About this video

• Video Title: Western Expansion & Pacific Imperialism Part 2
• Channel: Noah (Keola) Ryan
• Speakers: Noah (Keola) Ryan
• Duration: 00:33:14

Overview

This video discusses the historical context of European expansion, the Age of Enlightenment, the development of scientific racism, and the subsequent era of imperialism, particularly focusing on its impact on the Pacific region. It traces the intellectual and cultural shifts in Europe that fueled exploration and colonization, highlighting how theories of racial superiority were developed and applied. The video also examines various European perspectives on Pacific Islanders and their cultures, illustrating how these views justified colonial practices.

Key takeaways

• European Intellectual and Cultural Shifts: The video outlines key periods like the Renaissance and the Age of Enlightenment, emphasizing the shift towards reason and science, which paradoxically also led to the development of racial hierarchies.
• Development of Scientific Racism: It details how scientific inquiry was misused to create theories of racial superiority, such as diffusionism, which posited Western Europe as the origin of civilization and other cultures as degraded derivatives.
• Imperialism and Exploitation: The video defines imperialism as a system of foreign domination for the purpose of exploitation, noting that this extended beyond material resources to include human labor through practices like slavery.
• European Views of Pacific Islanders: It explores various European interpretations of Pacific Islanders, including the "noble savage" and the "Aryan/Caucasian Polynesian," which served to justify colonization and the imposition of European culture and governance.
• Legacy of Imperialism: The video connects historical imperialistic actions to ongoing impacts, such as the controversy surrounding monuments like the Cecil John Rhodes statue in South Africa, and the persistence of certain beliefs, like the "Semitic Polynesian" theory, in modern religions.

Here are the definitions and answers based on the video transcript:

Definitions:

• Imperialism: Imperialism is defined as a total system of foreign power wherein another culture, people, and way of life penetrate, transform, and come to define the colonized society. Its primary function is exploitation.
• Diffusionism: Diffusionism is the belief that humankind originated in Western Europe, and as people moved further away from this origin, they became more degraded and diffused physically, spiritually, and intellectually.

Pacific Exploration:

• The first European credited as making it to the Pacific was Vasco Nunes de Balboa in 1513.
• During the 1700s, European explorations in the Pacific were fueled by the search for a Northwestern passage, the Terra Australis, and a more efficient spice trade route.

Popular Views Regarding Polynesians:

• Noble Savage: This view considered Polynesians to be "blessed" people due to their idyllic environment and abundance of resources. However, the "savage" aspect suggested they were not equipped to handle the complexities of the Western world and would benefit from European guidance and colonization.
• Semitic Polynesian: This belief held that Polynesians were descendants of the lost tribes of Israel. The video notes that this view persists today in certain modern religions, specifically mentioning Mormonism, which teaches that people of the Pacific are descendants of Israelites who left Jerusalem.
• Aryan/Caucasian Polynesian: This view proposed that Polynesians represented the oldest ancestors of Caucasians or the Aryan race. It was used as a justification for colonization, allowing Europeans to claim Polynesian intellectual property and assert their right to be in Oceania because they considered themselves descendants.