Imperialism vs. Culture

GSWLA Senior Project Research Paper

KELSIE R ROHLER

Block 3B - Falls

1

Kelsie Rohler

Abstract

The title of this project is The Effects of Imperialism on Culture. The research question

is, “Is it possible for a society to maintain its culture when facing political, economic,

military and/or cultural imperialism?”. This research focuses on Afghanistan as the main

example. It will examine the evolution of their culture as it went through British and

Soviet rule to Taliban rule to American intervention. Many other examples will be

implemented. This research will display how an imperialistic society can manipulate and

change a culture that was originally seen to be stable.

Introduction

This research is studying the effects of imperialism on culture. This is important

because the revival and preservation of culture has become a pressing issue in society.

People need to be aware of how imperialism can destroy, change or possibly benefit a

culture, depending on the scenario. Imperialism is defined as “the policy of extending

the rule or authority of an empire or nation over foreign countries, or of acquiring and

holding colonies and dependencies.” This basically means one country comes into

another and takes over. This topic is fairly original. There are not a lot of studies

focusing solely on original culture vs. imperialistic culture. This topic could fill in many

gaps when researching loss of culture and also the rehabilitation of a culture.

Limitations

The main limitation of this project is the inability to travel to the places of study. There

is neither the funding nor time to visit these places and have firsthand accounts.

2

Kelsie Rohler

Another limitation may be the inability to personally interview people in historical events.

This project will cover as much information as possible to obtain. Examples from all

genders, nationalities, locations and so on will be researched. There is plentiful amounts

of information about a majority of the ideals being represented in this paper, therefore

the limitations of what can be studied is not large. The only issue with this research is

obtaining real life experience and being able to personally examine these different

cultures and people. Bias or lack of knowledge may harm the research being done by

this project. This project will attempt to cover examples from many different eras and

time periods. Although it is impossible to cover every example in the history of the

world, this paper will cover a wide spectrum.

Methodology

The research for this paper was conducted qualitatively. An interview will be

conducted further on into the expansion of this research. The plan of action is to request

an interview with someone that has worked in Afghanistan and has seen the changes

because of imperialistic reigns. Facts and personal experiences that have been found

online have been recorded for use during this project. Currently there is no field

research or internships associated with this project. Data was collected through online

sources. The library’s data sources were utilized for collecting information. The

Tallwood High School library was used for a majority of the research. Most of the

research that was collected for this project is first-hand accounts, experiences or in

depth explanations of examples. Since the question of study is, ““Is it possible for a

society to maintain its’ culture when facing political, economic or military imperialism?”,

all the research is examples of cultures being changed or possibly unchanged by

3

Kelsie Rohler

imperialism. For example, different articles based on Taliban rule in Afghanistan, Soviet

rule in Afghanistan, American intervention in Afghanistan, women’s roles in Afghanistan

and more about the changing culture have been inspected. The evolution of this culture

overtime will display the effects imperialism can have on a culture. As stated before, an

interview is also going to be pursued with someone that has been to and experienced

Afghanistan’s culture. This will help to have a personal point of view in the project.

Afghanistan will be the prime example for this project because the country has

experienced imperialism on more than one occasion. Each time the country

encountered this dilemma it had a lasting and large affect over its culture. Also,

research is and will be further conducted to show that imperialism is not always just one

culture coming into another. Imperialism could be metaphorically displayed through

westernization. Such as the growing popularity and influence of American music,

movies and television shows. Research will also be collected on the effects imperialism

of a country can have on the surrounding countries because of refuges and changes of

alliances. Overall, the research for this project is a large collective study based on facts

and experiences.

Literature Review

Imperialism is defined as “the policy of extending the rule or authority of an empire or

nation over foreign countries, or of acquiring and holding colonies and dependencies”

(“Imperialism.”). In layman’s terms this means, one society, empire or culture coming

and taking over another. There are several motives a culture could have to overtake

another. Throughout this research, sources have been collected to exemplify political,

economic, military, and social imperialism. The theory of unintentional imperialism, such

4

Kelsie Rohler

as globalization, will also be explored. The sources used in this paper will be examined

through this literature review and used later on to understand the question of research.

The question this research is attempting to uncover is, ““Is it possible for a society to

maintain its’ culture when facing political, economic or military imperialism?”.

The first source is written by Dr. Mehdi S. Shariati. He is a Professor of Economics,

Sociology, and Geography in the Social and Behavioral Sciences Division of the Kansas

City Kansas Community College. He obtained graduate degrees in Economics,

Sociology and a multidisciplinary Ph.D. His focuses of study are global political

economy, economic development, and social change. In this article he discusses the

definitions of specific types of imperialism. He introduces the word “militarism” in this

article, meaning military imperialism. The concept of militarism will be used throughout

this research. This article also goes into the different theories and perspectives of

imperialism.

The next source is a website titled “Motives for Imperialism”. Throughout this website

five motives are identified. This includes, economic, exploratory, ethnocentric, political

and religious. Although these are not identical to the specified areas of study in the

research, all of these motives can fall under a category of this research paper (military,

political, social, economic, and unintentional imperialism).

“Imperialism: Political Aspects” is a pdf file written by H. L. Wesseling. A small

background on Wesseling states: “Henk Wesseling, born in The Hague, Netherlands, in

1937. Ph.D. from Leiden University. Professor of Contemporary History at Leiden

University from 1973 to 2002. Rector of NIAS (Netherlands Institute for Advanced

5

Kelsie Rohler

Study) from 1995 to 2002.” (Leiden). This article discusses the political aspect of

imperialism. The article is three pages split into sections. The sections are titled:

Theories of Imperialism and The End of Empire?.

The next source is derived from a website titled “history haven”. Although no author is

credited for this article, it is full of useful (and hopefully credible) information. First,

imperialism is defined. Following, there are definitions of four different imperialistic

aspects. The remainder of the article describes several different scenarios and historical

examples to support their definitions. These scenarios include Africa, India, China and

the evolution of United States’ imperialistic history.

The main example for this research is Afghanistan. The next source is titled

“Afghanistan: Women Under Imperialist Occupation”. This is an article published on a

website titled “International Communist League” and the title of the article is titled

“U.S./NATO Troops Out Now! Afghanistan: Women Under Imperialist Occupation. We

Said: Hail Red Army in Afghanistan!” The original version of this article was published in

a newspaper called “Workers Vanguard”. This newspaper is written by the Spartacist

League, a Trotskyist political organization in the United States. Trostykists support the

ideals of Marxism with their own twist. From Marxism, communism and socialism have

developed. Given all these circumstances, this article is majorly biased. The lives of

women in Afghanistan are displayed as hell-like circumstances. This article shows the

United States as an influence on the unfortunate lives of these women as well as

Afghanistan. Despite the major bias, this article draws attention the fact that the lives of

women in Afghanistan have been majorly affected by the history of imperialistic regimes

in the country. Further research needs to be conducted to confirm or deny the

6

Kelsie Rohler

accusations and scenarios proposed by this article. The writers of this article appear to

be highly against United States expansion and any form of capitalist like governments.

To derive other examples of each type of imperialism, further research will be

conducted. To answer the question of this paper, definitions must first be established.

Once it becomes clear the effects imperialism has on culture, it can be decided whether

the possibility of a culture being sustained once taken over is likely or not.

7

Kelsie Rohler

Imperialism’s Effects on Culture

Merriam-Webster defines imperialism as, “the policy, practice, or advocacy of

extending the power and dominion of a nation especially by direct territorial acquisitions

or by gaining indirect control over the political or economic life of other areas”. In simpler

terms, imperialism is one culture taking over another. Through the different types of

imperialism, cultures can be affected politically, economically, and socially; this research

will also support a form of metaphorical imperialism. Since imperialism is the domination

of one culture over another through many or all aspects of life, it becomes a major

challenge for the previous culture to sustain through the changes brought by the

overtaking culture.

Political Imperialism

Politically speaking, “imperialism is a form of international hierarchy in which one

political unit, or polity, effectively governs or controls another polity” (“Imperialism:

Political Aspects”). Historically political imperialism is one of the oldest forms of

controlling people; “characterizing relations between peoples in ancient Mesopotamia,

China, and Rome through modern Europe” (“Imperialism: Political Aspects”). This form

of imperialism may have been experienced between neighboring societies such as the

Ottoman Empire. However, the European states began expanding when they held

overseas colonies.

It is difficult to research imperialism and not come across the topic of European

imperialism and colonialism. In the late 1800s, European nations were one of the first to

use sea power to build their empires all over the world. They were influenced by a drive

8

Kelsie Rohler

for greater access of natural resources. European states during this time were on a

mission for wealth, power and glory. The main motivation was competition between

neighboring European countries. Britain began this race by becoming greatly involved in

colonialism. Germany and France then became involved in this competition for

expansion. The size of an empire became a source of power; the bigger the empire, the

more lethal the society. Politically speaking this allowed certain nations a sense of

dominance over another. (“IMPERIALISM”).

The major place of imperialistic opportunities for European states was Africa. Trade

between Europe and Africa between 1450 and 1750 was a major source of income and

resources for all parties involved. After the first episodes of expansion, only a few

colonies existed in Africa. Some of the colonies were Algeria occupied by France, the

Cape Colony occupied by Great Britain and Angola occupied by Portugal. Once the

latter half of the nineteenth century came around, Europe began to majorly explore and

colonize Africa. By 1914 almost all of Africa was colonized by Europeans. Belgium was

one of the first to colonize by establishing the Congo Free State. This colony eventually

became Belgian Congo. This influenced Britain, France, Germany and Italy to begin

competing for African colonies. The Berlin Conference of 1884-5 influenced further

imperialism for Europe. This conference permitted European diplomats to make Africa

into colonies by being able to draw lines claiming territories. (“IMPERIALISM”).

European imperialism and colonization left Africa changed in beneficial and some not

so beneficial ways. These African colonies experienced an introduction to productive

authority. Africa gained a “more structured political system and organized government”

(“Effects”). Currently, a large majority of these now African countries still obtain the

9

Kelsie Rohler

same if not very similar political systems they obtained during European rule. From this

these colonies also received the concepts of constitutions and democracy. Western

powers also brought nationalism to Africa. Nationalism is essentially pride in one’s

country or patriotism. However, the Europeans did not foresee that giving the African

colonies a functioning government and sense of unity would later be their motivation for

revolutions and wars in Africa. Consequently, this example of imperialism benefited

those that were overtaken more than the ones who did the taking over in the end.

Referring back to the overall question of this paper, in this scenario the original culture

was altered greatly if not completely by the imperialists. However, it was proven that a

change of culture does not necessarily have to have a negative connotation. The

African colonies benefited from imperialism but their culture was indeed completely

altered. Their individual culture did not withstand political imperialism and these

changes have held through until modern days for a lot of the past colonies, current

countries.

Economic Imperialism

Economic imperialism is different from political in terms of motives and also in some

scenarios how the country is overtaken and/or ruled. In some historic instances, “this

form of imperialism allowed the area to operate as its own nation, but the imperialist

nation almost completely controlled its trade and other business” (“IMPERIALISM”).

Many times the imperialist country or companies ensure that they have exclusive rights

to the country’s natural resources. The imperialist may also determine who the country

is permitted and prohibited to trade with. Imperialist governments or private companies

10

Kelsie Rohler

that seek economic expansion into other countries are set out to maximize their profits.

Labor that can be forced or paid for cheaply benefits the imperialist greatly by being

able to produce more profit for less. The imperialist also is able to control markets,

production, and consumerism in the area it overtakes. “Imperial merchants often

established trading posts and warehouses, created transportation infrastructure, and

sought control over strategic choke points, such as the Suez Canal in Egypt (which

allows boats to cut thousands of miles of travel time between Asia and Europe).

Imperial powers often competed with each other for the best potential resources,

markets, and trade” (“Motives”).

Most imperialist societies however, go after natural resources and land. The

example of European imperialism in Africa also applies here. The Europeans colonized

Africa for competition and political expansion but they also benefited from resources

needed by the rise of the Industrial Revolution. With them they brought industrial

technology. This aided the colonies to develop industries and a source of economic

advancements. Currently, many African markets are based off of the industrial markets

from this era of imperialism. (“Effects”).

Major offenders of economic imperialism include Europe, the United States and

Japan. The popular recipients of imperialists are Africa, Asia and Latin America. During

the nineteenth century the Third World was considered a source of raw materials,

slaves and a “market for manufactured goods”. The twentieth century brought about the

exporting of goods and capital. Capital referring to, “machinery, technology,

investments, and loans”. The rise of capital exports resulted in a rise of natural resource

need. “Most Western capital is invested in Western nations, not in the Third World. If

11

Kelsie Rohler

corporations lost all their Third World investments, they (writers) argue, many of them

could still survive on their European and North American markets. In response, one

should note that capitalism might be able to survive without imperialism—but it shows

no inclination to do so.” (“Imperialism 101”).

Specifically focusing on the United States, profit rates for corporations are 50%

greater in developing rather than developed countries. This is because of the possibility

of lower wages, low taxes, no worker’s benefits, nonexistent or weak labor unions, and

no protections provided for the workers in these countries. An example of the impact of

this sort of economic imperialism is displayed through the Borneo rainforests in the

South Pacific. “By their own testimony, the people there lived contented lives. They

hunted, fished, and raised food in their jungle orchards and groves. But their entire way

of life was ruthlessly wiped out by a few giant companies that destroyed the rainforest in

order to harvest the hardwood for quick profits.” (“Imperialism 101”). Their lives were

drastically altered. The land they inhabited was destroyed and turned into a harvest land

for money they would never even see. Those that were able to actually find employment

were forced to do hard labor for subsistence wages and had no real rights as workers or

people. This display of imperialism shows that the scenario is not always one country

taking over another. Corporations or countries looking for economic gain can overtake

the lives or economics/trade of another country or smaller society. The culture of the

people being overtaken is altered drastically. They have no control over their own

economics. It is practically impossible to maintain their previous lives and culture when

being dominated by another culture, country or corporation.

Militarism

12

Kelsie Rohler

“Militarism here is defined as the use of the actual military power and the projection of

the preponderance of military power to implement the state's overseas expansion of the

interest of the domestic capitalist classes and their overseas allies. Militarism is often

associated with an ideology which often presents itself as nationalism to the point that

the line between the two is blurred.” (Staples). Militarism is a form of imperialism that

can also be pursued for several different reasons. It is possible that the dominating

society could be looking for an expansion to their territories and are using their military

to do so. However, it is also possible that the dominating society is participating in

imperialism to solve a conflict, help reform a society or a variety of other reasons. A

reoccurring exemplifier of this is the United States. On more than one occasion, the

U.S. has gone into other countries claiming to want to help their reformation or to

stabilize the country. However, many times it leads to the U.S. staying for a prolonged

period of time and attempting to change and remake the culture of the society they are

in. This can be defined as a form of military imperialism. The changes the U.S. aspires

to bring to the society they are over taken is enforced by the military.

For example, the United States entering Iraq brought some cultural clashing. Neither

culture was accustomed to the other, therefore many things were misinterpreted. The

American soldiers were extremely uneducated on Iraqi culture, while the Iraqis never

had much exposure to American or Western ideals like most of the world was. Since the

war was fought much on Iraqi ground, many innocent citizens got the negative effects.

Many are grateful to the United States for helping to rid them of Saddam Hussein;

however many feel the United States did more damage than good. The lack of U.S.

knowledge about Iraq and its culture is the main reason for problems and lasting

13

Kelsie Rohler

animosity. “The Iraqi army belonged to Iraq, not Saddam Hussein. At least that’s how

many, many Iraqis saw it. The Bush administration failed to recognize this widespread

sentiment and swept the army away on a whim as though it were a wing of the Ba’ath

party. That was more damning than the invasion itself in the minds of many Iraqis.”

(“U.S.”). The culture of Iraq was changed in an irreversible way, whether it actually be

good or bad, by the invasion of the United States military.

Cultural Imperialism

Unintentional or metaphorical imperialism is essentially globalization, westernization

and Americanization serving as forms of imperialism. There is not a country, society or

corporation coming into a country or area and dominating over a society.; rather, these

are examples of a culture overtaking aspects of another culture. This is also referred to

as cultural imperialism. “The term cultural imperialism refers most broadly to the

exercise of domination in cultural relationships in which the values, practices, and

meanings of a powerful foreign culture are imposed upon one or more native cultures.”

(Tomlinson). A majority of the time this term is used to describe the influence of

Western culture onto less dominant cultures. It is hard to shy from the influence of the

western world because, “most of the world's media is U.S. dominated not necessarily

because of a greater amount of intelligence but because of a greater number of people

involved in media.” (“Cultural”). The occupation of much of the world by the United

States and Western Europe also contributes to the growing dominance of Western

culture and ideals.

14

Kelsie Rohler

An example of this is the rise in eating disorders in Japan. This is a result of an

increase in industrialization, urbanization and the unraveling of traditional family

traditions following World War II. The fact that Japan is becoming more contemporary

correlates with the rise in eating disorders. This has caused a change in gender roles,

and the westernized ideals of beauty and the roles of weight in women.

Afghanistan