Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Colonialism

Definition of Colonialism:
Colonialism is a practice of domination, which involves the subjugation of one people to another. One of the difficulties in defining colonialism is that it is difficult to distinguish it from imperialism. Frequently the two concepts are treated as synonyms. Like colonialism, imperialism also involves political and economic control over a dependent territory. Turning to the etymology of the two terms, however, provides some suggestion about how they differ. The term colony comes from the Latin word colonus, meaning farmer. This root reminds us that the practice of colonialism usually involved the transfer of population to a new territory, where the new arrivals lived as permanent settlers while maintaining political allegiance to their country of origin. Imperialism, on the other hand, comes from the Latin term imperium, meaning to command. Thus, the term imperialism draws attention to the way that one country exercises power over another, whether through settlement, sovereignty, or indirect mechanisms of control. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/colonialism/

Colonialism is the extension of a nation's sovereignty over territory beyond its borders by the establishment of either settler or exploitation colonies in which indigenous populations are directly ruled, displaced, or exterminated. Colonizing nations generally dominate the resources, labor, and markets of the colonial territory, and may also impose socio-cultural, religious, and linguistic structures on the indigenous population (see also cultural imperialism). It is essentially a system of direct political, economic, and cultural intervention and hegemony by a powerful country in a weaker one. Though the word colonialism is often used interchangeably with imperialism, the latter is sometimes used more broadly as it covers control exercised informally (via influence) as well as formal military control or economic leverage. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonialism

Image of Colonialism:

http://www.ralphmag.org/DH/lions.html


http://www.lib.washington.edu/subject/history/bi/hst388-thomas/


http://www.flagshipgames.com/RampantColonialism.htm


http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/abolition/black_imagery_gallery_04.shtml


http://www.easternct.edu/personal/faculty/mcneilk/Victoriansyll.html


http://www.chopra.com/files/images/british.jpg

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Excellent post. Would have been a 10 if it had been on time.

J-