Imperialism is “A policy of extending a country’s power and influence through colonization, use of military force, or other means”. As I discussed in Language the British empire was the largest and most powerful to have been established and to utilize the ideology of imperialism, evident through the development of English as the lingua franca. … More A Facet of British Imperialism
Issei, a word of Japanese origin, means “Japanese immigrant to North America”. It wasn’t a commonly used word until WWII, when anyone of Japanese descent became a target and methods for identifying the “enemy” spiked. Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, war hysteria engulfed the U.S. and the fear driven paranoia transformed thousands … More A View Into the Past
DNA testing has become a fad in the past few years, especially since the success of the Human Genome Project in 2003 and the start of the Genographic project in 2005. Many sites such as 23andme and AncestryDNA promise a lens into the past by providing a distribution of a person’s ancestral origins. The DNA … More Scientific Racism
Analysis of empires reveals their unifying yet destructive nature. We see this quality in various empires over the centuries from the Roman to the British Empire. The British empire is a prominent example of what constituted such powers, imperialism, and expectations of civilization. As I discussed in a past blog post (Language), the power of … More Empire’s Ruins
The word pride can have positive or negative connotations. While accomplishments warrant this feeling, it often also stems from an inherent belief in one’s power. This “excessively high opinion of one’s own worth or importance which gives rise to a feeling of superiority and racism over others” appears to be a persistent attitude among people. … More Brute Pride
History is a core part of any K-12 curriculum in which students are taught about various subjects from the colonization of the Americas to scientific advancements to political aspects of past events. Because it is a “the study of past events, particularly in human affairs,” the knowledge it provides is vital to a better future, … More Shaping Society
English has become the most pervasive and third most spoken language internationally. There are about 350 million native English speakers and about 300-500 million non-native speakers. Despite being the third most spoken language, it is the most widespread in every aspect of life- from technology to business communication to politics. Because Britain, and then America’s, … More Language
While the term ‘Barbarian’ isn’t used often in modern society, certain groups of people are still perceived as “uncultured or brutish”. This attitude has been present for centuries- from the time of the Roman Empire to modern day U.S.- with no apparent resolution. Regardless of history, people need to address how to bury the bias- … More A Tense Situation
There are many problems in modern society that are difficult to solve- inequality, racism, war. Despite centuries of advancements and knowledge, people are incapable of solving these fundamental issues. Jean Jacques Rousseau discusses these issues in his discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality Among Men. He presents unconventional ideas about humans and how people … More The Perfect Society
Empire…it’s a word we commonly perceive as outdated. Some prominent examples- the Inca, Holy Roman, Mongol empire- had supreme authority in their regions of power, expanding when it was suitable or convenient. Over several centuries the use of this word has reduced remarkably, seemingly indicative of the end of western empires. However, the traditional has … More A Prime Example
Words of Power 