Effects Of Colonialism - 1377 Words

Colonialism: noun, a word meaning to take complete control over another country, influence its culture, and exploit it economically for the colonizing countries benefit. The very meaning of colonialism reveals its unwavering ability to bring forth great change in the customs and ways of life of all of the people that it affects. The end result of colonialism has been shown time after time as a society stripped of its native culture and left as a hollow shell of its former ways of living. Colonialists do not see that what they are doing is wrong, they simply want to convert the native people to what they believe is the â€Å"superior culture†, and they aim to â€Å"civilize† the indigenous people. This is not just a small problem either, as†¦show more content†¦One of the most recognizable examples of this is Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. The novel takes place in one of the native tribes of Nigeria, Umuofia, and follows the main character, Okonkwo, through out his daily activities as one of the upstanding members of the tribe. Towards the end of the book, some white men come into the tribe seeking to bring forth a new religion and to â€Å"civilize† the indigenous people of Umuofia. After converting some of the natives to their customs, the people of Umuofia begin to become divided from the inside, with the people who want to stick the the old ways of living on one side and the people who want to adopt the new customs on the other. Okonkwo stands with those who wish to keep the religious beliefs that have helped Umuofia to operate for so long, but he feels as if he is alone. Okonkwo shows his frustration when he says â€Å"The clan has undergone such a profound change during his exile that it was barely recognizable. The new religion and government and the trading stores were very much in the people’s eyes and minds† (Achebe 182). This shows how the white men had come into Okonkwos own village and stripped it of a ll that it once was. The new customs, government, and religion were all that the people of the village could think about, and they were losing their identity before Okonkwos very eyes. Achebe later writes that â€Å"Okonkwo was deeply grieved. And it was not just personalShow MoreRelatedNegative Effects Of Colonialism1253 Words   |  6 PagesThe Effects of Colonialism â€Å"During the phase of colonial settlement, European countries sent settlers to inhabit and control large areas of land. They took complete control of new areas by force and imposed European laws. These settlers often excluded indigenous inhabitants from their society or killed many of them in violent wars or through disease† (Stewart 1). Colonialism is a conceptual idea that has forever damaged our first-world society. Tribes and nations from every crevice of the earth haveRead MoreNegative Effects Of Colonialism1445 Words   |  6 Pagesbeen developed to justify and outline the impact of colonialism on various communities across the world. Some of these postcolonial studies contend that colonialism brought civilization to minority communities in the form of formal education, improved technology, religion, improved infrastructure, and increased trade. Although economic growth and political stability were the outcomes of European imperialism in Native territories, these po sitive effects are outweighed by the massive loss of lives, widespreadRead MoreThe Colonialism Effect Of Africa1002 Words   |  5 PagesThe Colonialism Effect of Africa As the world races for its place in history, many continents excel on their mark on the map. It is because Africa was in the right place, but in a different time they were taken advantage of their glory. Although it is difficult for Africa to retrace and reclaim its memoirs, it has an origin that had existed before colonialism. The attempt of challenging modern history has desperately provided an economical realm that extracts and injects into Africa resources. Read MoreNegative Effects Of Colonialism1706 Words   |  7 PagesColonialism: noun, a word meaning to take complete control over another country, influence its culture, and exploit it economically for the colonizing countries benefit. The very meaning of colonialism reveals its unwavering ability to bring forth great change in the customs and ways of life of all of the people that it affects. The end result of colonialism has been shown time after time as a society stripped of its native culture and left as a hollow shell of its former ways of living. ColonialistsRead MoreEffects Of Colonialism On Native Peoples1072 Words   |  5 Pages The Effects of Colonialism on Native Peoples Colonialism has had major effects on different countries throughout the years. Europeans were a major cause of these horrid events. Colonization will cause a country to lose the culture they have developed and will strip the natives of their souls. As you read through this paper, you will discover the true horror of what colonialism is and how it strips the souls of the people in it. Stripping the Souls of the Natives It is known that invading a countryRead MorePositive Effects of Colonialism1322 Words   |  6 PagesINTRODUCTION Colonialism is a system in which a state claims sovereignty over territory and people outside its own boundaries; or a system of rule which assumes the right of one people to impose their will upon another. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, rich, powerful states, including Britain and other European countries, owned third world colonies. ‘Third world’ originally referred to countries that did not belong to the democratic, industrialized countries of the West (the FirstRead MoreColonialism And Its Effects On African Americans1241 Words   |  5 Pagesthe African people because they looked different from them as of skin tones. Moreover, Africans had lost all of their rights, along with their freedom as a result. Colonialism has referred to when a country takes over another country in order to replicate their society (Settles and McGaskey, 1996, p. 6). In other words, colonialism is the expansion of a territory. It is the exploitation of a territory and the territory being colonized has no say in the matter and in history for most of the timeRead MoreThe Negative Effects of Colonialism Essay809 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"Colonialism is the control or governing influence of a nation over a dependent country, territory, or people.†[1] (Colonialism). Colonialism has caused several factors including the north-south gap which occurred after World War II. Colonialism began in the 1500s; the process works by a mother country using the colony’s natural resources, money savings and their lands to overpower the dependent country. This causes the country to be forced to rely on the mother country. Therefore the world wideRead MorePositive Effects of Colonialism1311 Words   |  6 PagesI NTRODUCTION Colonialism is a system in which a state claims sovereignty over territory and people outside its own boundaries; or a system of rule which assumes the right of one people to impose their will upon another. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, rich, powerful states, including Britain and other European countries, owned third world colonies. ‘Third world’ originally referred to countries that did not belong to the democratic, industrialized countries of the West (the FirstRead MoreEffects Of Colonialism On Gender Equality1552 Words   |  7 PagesGeorge Kurtskhalia Mr.s Wasserman Contemporary Literature March 3 , 2012 Effect of colonialism on gender equality The female characters of Junot Diaz’s novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, La Inca, Beli, and Lola, demonstrate the ways in which colonialism led to the dehumanization of citizens, especially women, and how these power dynamics carry over into modern society in relationships between the majority and minority, both in terms of race and gender in their oppression that