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Social darwinism and its effect now
Colonialism and its impacts
Detail discussion on colonialism
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Inevitability of the African colonisation
Before I begin to discuss the question of the inevitability of the
colonisation of Africa by the European powers I want to say that,
colonisation as we know it; the taking over of a country by another
country and the forcing on of a different culture, is always evitable.
At least it should be. However we have to include the fact that we’re
all human beings which think their own good superior to the one of
others, and of course that we’re all creatures which are enormously
curious of the unknown. Whatsoever there are obviously more reasons
which lead to nearly a whole continent being colonised, economic
reasons, social Darwinism, national prestige, Missionary and
humanitarian impulses, Military advantages, the will of exploration
and scientific discoveries. Looking at all these reasons schematically
I’ll convince you of the evitability of the colonisation of Africa.
To begin with, one of the reasons for colonisation was economical.
The industrial revolution taking place in 1750-1800 provided the need
for cheap raw material and there was a surplus capital in Europe so
people were looking for new markets to sell their manufactured goods,
without a new market the level of industrial production would go down
causing problems like unemployment rates going up and social unrest at
home. Also there was a specially high demand for products like tea,
coffee, palm oil, and rubber, - exotic products which were only to get
outside of Europe and which were regarded as luxuries. However all
these economic reasons can not advocate colonisation because Europe
could have just started to trade with African countries, without
totally exploiting them. But this was obviously not possible because
of prejudice, leading to the next great point in my essay.
Social Darwinism, Darwinism states that the fittest survive, because
they own special characteristics such as the ability of obtaining food
in the most productive way, or special skills in combat. In
continuation it states the evolution of men and the stronger groups
Nationalistic ideas made European countries want to take action in the colonization of Africa. In Document B, the English John Ruskin says, “…seizing every piece of fruitful waste ground she can set her foot on, and there teaching these her colonists … that their first aim is to be to advance the power of England by land and by sea.” This quote shows how the Europeans were proud of their countries and wanted to spread their territories in order to be the best. It can be seen in Document A how the Europeans had already colonized a lot of Africa by the 20th century, with seven countries holding territories by 1914. The idea of nationalism helped push European countries into colonizing Africa, which led to more land for resources and ultimately helped Europe economically.
Another reason for Europeans to colonize Africa was to become even more powerful than they already were.... ... middle of paper ... ... Works Cited The DBQ Project. Chart.
Prior to the 19th century, the Europeans traded mainly for African slaves. It turns out they were not immune towards certain diseases and therefore had an increasing risk of becoming sick. For years to come this continued, but not much land was conquered. Eventually, conference between only the Europeans was held to divide up the land appropriately, and the scramble for Africa began. The driving forces behind European imperialism in Africa were expanding empires, helping natives, and natural resources.
As the 20th century approached, more and more countries grew desperate for land, resulting in an imperialistic activity known as the Scramble for Africa. The European imperialists were motivated by three main factors; economic, political, and social. These factors made countries compete for power and eventually led to the scramble for African territory. Although economic expansion at times was a positive outcome of European imperialism in Africa, these positive effects are outweighed by negative outcomes such as loss of culture and independence.
When the Europeans arrived in Africa, many would of thought that imperialism wasn?t fied because the Europeans were enslaving the Africans. As stated in David Diop's An Anthology of West African Verse, "And in the Conqueror's voice said, 'Boy! A chair, a napkin, a drink.'" Stated blatantly, the "conqueror" is a European, and he is commanding an African to serve him. Forcing Africans into slavery certainly doesn?t justify European imperialism in Africa, however, there are many reasons as to why imperialism actually was justified.
Europe, in the late 1800’s, was starting for a land grab in the African continent. Around 1878, most of Africa was unexplored, but by 1914, most of Africa, with the lucky exception of Liberia and Ethiopia, was carved up between European powers. There were countless motivations that spurred the European powers to carve Africa, like economical, political, and socio–cultural, and there were countless attitudes towards this expansion into Africa, some of approval and some of condemnation.
Conquest and colonization has always played a role in the history of European powers. Throughout the centuries many different European empires have attempted to make their mark on multiple different continents. Some have found success, while others have failed. One case in particular, in which European nations could not quite find stability, was in North America. Factors such as the American Revolution, U.S. westward expansion, and the Monroe Doctrine pushed European nations out of North America. Afterwards, the late 19th century marked the beginning of New Imperialism. As New Imperialism began, Africa became important to European nations in their “Scramble for Africa”.
In terms of political changes, European imperialism negatively affected Africa. Firstly, European colonization created enormous conflict between colonists and the African people. African resistance to “The Scramble for Africa” lead to the instability of Africa’s political structure. There was ineffective resistance of the African people against the Europeans. In an attempt to regain their independence, Africans took up arms against their colonial masters as soon as they perceived them to be at a disadvantage. In southern Africa, in The Republic of Namibia, the Herero people rose against German rule in 1904, killing over 100 German settlers and traders. German commander, General von Trotha, retaliated with a war aimed simply at extermination. This resulted in the decline of 70% of the Herero population.1 Nowhere else was colonialism quite so brutal, but almost everywhere it tended towards unrestrained brutality as soon as it was challenged.2 Warfare created considerable unrest among African people. Afterwards, the people of Africa came to the realization that the consequences of resistance against European colonists could be devastating. As well, the Europeans demonstrated that they had the technology and resources to gain control. Secondly, colonial expansion changed the face of Africa’s political structure. The Berlin Conference of 1884-85, attended by 13 European nations and the USA, set the ground rules for partition of Africa. When the conferenc...
One of the main reasons was that the Europeans believed that the more territory a country was able to control, the more powerful it could become and the more powerful it would be seen as by other countries. Other reasons for the desire to control African land included the many natural resources that could only be found in Africa, such as diamonds, gold, and as time progressed, rubber. It also provided new markets in surrounding places so that manufactured goods could be sold for a larger profit. The Europeans had many motives for imperialism in Africa. Yet the true motives were often shielded as they tried to present themselves as humanitarians when in reality they were making Africa a terrible place to live with brutality and harsh treatment of the African natives.
Exploration led to colonization and was carried out for many reasons but the main reasons include religion, status, economic purposes, resources and militarily tactical purposes. Much of early colonization was for trading of raw materials between continents and countries. Dominant religions sought to spread gospel and “civilize” the indigenous people by making them conform to Western beliefs and ways. Status and recognition was also pursued by country leaders w... ... middle of paper ... ...
The Scramble for Africa occurred because as the slave trade ended, capitalists saw Africa as a continent that they could now exploit through legitimate trade. European capitalists have found new ways to make money off the continent. With greater exploration of the continent, even more valuable resources were found. The encouragement of legitimate trade in Africa brought Europeans flocking to colonize Africa. Africa lost their independence, and along with it, their control over their natural resources.
At the beginning of the 17th century imperialization was all the rage for European countries. Europe, who started industrialization, was the most advanced continent on earth. With the production of more and more products, resources were needed. EXpeditions of other continents lead to the findings of many resources that would prove to be very useful to the Europeans. These other continents didn’t take too kindly to the idea of Europeans taking their stuff, but Aa the time Europe the most advanced weaponry in the world and they were not afraid to use it.
During the 19th century, Europe found a way to use Africa for its own growth and power. Using Africa for their resources, the Europeans colonized Africa without a second thought. European imperialism in Africa had a negative impact because of social disarray, cultural loss, and death it caused. As the Europeans started to invade Africa and split up the land, they paid no attention to the already existing natural boundaries. Over time, villages with different cultures had set these boundaries.
An overwhelming majority of African nations has reclaimed their independence from their European mother countries. This did not stop the Europeans from leaving a permanent mark on the continent however. European colonialism has shaped modern-day Africa, a considerable amount for the worse, but also some for the better. Including these positive and negative effects, colonialism has also touched much of Africa’s history and culture especially in recent years.
powerful regimes were formed in Europe and China, since there was flat land bounded by rivers