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CHAPTER 1 -TYPES OF IMPERIALISM

The European masses standard of living has been able to rise only at the expense of the standard of living of the masses in Asia and Africa President Senghor of Senegal Chapter outline  Definition of imperialism  The concepts which relate imperialism and underdevelopment in Africa.  Classical imperialism: how has it influenced the relationship and status of industrialised and agriculture less developed countries?  Modern imperialism: does it resemble the aggressiveness of early stage of hegemonic rule? Theories of imperialism were introduced to explain the profound economic crisis in the capitalist nations of Western Europe. These theories were concerned with accounting for the continuity of capitalist hegemony in relation to the acquisition of colonies, which gave Europeans the opportunity to export capital and therefore create economic stability in western civilisation. Two of the earliest and most influential theorists of Imperialism were Hobson and Lenin. Hobson argued that under consumption hypothesis speared on the western countries expansion into greener pastures. Lenin (1966) argued that net outflow of capital to the colonies was a main characteristics and definitive behaviour of imperialism. However Boulding et al states that the theory of over-saving is the economic root of imperialism (1972:12) Research issue  Explore the link between imperialism and underdevelopment in third world peripheries.  How did classical imperialism affect the economic performance of third world countries?  How did modern imperialism resemble old forms of imperialism and how has it led to the demise of third peripheries dreams of achieving efficient stage of sustainable development and economic growth. The term, Imperialism refers to the dominant nature of more developed nations over less developed nations. For the classical Marxist (Lenin, 1902; Hilferding, 1910; Bukharin 1972) it illustrates the rivalry between capitalist countries, in the form of their pursuit of territorial, political, military and economic hegemony. Third world countries werent seen as active participants in this struggle for dominance but as passive battlegrounds for this interimperialist war (Brewer, 1980:80) Galtung (1971) defined imperialism as being conceived as dominant relations between collectivities particularly between nations. He argues that this sophisticated type of hegemony between the centre nations of the developed industrial world and periphery nations of the underdevelopment 3 rd world will not end with the disappearance of imperialism. In my
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dissertation I will be concentrating on the effect of political and economic imperialism on development in 3rd world peripheries. With the aid of models of underdevelopment such as the centre-periphery model and the model of dependency, I will attempt to analyse and evaluate the connection between imperialism and underdevelopment. In relations to the three phases of the core-periphery exploitation, dominance and colonial nature of the gap of inequality and unequal distribution of wealth will be continual. In my dissertation I have categorised the types of imperialism into two major and importance times. The first definition of imperialistic period was the Classical (old) imperialism. Classical imperialism can be defined as the concept of divide and rule. This concept was influenced by mercantilism and early theories of capitalism. Theories of imperialism Altruism, national honour, economic nationalism, surplus population, self protection are the principles which open nations to valiant feats of empire building (Boulding, 1972:33) Imperialism refers to the type of international relationship characterised by the asymmetry of dominance and dependence (Cohen, 1974:15a) Cohen (1974:15b) states that international inequality is a fact of life and is a result of nations different infrastructure. However in relation to imperialistic behaviour, the result of international inequality and unequal exchange is due to the nations influence over the behaviour of another through the relationship of hegemony and exploitation (Rodney: 1994, Sau: 1978, Bernstein: 1973) This thesis concentrates on the how the theory imperialism has influenced inequality in periphery nations by centre nations. To understand these theories I will be comparing Marxist theory to Galtungs theory of imperialism. Boulding et al (1972) shows the fundamental theme and interpretation of analysing imperialism and its influential role in the relationship between the core and periphery nations. Unlike Galtungs five types of imperialism (cultural, political, economic, military and communications), Ive decided to concentrate on political and economic forms of imperialism and how these two types are central features in the perpetuation of underdevelopment in Africa

NEO-IMPERIALISM
The continuity or rebirth of imperialism Old fashioned colonialism is by no mean entirely abolished....it still constitutes an African problem (Nkrumah, 1965: xi)

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EC541 Dissertation

Since the de-colonialisation of periphery nations that were subjected to economic, social and political oppression by imperial ruler, many believed that the period of independence would retract economic retardation and introduce a rapid and sustainable development phase for imperial victims. However even though direct rule of peripheries through military force of expansionist policies have sufficed, it only opened the door to a new form of imperialism know as neo-colonialism. Nkrumane (1965, xia) stated that the neo-colonialism of today represents imperialism in its final and perhaps its most dangerous stage. Imperialism has been a continual process in which developed countries have undermined the expansion of periphery countries economic status and potential for sustainable development. This new form of imperialism can be considered as more threatening to the third world economies because it gives the illusion of economic growth in host countries however as Beckford (1971) states the implementation of transnational corporations suggests short term positive impact on national income but in the long run it distorts the use of resources in the periphery economies. Bologn (1962) contents that neo-imperialism has inhibited the growth of ex-colonial states by perpetuating the underdevelopment infant industries. Because neo imperialism doesnt depend on political prestige, it can be indoctrinated through financial institutions such as the IMF (International Monetary Fund), WB (World Bank) and multinational corporations. When researching the theories of imperialism and the relationship between MDCs and LDCs, I realised that theres an evident pattern of the perception of LDCs and the demeaning behaviour towards them. This perception is demonstrated in the phenomenon of economic retardation (Bagchi, 1982) Walter Rodney in his imminent book How Europe underdeveloped Africa, illustrates Africas role in the world today by examining historical accounts from the earliest colonial period of slave trade, which were the roots of African underdevelopment, to the era just before the post colonial period and a majority of African nations establishment of independence during the 1960s. Rodney (1982) argues that the principle agent of African underdevelopment over the past five centuries has been radical incorporation of international capitalist systems in the forms of westernised these countys systems exploit periphery nations raw material for their own accumulation of capital. This process of imperialism perceived infamously by Lenin, as the highest stage of capitalism, has caused conflict of interest between the core nations and peripheries. As a result the cycle of deprivation, poverty alleviation and inefficient allocation of raw material in periphery countries continues. The underdevelopment, with which the world is now pre-occupied, is a product of capitalist, imperialist and colonialist exploitation (Rodney, 1982; 22a) Rodney (1982) characterises the problems of underdevelopment in the context of imperialism as well as the inefficiency of poor nations infrastructure such as healthcare, education and agricultural output. This backwardness of peripheries can be seen as the dominant influence of low economic performance.
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EC541 Dissertation

Rodney also indicates that underdevelopment isnt just due to economic inequality but the misperception that African countries were able to reach the exact stage of development which was achieved in westernised countries when they are agriculturally based countries. Rodney argues that trade relations with non Europeans were a vital factor in the European up rise to their hegemonic status. He believed that an error in a majority of scholars work tends to portray the rise of modern European civilisation and prestige as a result of their own doing is a false assumption. This is supported by Good (1976), as he states in relations to British colonial rule of Kenya, African labour was seen as colonys key asset in development. As during the years of aggressive and direct imperial rule of the 1920s, European settlers forced the Kenyan population to play the role of a cheap wage force in rapidly advancing industrial superiority (Good: 1976:603a) The continuity of imperialist policies in the form of modern compositions of capitalism is a definite factor under laying the obstacles to third world sustainable development. The assessment of the relationship between forms of capitalism and imperialism has been dominated by European scholars (Frank, Emmanuel, Bernstein: 1975, Sen: 1999) however in Nabudere's (1977) Theory of Imperialism During the period of 1900 to the end of WWI in 1918, the Marxist interpretation of the concept of imperialism was born. It goal was to explain the domineering expansion, transitional stage of capitalist industrialisation and accumulating conflict of interest of former colonial empires. The Marxist interpretation of this authoritarian phenomenon has grasped the relationship between third world countries course of social, economic and political development and the role they play in the advancement of capitalism in westernised countries. The classical implications of imperialism, in the form of mercantilism and direct control over nation states through military action, have disappeared. Instead more modern implications of imperialism have emerged in the form of informal systems of political and economic domination in which political independence doesnt correlate with social and economic progress (Kitching, 1981, p36a)

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