IMPERIALISM BY GERMANY AND AFRICA

IMPERIALISM BY FRANCE IN AFRICA 2

Imperialism by France in Africa

Marinatu Balogun

Chamberlain College of Nursing

HIST410N-10846: Contemporary History

05/2020

Running head: IMPERIALISM BY FRANCE IN AFRICA 1

IMPERIALISM BY FRANCE IN AFRICA 3

Imperialism by France in Africa

Imperialism can be characterized as way for capitalist states to expand their territories to confiscate other parts of countries land to bring in raw materials that are eligible for trade. The need for change and expansion was aggravated by the industrial revolution and political leaders need for immoral opulence. In the early nineteenth century Europeans began settling in Ghana for due to the predominance of gold in that area which was ultimately lucrative for trading purposes. Establishing these principles and trading goods and slaves cause a frenzy in Africa called the feeding frenzy. During the feeding frenzy Europeans took over the African continent and were under their direct ruling. The indigenous people have suffered and had to conform to the Europeans ruling and even become enslaved. The French occupied Senegal into the central Sahara, and the island of Madagascar and other coastal territories in West and Central Africa.

Social Darwinism & Motives

Darwinism was a theory that was first implemented Charles Darwin who believed that evolution was encouraged by natural selection. In other words, Darwin thought animals who survive the best in a certain environment due to the characteristic they were made with will survive for a longer period. Social Darwinism is paraphrased to survival of the fittest, this ideology was first introduced by Herbert Spencer. The idea glorified people like the French who concluded they were better and more powerful than the indigenous people living in Africa. The theory of social Darwinism allowed people to find reason to be racist to the native people while treating the unequally and unfairly. Europeans believed that using social Darwinism would help the native people adapt to the modern world by using their power to force the natives to assimilate their practices.

Europeans like the French where ultimately motivated by the surplus in supplies and goods they can collect from ruling certain parts of Africa. Europeans quickly claimed a part of Africa when they discovered the advancement in technologies and medicine. Firearms and the use of quinone to treat malaria which prolonged the life expectancy for many of the French and Europeans caused more infiltration of the African native’s independence. Most leaders were driven by the power and economic advancements that could be made for their people. According to Duiker, W. J. “Maintaining access to industrial raw materials, such as oil and rubber, and setting up reliable markets for Europeans manufactured products required more extensive control over colonial territories” (2015) was most important for people like the French causing them to expand and practice imperialism.

Kipling's poem & Ethnocentrism

Ethnocentrism was predominant starting from 1659 leading to world war one. Europeans and people with fair skin thought they were better than the Africans because they believed they were helping conform he African natives to modern civilization. The French were more compelled to leave certain traditions alone, better known as association. A change in certain traditions to help them have a higher set of values as the Europeans believed was also implemented, better known as assimilation. Ethnocentrism is aggravated by African natives’ traditions and principles not being respected by the Europeans as they assimilated their beliefs as higher than what was originally set in place. Due to their own preconceptions and prejudices of their own belief they believed the indigenous people were below their standards and treated them unfairly starting for 1659 and continuing to after World War I. After the War segregations was implemented and persons of color and whites had separate schools, hospitals and other public facilities. Rudy Kipling’s Poem was written to shine a light on the ethnocentrism in all parts of the world including Africa and the United states. His purpose was to show that those who practiced imperialism thought they where bring people to a higher standard to aid in modernizations where harmful to the natives living under their ruling. In the poem Kipling stated “Take up the White Man's burden—, Send forth the best ye breed—, Go bind your sons to exile, To serve your captives' need”(2009) The natives where taking up the responsibilities and putting themselves on the line for good of the white people instead of their own. Therefore, exposing the ethnocentrism practiced through imperialism would enlighten the natives to enforce a change.

Conclusion

Thus, Frances exploitation of Africa’s resources to conquer imperialism was substantially evident up until the early twentieth century. Justification from social Darwinism and the need for economic expansion masked the ethnocentrism and bigotry that was occurring to the African natives. Rudy Kipling, a poet during from 1865 to 1956, exposed the insincerity of these imperialist around the world that believed they were helping the natives by taking over their land. France used the opportunity to expand mask their prejudices to ultimately gain control over the indigenous people and their goods and raw material.

References

Duiker, W. J. (2015). Contemporary world history (6th ed.). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.

Kipling, R. (2009). The white man’s burden. Retrieved from https://www.gutenberg.org/files/30568/30568-h/30568-h.htm#VII_2 (Original work published 1899)