Module 2 Chapter 18

In what ways did the Industrial Revolution shape the character of 19thcentury European imperialism?
The industrial revolution helped Britain expand overseas. Steam driven ships allowed Europeans to move through Asia, Africa, and Pacific Ports. The growth of massive nationalism in Europe made imperialism easier. Europeans no longer cared about religious superiority. Instead, Europeans judged themselves and the rest of the world with the following criteria: resources, military power, and wealth. Because of these standards, the Chinese no longer held the power that they once had when they were the leaders of trade during the 18th century. They were viewed as weaker to Europeans. Europeans used science to create racial preferences and prejudices. Phrenologists, craniologists, and sometimes physicians would classify white people as having bigger skulls which meant they were more advanced than other races. This created a hierarchy of races in which white people dominated the top.

Spend a few minutes studying the map titled “Conquest and Resistance in Colonial     Africa” on page 796. What is so striking about this map? If you were in a group discussion during class, what would be the observations you would share about this map?
There are a lot of uprisings that occurred in the southern portion of Africa. There were many insurrections close to the Atlantic Ocean, and France established themselves in a majority of the places in Africa as did Britain. It was surprising to see that there were two independent African states. Germany, Belgium, Spain, and Italy did not have a lot of control over Africa in contrast to their counterparts.  Britain was expanding a lot of their empire in this territory.

Read the poem on page 798 by Nguyen Khuyen, a Vietnamese official during French colonial rule. If you had the opportunity to share a glass of his “fine wine” (or a cup of tea) with Mr. Nguyen, what would you say to him? How might that conversation go?
I would definitely feel his frustration with everything that must have been dramatic to go through due to this French conquest. I would tell him that he isn’t alone and that many others have had to see their home get torn down due to conquest. I would tell him that I understand that losing homes, family members, and land is a traumatic experience and that I am sorry they had to undergo these ordeals. I know that right now everything may seem very hard for him. I would tell him that although right now nothing looks like it will get better, there will be better days. Assimilation will be hard, but he survived the hardest part even if his society got torn apart along the way. I would ask him if he had thought about going someplace else.