Burdens According To Race Class and Gender (Short Paper)

Imperialism is something that is everywhere. In the cars people choose to drive, the places they choose to eat, even the issues they deal with in day to day life. In the following essay I will discuss the affect of Imperialism on persons in relation to their social class, race and gender according to The Black Mans Burden and The White Mans Burden Imperialism is defined as “The belief in the desirability of the acquisition of colonies and dependencies, or the extension of a country's influence through trade, diplomacy” this definition can be applied to the poems in question because in one way or another the main characters in the poems, be they white or black men, are being controlled by a larger purpose than personal gain. Though the burdens being described in both poems are both described differently, they are still cited as burdens regardless.On one hand the burden in Kipling’s The White Mans Burden is described as something the reader should “take up” (Kipling 1) while in the case of The Black Mans Burden the burden is described as something that one must “pile on” (Johnson 1) these two descriptions of what needs to be done with the burdens both makes their interpretations and meanings different. By allowing the burden in The White Mans Burden to be taken up the person who may be carrying it is being given a release. With The Black Mans Burden the burden is only being added to. This is something that is both seen in The Poor Mans Burden as well as The Black Mans Burden I felt as though with this connection, being poor and black are often things that are interwoven with each other. While I also agree with Ben's point that the speaker is saying it is appropriate for the person in question to take advantage of a local resource instead of going to places like Cuba or Hawaii I also feel like even with the convenience of being locals people are still being exploited wheter they are from Cuba or Hawaii. The main point of imperialism is to control smaller groups of people or in a larger sense countries. Lower classed indiviguals ie: brown and yellow people are more likely to be controlled by things like colonialism, capitalism or imperialism. Strangly although certain races are highlighted in all three of the burden poems, for some odd reason I am left with the idea that, although the person who may have the burden has shifted, ultimately the white man is still to blame for the burdens that follow after Kipling's poem

Posting on behalf of Diana Nemtzov --FL

I want to discuss the internal conflict going on with the characters throughout the story. It is apparent that identity plays an important and critical role in everyone’s lives and development. Most evident is Minke’s struggle to fit in with others around him and to discover his identity. Sadly he can’t fit it as either a native or a pure blood, due to his unique character. A question was brought up yesterday, is his internal conflict self inflicted, or can we say that outside forced are responsible such as the colonizing mission?

I believe that Minke is not at fault. Society comes with discrimination; it has its expectations and rules. When a person behaves differently then the members in the society they are often rejected. Minke is experiencing this rejection as he struggles to find his place in the world. Society looks down upon his native culture and makes him embarrassed to be native in any way. It’s sad to see that society’s rules take precedence over personal wants and needs, to the point where it begins to take over. I found this aspect of the story to be quite interesting because this is something everyone experiences and can often relate to.

Civilization and Colonialism

Posting on behalf of Jose Calle --FL

Civilization and Colonialism both have the same outcomes, to conquer and to rule the uncivilized, in the poem “The Poor Man’s Burden,” By George McNeill and in the novel This Earth of Mankind, by Pramoedya Ananta Toer illustrate this mutuality between civilization and Colonialism. As we discussed in class civilization or a civilize person is well educated, a leader, has a specific religion, power and most important is driven by reasoning. This ideology of enlightenment is used within colonialism. In other words colonizers (British, United States) are using civilization in order to colonize. At the beginning of empires as we discussed empires used ideology of believes of truth with out questioning to conquer land and people. In similar way Colonialism is conquering by using the ideology of civilization. What I can see the only change was the idea from religion base to reasoning conquer but not the method.

Civilization then is a tool used to colonize easily without questioning. In other words given some reasoning to people makes them easy to conquer. The knowledge given to the colonist is the required in order to govern. If the religion was no longer an effective weapon then turning “salvages” into civilize “manhood” through reasoning was easy to get the same outcomes where political, economical and ideological: land, exploitation, wealth and power. For instance in the novel, “Sing Veni, vidi, vici—I came, I saw, I conquered,” (p. 22) this phrases is used to describe in both imperialism (Civilization) and colonialism as one because at the end both are conquer whether through civilization or ideological. The relationship between civilization and colonialism is mutual and mutually complement one another. For example Minke in the novel who depend on the Europeans teacher in order to learn reasoning. Minke a privilege Native who goes to H.B.S. a prestige Dutch high school is a symbol of Colonialism and civilization. The fact that Minke is learning how to write and read or I’ll say bringing him into a new world of reasoning through this ideal making him easily to be control or conquer. As we discussed class he is unique and he doesn’t realize that because he is the only native in this school. I believe the fact that he is becoming more like a European makes him forget where he comes from or who he is.

I have a question; can we say that civilization is Imperialism in modernity? How can civilization be if the only way to acquire to civilized people is through uncivilized actions? Doesn’t exploitation is uncivilized?

This is a test

Shame & Change in "This Earth of Mankind"

At this point, the book seems to take a turn. It seems that Minke is not from as "poor" a family as we were let on to believe. His father is actually a bupati, which basically means that his father is in charge of a certain region of Java, like a king. I think it is interesting how this sort of changes things. Up until now, we as the reader are led to believe that he comes from just another common family among the natives, though the novel never went into detail about it before. He actually has siblings, a brother and sisters. His mother seems to be a strong figure, but strong in a different way then Nyai. Nyai seems to have more of an open mind about change, modernity and the future, where as Minke's real mother, despite the fact that their family is changing in more ways then one, still seems stuck in the past. She was the one that wanted to educate Minke and it is that education that she has allowed him to have that has changed him.

In class we were discussing different themes that take place throughout the novel and one that I think is vary important is the theme of chame. It comes up again and aain in the novel. Even the most prideful character has moments of shame when faced with someone in the novel whom they feel inferior to ans I think that that is interesting. Minke seems himself to have more shame then anyone. It seems that everyone that he encounters he feel inferior to. Even when he is in his hometown, after being arrested by the police and taken before the bupati, his father, hs is ashamed. His shame then though is a different kind then just him feeling inferior. It almost seems as if he feels that his family is inferior to him becasue their minds haven't evolved into the kind of thinking that he has been taught while away at school. His parents are proud and ashamed of hi at the same time. They are proud becasue he has been educated as they had wantedl, but at the same time they are ashamed because they feel that he has forgotten his roots, where he came from; forgotten them.

The question that I want to ask is, is chang bad? Minke is walking around wearing European clothes, speaking in a foreign tongue and learning about things that are relatively unknown to the natives, but at the same time, is still thought of by most as nothing more then a native. In the letter that he receives from Miriam, she talks abouthow she hopes that he will become this great leader and be an inspiration to all of the Javanese that there does exist a different way of thinking and a better life. Do you think that Mink has hay it takes to be that inspiration? Is colonialism and imperialism so bad when they bring forth a product like Minke?

The Poor Man's Burden (March 1899)

I am writing my interpretation on the poem, "The Poor Man's Burden." This poem is beautiful not only because of how they structured it but also its meaning. There are 6 stanzas that gives us a great understanding on what each stanza means. This poem was made after Kipling's poem which is why it explains to us their definition of being poor. In stanza 1 it tells us to lift up the poor man's burden by seeing him doing what for  them is normal. For example,in the lines "to serve your pride and greed, to wait in heavy harness, upon your rich and grand, the common working people, the serfs of every land" it's telling us that being poor and serving the rich is what is common for them even if they don't want to it's in their nature to just be labeled poor and serfs. I agree with that stanza because long ago they were considered slaves and once a child was born they were part of the chain in which poor was already known as being slaves. After the war with the Filipinos, a new form of imperialism was influenced by the grand topic of race. This meant that people were not only different from their race but class status distinct. 

My favorite stanza is 5 because it is intense and full of energy with its meaning. Also. it is not only screaming for FREEDOM but it tells us about their faith in God and how they will one day be free with the help of God. Overall, the poem in my opinion was a call for their freedom and rights. It brought a sense of fight in words for being. This poem also explains that there was no help for them in that time, everything was probably segregated and like I said before they were easily labeled as poor or slave. In "The White Man's Burden, it talks a little about them helping slaves (poor) even if they don't want the help but I think they just wouldn't give the help. If in "The Poor Man's Burden", they cry out for freedom why wouldn't they want the help if that is what they are looking for in the first place? That I why I say they just didn't think it was right to help them which is why they may have not. What do you think about this poem and what I am saying? Do you think I may be interpreting the poem wrong or I have an idea of what I am saying?

Colonialism and Imperialism

I'm posting on behalf of Ben. --FL

The definitions of colonialism and imperialism, although assumed to be synonymous by most, are really very different. Colonialism is the action of a developed country making its presence known in a developing country for its own economic or political gain. Imperialism, on the other hand is going through the same actions for a different ideological reason.

Up until quite recently, developed countries such as England set up colonies all over the world. This was mostly for its own empirical desire to be great and powerful, making the action colonial (as opposed to imperial). By the late 19th century however, England’s and the United States’ motives seem to have shifted toward a more imperial approach. They wanted to bring the developing countries “civilization”, “education”, and “progress”. These noble sounding words of course come with a lot of side effects. Along with all the goodwill comes a severance from pure and ancient culture that many developing countries have a hard time living without.

Given both the positive and negative effects of colonialism and imperialism, what struck me as interesting about the article was the suggestion that the difference between the two really matter at all. Whatever the growing empires intentions are, the effects stay the same. For hundreds of years countries have been colonizing other countries, destroying their culture and giving them access to the modern world. Perhaps the motives have fluctuated over time, but the developing countries have been going through the same thing for as long as it has been going on. Perhaps a shift from colonialist toward imperialism really has been taking place, but significant changes to how colonized countries will be treated most likely will not take place at all.