What is Imperialism?
Imperialism is defined by merriam-webster online dictionary as being ": a policy or practice by which a country increases its power by gaining control over other areas of the world" or, "the effect that a powerful country or group of countries has in changing or influencing the way people live in other, poorer countries". Essentially, imperialism is when a country take control over a weaker country through political, economical, or social means. This, of course means that there are different forms of imperialism:
Cultural Imperialism
is one of the most common forms of imperialism in today's world. It's the "practice of promoting, distinguishing, separating, and artificially injecting the culture or language of one nation in another" (NYU Wiki - Modern America). A more powerful country forces its own culture on a less-powerful country, who then takes this culture over their own. An example of this would be Hollywood, available globally yet closely tied to the american ways of life.
Political Imperialism
is when the imperialists takes over the less-powerful country's politics and usually uses its own system in its stead. For example, putting a "western political system" (such as a democracy) in place of the original political system. The United States in the Republic of Congo is an demonstration of this.
Economical Imperialism
is defined by the online Cambridge dictionary as being "the geopolitical practice of using capitalism, business globalisation, and cultural imperialism to influence a country, in lieu of either direct military control or indirect political control". Most underdeveloped countries are an example of economic imperialism; this is because they rely on another country for work and give cheap labour in return. This is namely because they don't have the economy to support new industries and thus rely on industries of other countries for jobs.
Military Imperialism
When a country takes control over another using military force, usually to coerce them into another sort of government or economy. See America in Iraq for an example of this. Military Imperialism can also result in the imperialist taking over their army and using it for their own means.
Cultural Imperialism
is one of the most common forms of imperialism in today's world. It's the "practice of promoting, distinguishing, separating, and artificially injecting the culture or language of one nation in another" (NYU Wiki - Modern America). A more powerful country forces its own culture on a less-powerful country, who then takes this culture over their own. An example of this would be Hollywood, available globally yet closely tied to the american ways of life.
Political Imperialism
is when the imperialists takes over the less-powerful country's politics and usually uses its own system in its stead. For example, putting a "western political system" (such as a democracy) in place of the original political system. The United States in the Republic of Congo is an demonstration of this.
Economical Imperialism
is defined by the online Cambridge dictionary as being "the geopolitical practice of using capitalism, business globalisation, and cultural imperialism to influence a country, in lieu of either direct military control or indirect political control". Most underdeveloped countries are an example of economic imperialism; this is because they rely on another country for work and give cheap labour in return. This is namely because they don't have the economy to support new industries and thus rely on industries of other countries for jobs.
Military Imperialism
When a country takes control over another using military force, usually to coerce them into another sort of government or economy. See America in Iraq for an example of this. Military Imperialism can also result in the imperialist taking over their army and using it for their own means.