Explore the link between Financial Structures and Economic Growth

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Capitalism and global economy

Capitalism is the form of political and economic system in which industry and trade of a country are controlled by the private owners and not the state. From the ideas of Lin (01), on capitalism, it is apparent that colonialism acted as a methodology of spreading capitalism because it was/is a political exploitation that spearheads an economic system characterized by greed. This aspect of greed due to capitalism as a fostering agent of colonialism holds true in the book Commissioner Lin: Letter to Queen Victoria, 1839 where it is depicted that when Chinese refused to open their country for colonialism, the British East India Company begun importing opium to Qin China (Lin, 01). This trading of opium caused a debilitating economic and social problem in China. In this regard, Britain wanted to expand its imperial power and increase its sales of goods in China, and led by the capitalist greediness begun selling opium to the Chinese in order to make them addicted to it so that it can continue selling the products to this new found economy (Module 2, Concept 2, Case Study 2, East Asia).

It is also important to note that global economy was the one thing that affected colonialism. The British were seemingly looking at the less developed economies to colonize and take control of their natural resources for their own gain. For instance, the British colonized China because they saw themselves as a superior race that has advanced economy and military tactics and weapons such that it was its responsibility to control the global economy. This is why when China was declining to be colonized they had to use the greedy capitalist mind of addicting the Chinese to opium so that they could create a dependency that would necessitate the trade between these two countries, and eventually lead to colonization.

Both capitalism and global economy played a role in the development or race. According to Josiah (438), the black Africans that lived south of Egypt had been in constant intercourse with Egypt as evidence depicts from ancient monuments as far as 4000 years back. However, these people had not made any strength towards civilization and they would not until they change their physical organization. By using the term “physical organization”, the author was pointing out to capitalism and how open these Africans were to the outside world for global trade and global economy. Therefore, the author is inferring to the inferiority of the African race due to lack of civilization because they had not allowed themselves to the outside world where they could exchange ideas and information that would aid in advancing their race. However, in module 2 concept 1 lecture notes, we learnt that all human beings have the capability of understanding the natural laws that govern the various races in terms of mental faculties, and thus the aspect of one race being superior to another was just a biased assumption.

From the Boğaziçi University (01), endemic reform is the process of Asian, Africans, Middle Eastern, and Pacific states people building their own modernity. The aspect of capitalism and global economy had an immense impact on the endemic reforms throughout the globe. The sarcasm depicted in the lecture notes is when it is said that the endemic reform started when the Europeans showed up with the aim of enlightening the people yet they were carrying guns (module 2, concept 3, Endemic reform). By carrying guns, it means that they wanted to continue their control of the global economy and force these native communities to adopt to their culture, religion, and capitalist way of life since they termed themselves to be superior to these native races.

References

Required readings

Boğaziçi University. The Edict of Gülhane (1839). Atatürk Institute of Modern Turkish History.

Josiah Clark Nott, Types of Mankind (1854), Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co.

Lin, C. Letter to Queen Victoria. Modern History Sourcebook: Moral Advice to Queen Victoria (1839)

Class lecture notes

Module 2, Concept 2, Case Study 2. EastAsia. Drugs And The Attempted Colonization Of China.

Module 2, Concept 1. Conceptual Lecture: Race

Module 2 concept 3, Endemic reform