British Imperialism Research Paper

Living in the 21st century, it is easy to look back on British Imperialism and label it as a movement that germinated from Great Britain’s grandiose view of themselves. A period that involved Britain forcing their way of life upon their colonies while only concerned with accumulating wealth. This distorted view of imperialism is a product of time; distance has fogged our vision looking back upon the turn of the 20th century. However, as a devout Christian, and an aficionado of the great Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, when I look back at imperialism through a Hegelian lens, it is clear that imperialism was simply a time in which reason was active and leading the whole world towards freedom. Imperialism helped provide resolution, even if only …show more content…
This mission led to the salvation of African people on Earth, and after death. The missionaries helped the Africans see that the correct way forward was to cooperate with British Imperial conquerors. This prevented unnecessary quarreling between the Great Britain and the people that they ruled. Not only did missionaries save Africans from death on Earth, they also saved them from eternal death by baptizing countless Africans. It is important to remember that the dialectical triad involves two opposite forces. In this case, the two different forces would be Christianity and paganism. God is represented in Christianity while Satan is present in the pagan religions of the African tribes. These religions were not necessarily bad, but they did not hold God close to the hearts of the people. Without God, the Africans were subjected to needless deaths. The reconciliation between Christianity and paganism was a form of Christianity that still contained aspects of ancient African religions. This adoption of Christianity led to the Europeans providing better education to the Africans, as well as forming better relations between Africans and …show more content…
One might assume that the fact in which imperialism ended means that it was not a good system. However, Hegel showed us that reason rules the world and that everything that has happened over the course of history has brought the world closer to coming into an absolute synthesis. The downfall of imperialism shows that the world was able to take a large step forwards in terms of achieving the absolute synthesis. The after effects of World War II had left Great Britain weak and unfit to rule their colonies in a just and fair manner. In fact, we can see that Britain had started failing in its noble mission when they granted India independence and failed to actually give it to them. Additionally, it is important to point out that imperialism was not necessarily replaced by better systems. For example, in South Africa, after they gained independence, the apartheid system was set up which led to effects detrimental to the nation. Imperialism brought unity to a region. The apartheid system created segregation. British imperialism saved natives from great evils. The apartheid subjected non-whites to unspeakable