U.S. and showed all other imperial systems that the United States had quickly jumped to the top of the world. Lastly we will examine the culture of the two imperial systems. Both groups had unhappy citizens; “The outcome was discontent, xenophobia, conspiracy and ultimately revolution” “frequently bloody industrial disputes” (Roberts, 233,70). The people of the Ottoman Empire were discontent with the way their …show more content…

This was demonstrated through analyzing the similarities and difference between the two imperial systems. Politics were very different between the two countries because the Ottoman maintained their form of hierarchy while America ran a democracy in which everyone (eventually) has the right to vote. The two also differed greatly in the field of technology; the Ottoman Empire did not use technology while the U.S. made it a priority. Although these two imperial systems were very different we can agree that the citizens of both parties were never fully satisfied. The Ottoman ulema showed displeasure of the people while factory workers in America constantly rebelled in order to receive better working conditions. This raises questions about when would the culture of an imperial system be fully happy or satisfied? Or will there always be a need to change and strive for better for the people of an imperial

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