The Horrors of Imperialism The Belgian Congo Essay

Imperialism is the policy of extending the rule or authority of an empire or nation over foreign countries, or of acquiring and holding colonies and dependencies. In 1870, the European powers took over the African Congo and enslaved the natives. Moreover, they were forced to work the land, so the Europeans could obtain the products they needed by using a cheap labor force to turn around and sell them at a profit. These products included such commodities as rubber, diamonds and coffee (A New World Order: Imperialism and World War I). Unfortunately, the people of the Congo were beaten, over worked, raped, and even killed by the European powers if they did not do their job correctly or if they refused to do their task entirely. Eventually,†¦show more content†¦The theory of social Darwinism was used to justify European imperialism. â€Å"It is an application of the theory of natural selection that says ‘only the strong survive’, to human issues that are social , political, and economic.† King Leopold II ruled the Congo from 1885 to 1908. â€Å"He ruled the Congo less as a colony but more as his own personal priority. He treated the native Congolese nearly as slaves and used the wealth of the Congo to grow his own personal wealth.† (http://drcimperialism.weebly.com/life-under-imperialist-power.html). Under his rule the people of the Congo were treated horribly. The Congolese experienced a humanitarian disaster consisting of enslavement, exploitation, and even extermination. Moreover, by the end of this era it was estimated that the population was cut in half. â€Å"Eventually international outrage forced Leopold to turn over his personal colony to the Belgian government.† (Esler 572) Nonetheless, during the years of Leopold’s rule imperialism thrived. Imperialism was a distorted inhumane way of the ruling of a country to transport goods and other needs. The African tribes were put through the most barbaric conditions known to man. And due to these conditions, the African society was changed forever. One of the many jobs the people of the Congo had to complete was extracting rubber from trees and bringing it back to the Europeans to sell it because many people around the world wanted to build productsShow MoreRelatedKing Leopold s Ghost Response Paper1444 Words   |  6 PagesGhost Response Paper With an estimated death toll of ten million people, King Leopold’s conquest of the Congo is recognized as one of the bloodiest holocausts in human history. The sheer brutality of this gruesome process triggered the world’s first international human rights movement. However, unlike the holocaust of Jews committed by the Nazi regime in mid-twentieth century Germany, the Belgian extermination of the Congolese has gone largely forgotten. In King Leopold’s Ghost, Adam Hochschild seeksRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book Heart Of Darkness By Chinua Achebe1364 Words   |  6 Pagescaricature of Africa and African culture. In Conrad’s book, Marlow, a sea captain, is tasked with venturing into the center of the Congo, otherwise known as the Heart of Darkness, to retrieve a mentally unstable ivory trader named Kurtz. Marlow narrates his adventures with a tinge of apathy for the enslaved Congolese who are repressed beneath the foot of the colonizing Belgians. In Heart o f Darkness, the Africans are reduced to â€Å"savages† and cannibals with little or no moral values. It is Achebe’s argumentRead MoreJoseph Conrad s Heart Of Darkness1713 Words   |  7 Pagesis a sailor, and his voyage up the Congo River. His top priority is to meet Kurtz, a man who is known for his success of collecting ivory and his other captivating potentials. Marlow’s journey begins once he accepts a job with the Company, a Belgian organization concerned with trade within the Congo area (Conrad 9). However, Marlow is surprised by the widespread suffering and inhumanity of the natives when he arrives at his designated areas in Africa near the Congo. Marlow soon realizes that the Company’sRead MoreHeart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad1329 Words   |  5 Pagesbook is in Belgian Congo, which was the most infamous European colony in Africa. This is a story about the protagonist Marlow’s journey to self discovery, and his experiences in Congo. Conr ad’s story explores the colonialism period in Africa to demonstrate Marlow’s struggles. Along the way, he faces insanity, death, his fear of failure, and cultural contamination as he makes his was to the inner station. Conrad through the protagonist and antagonist life explores European imperialism and its effectsRead MoreTheme Of Imperialism In Heart Of Darkness1662 Words   |  7 Pagesas a Result of New Imperialism In the age of New Imperialism, European nations rushed to gain advantage over ruling Africa, most specifically Congo, to expand economic prospects under the guise that they were civilizing the natives of these areas. The negative impacts of Europe in the Congo are supported in the novel, Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad, who employs his narrative to showcase how the drive for Imperialism stripped away the humane reasoning for colonizing the Congo, as the protagonistRead MoreEssay about Heart of Darkness1745 Words   |  7 Pagesinsight into the rise of European imperialism, the imperial history, its politics and evil activities in the colonized African tribes along the river Congo during the eighteenth and nineteenth century. The Heart of Darkness is an exceptionally figurative classic novella established on Conrad’s own astounding experiences in central Africa during the colonial administration under King Leopold. The book narrates of the seaman Marlow’s literal journey in the jungle of the Congo River in his quest for theRead MoreThe Heart Of Darkness By Joseph Conrad1471 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction The â€Å"Heart of Darkness† authored by Joseph Conrad is a novella (writing that seems to be a novel and also a short story in scope and length) about European Imperialism in Africa and was published by J.M. Dent $ Sons, Ltd. The novella is written in parts, from part one to part three. Joseph Conrad born in Polish Ukraine started learning English when he was twenty-one years old, he has written several books like Almayer’s Folly in 1894, Lord Jim, Nostrum, and The Secret Agent. The writingRead MoreThe Heart Of Darkness By Joseph Conrad1166 Words   |  5 PagesMeanwhile, race and ethnicity become one of the most popular topics of modern literature. The Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad depicts a story of colonization took place in the Belgian Congo through Marlow’s perspective. In this book, the author portrays the European ideas of civilizing Africa as well as the ideas of imperialism and racism. Although Conrad refers darkness many times in the book, especially in the title, he did not give any clear statement what the darkness was and what aim is he approachedRead MoreThe Poisonwood Bible in the European Conquest in Africa1226 Words   |  5 PagesKingsolvers novel The Poisonwood Bible. Kingsolver portrays an American missionary Reverend Price and his family as they attempt to spread and make a significant impact on the people of the Belgian Congo, whom the Reverend describes as a place where he can save needy souls. American intervention in the Congo highlights few of the many results of attempting to revive a nation ridden of post-colonial damage, including the fusion of two cultures, the abuse of political power and, international perceptionRead MoreIn Search of the Unknown: Apocalypse Now1584 Words   |  6 Pagesworld worked under Imperialism. The movie, Apocalypse Now also correlates with the book, but this time the setting does not take place in the 19th century, but in the 20th century when United States was at war with Vietnam. Because of the two pieces sharing differences and similarities, the audiences are able to get a richer understanding of Conrad’s novella. Marlow tells his story that marked his life of his journey through the Congo River, which makes the main scenario be the Congo River in Africa

Essay on Monumental Changes Across the Globe in History

Monumental Changes across the Globe in History Since the beginning of time, all sorts of changes have occurred throughout the world. Changes in nature, in people, in cities, in countries, wars, politics, kingdoms, etc. Three significant major changes in history that occurred before 1500, that shaped the world were: the Neo-Lithic Revolution, Alexander the Great’s conquests, and the travels of Marco Polo. Firstly, the Neolithic Revolution is a great place to start in History because that is when the first major shift of among people’s way of life throughout the whole world occurs. It occurred approximately 10,000 years ago. Many hunter-gatherers turned into farmers because they saw it was a good†¦show more content†¦Darius, previously outwitted, tried a new, desperate strategy of trying to defeat Alexander, simply with as many men as he could gather. Unfortunately for Darius, the Hoplite Phalanx formation tore through his formations and made their way to him, so he fled the scene. Alexander and his Guard chased him in hot pursuit. After killing him, he claimed Darius made him successor to the Persian throne. Also known as Alexander’s greatest victory because this victory made him the Persian King of Kings, he had overthrown the known world’s greatest and most threatening empires (Persia), and had access to more troops and the land’s resources to co ntinue his campaign. This was the key victory that allowed Alexander to be virtually unstoppable and helped him further his campaign of conquering the known world! After taking over Persia, that opened up the pathway for many other territories that he eventually conquered, including: Anatolia, Syria, Phoenicia, Judea, Gaza, Egypt, Bactria, and Mesopotamia. He lastly challenged Punjab, India, only to turn back from lack of support/enthusiasm from his troops. Major keys to Alexander’s success were: his sheer daring, dogged determination, and because he did the unexpected (such as not waiting a day to start a battle, but attacking the Persians immediately, so they were caught off guard), the extreme loyalty/experience of his troops, and the strong military formation of the Hoplite Phalanx. After the known world wasShow MoreRelatedReligion Is A Very Diverse Centre Of Beliefs Essay1416 Words   |  6 Pagesactions and events in history on a monumental scale. Religion has created culture, countries, and most importantly, our morals. What defines religion is a spiritual belief that a group of people have. With all the good religion has created in this world, it’s like comparing 100 good deeds with their 100 bad counterparts, the good is always outweighed by evil. Religion is usually recognized with all the unnecessary death and bloodshed it has created throughout human history. 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How to Do One Thing at a Time free essay sample

The article â€Å"How to Do One Thing at a Time† states that seemingly harmless multi-tasking isn’t as harmless or efficient as we’d like to believe. A study at Stanford University showed the results of multi-tasking. Two groups of students were asked to coincide chatting, writing a short essay and arranging a music play list all in 30 minutes. One group multi-tasked while the other focused on each task individually for 10 minutes each consequently, in the reading the author states a memory test proved â€Å"the single-taskers did significantly better than their multi-tasking peers†. Truthfully I knew the single taskers would do better than those multi-tasking, I can easily arrange a play list and chat with friends but not also write an essay. Writing an essay requires someone’s full attention and concentration. I once tried completing two homework’s at once, it was math and writing. I did a couple of math problems and then tried writing a paragraph together, my math problems had the wrong answers and my paragraph had many grammatical errors. We will write a custom essay sample on How to Do One Thing at a Time or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This goes to show that our brain works better when we attempt to do one task at a time. The reading passage also mentions that as result of our brains having limits, when multi-tasking we end up doing neither tasks as well as we should. This goes for household tasks as well, I can only imagine how cooking and cleaning at the same time would turn out. Clifford Nass, a professor of communication at Stanford University quoted â€Å"A tremendous amount of evidence shows that the brain does better when its performing tasks in sequence rather than all at once†. To know that there is evidence that continually shows how ineffective multi-tasking can be and people still try and multi-task daily confirms that multi-tasking has really became something major that everyone does even if the end result isn’t so good. Multi tasking helps get more than one thing done, some see it as a way to get through their day faster, such as drinking coffee and writing an email on their way to work. It’s much faster than finishing the coffee first and then writing the email. I am very bad at multi-tasking so I try to do very little of it. Imagine listening to your ipod, texting and trying to take out your metro card for the bus. I do this a lot and end up dropping my phone or metro card. I learned my lesson when I dropped my metro card and I had to look for it, I was holding up the line for others to get on the bus. Furthermore, the reading says that â€Å"experts believe, however, that it’s possible to repair your power of concentration, through solutions such as yoga and acupuncture, we can break our multi-tasking habit and sharpen our focus†. In conclusion, multi-tasking doesn’t come out as well as planned. Maybe one day we all can focus on one task at a time rather than trying to complete a variety of them at once. After seeing the results and evidence of multi-tasking hopefully more and more people will try doing it less. But until then, one thing is certain like the article said â€Å"multi-tasking is bad for us and we are bad at it†.