Weekly Writing Prompt 10 (Quarter 3): The Impact of Imperialism
Prompt: Explain why a historical event or development still matters today
Historically, imperialism has played a significant role in shaping modern society in nearly every part of the world. However, the effects can be either beneficial or detrimental to the culture and community existing within the imperialized reigon. For example, the British imperial rule over India improved the country in various aspects. The imperialists built railroads, which improved transportation for civilians; they brought in effecient communication systems such as the telegraph, and they also introduced several laws which improved the human rights in India. For one, the British ended slavery in India, which was still existing when the Mughals were ruling; they also abolished the Caste system. Furthermore, they banned the tradition of Sati, a Hindu custom practised by the upper-class where a women throws herself into the funeral fire of her husbands'. Lastly, the British also passed laws which gave widows, or formerly-married women, the right to marry again. This had a lasting effect on India, seeing that the Caste system, a severely-discriminatory social hierarchy, no longer significantly divides the citizen between greatly varying social classes. Also, British Imperialism gave women rights which they still possess today in India, and if British Imperialism never found a foothold in India, Women would have been still oppressed in various ways.
Once again, in some nations, imperalist policies left damaging impacts on a nation. Spanish conquistadors arrived in Bolivia in the 1800s, and the Spanish Empire's began imposing imperial policies on [present-day] Bolivia, a country in Latin America which was once abundant in gold and silver. However, after the Spanish relentlessly mined for silver and other minerals in the region and transported it back to their home country, Bolivia was exhausted of natural resources. As a result, Bolivia is now the poorest country in Latin America and has over 60% of its population living below the poverty line. Furthermore, imperialism has also resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths; imperalist policies has instigated rebellions and revolts against the colonizers, and has led to conflict leaving numerous casulaties. For example in India, although British reforms has indeed benefited some people in India, the Sepoy Rebellion of 1857 left countless unarmed Indians massacred by British troops, and conversely, British civilians living in India were slaughtered as well. Imperialism has also left other lasting effects on colonized nations. Imperialist cultures and ideas also remained in once-colonized regions, leaving Christianity, and even different styles of archetecture. For example, Vietnam was once under the colonial rule of France, and the buildings established by the French still stands in Vietnam today, with the capital city filled with French-styled buildings.
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