A laughing missionary in the lead, blood-soaked soldiers of the Allied forces tread on the bodies of women and children while carrying severed heads on a pike. (doi:10.1080/14650040802275644). In May 1900, for example, artist William Bengough scathingly debunked a speech by President McKinleyonce again justifying the U.S. actions in taking of the Philippines by forceby depicting him as a parson standing on the face of a dead Filipino. Many peasants vaguely suspected of being Boxers were executed. Phillips, Richard and Jones, Rhys. Source:Wikimedia. Despite public neutrality, the U.S. and Britain covertly supported each other. Source:Bibliothque nationale de France, British soldiers laugh at the spectacle of Boer prisoners of war being shocked by an electric fence. Source: Houghton Library, Harvard University. The image exhibits a racist hierarchy that places a dominant white American male in the center, and on the fringes, an African-American washing the windows and Native-American reading a primer upside down. Europeans, this reads, Pour the Blessings of Their Culture over the Globe.. Militarily beneath notice by the major European powers, and able to resolve conflicts with Britain in the Western Hemisphere diplomatically, there was little pressure for a strong military in the U.S. With minimal military expenditures, the U.S. economy grew rapidly. TheLifecartoon takes a different view of the barbarism in these events, focussing on Allied brutality against the Chinese. China, shown gripping a schoolbook in the doorway, has not yet entered the scene. Le Silence (Concentration Camps in the Transvaal. The title of the cartoon calls attention to the barbarous uses of much modern technology and so-called progress., les prisonniers bors ont t runis en de grands enclos o depuis 18 mois ils trouvent le repos et le calme. New Forces in Old China: An Inevitable Awakening(New York: F.H. But just take a look at the class ahead of you, and remember that, in a little while, you will feel as glad to be here as they are! Louis Dalrymple,Puck, January 25, 1899. In the United States, the Boer War, conquest of the Philippines, and Boxer Uprising prompted large, detailed, sophisticated, full-color cartoons inPuckandJudge. 27-1-09 (July 6, 2009). The 1901 date indicates that the specific reference is to Allied reprisals against Chinese civilians following the Boxer Uprising. The wall sign overhead reads: The Confederate States refused their consent to be governed; but the Union was preserved without their consent. The class holds schoolbooks labeled Alaska, Texas, Arizona, California, New Mexico. Blackboard text: The consent of the governed is a good thing in theory, but very rare in fact. Though black Africans did not fight in the war, over 100,000 were rounded up and confined in camps separate from the white internees. An elaboratePuckgraphic from early in 1899 called School Begins incorporates all the players in a classroom scene to illustrate the legitimacy of governing without consent. But rivalries for commercial privileges never abated even when an eight-nation Allied military force was forged between the world powers in the summer of 1900. As the disturbance escalated, so did news coverage around the world. At the time, however, Twains family, acquaintances, and publisher feared the piece would be denounced as both unpatriotic and sacrilegious, and urged him not to publish it. Imperialism in the Asia-Pacific,published originally inPeace Review10:3, pp. Priests Horribly Tortured. Relatively free from European rivalries and well situated to become a transoceanic partner, the U.S. was courted for the role. 2. Cullinane, M. Patrick. The screen in the cartoon may refer to the early films that fed public fascination with China and the Boxer crisis, including Edisons recreation of the Bombardment of Taku Forts by the Allied Fleets (1900,view in the Library of Congress) and a four-minute British production that staged the murder of a missionary by Boxers called Attack on a China Mission (1900). A 1901 Puck cover, Misery Loves Company, depicts John Bull and Uncle Sam mired in colonial wars at a steep price: Boer War 16,000,000 yearly and Philippine War $80,000,000 yearly. Anti-imperialist movements targeted the human rights violations in both the Philippines and Transvaal in their protests. At the same time, however, the suppression of The War Prayer helps highlight the courage and critical edge that many political cartoonists brought to the very same subject of spreading death and destruction in the name of civilization and progress. One cannot imagine a blunter caption than the one that accompanied his 1900 cartoon forJudge: And, after all, the Philippines Are Only the Stepping-Stone to China. In Flohris image, Uncle Samheavily laden with steel, railroads, bridges, farm equipment, and the likegives a cursory nod to the spread of civilization by grasping a book titled Education and Religion. The confident giant is greeted with open arms by a diminutive yellow-clad Chinese mandarin. The Harvest in the Philippines. Frederick Thompson Richards,Life, July 6, 1899. As the American West was absorbed and the continent consolidated, the mandate of Manifest Destiny shifted from territorial to commercial expansion beyond contiguous borders. All are erstwhile British soldiers. The second was the U.S. conquest and occupation of the Philippines that began in 1899. Titled Dream of the Empress of China, the dream is an obvious nightmare, as the sardonic sub-caption makes clear. Initially, the camps were conceived as shelters for women and children war refugees. The strategy was among several emerging in these small wars of the turn of the century. Our Civilized Heathen asks what is civilized and who are the heathen. 23 later, in the sorrows of empire: militarism, secrecy, and the end of the republic (2004), johnson does not perceive Regarding the Philippines in particular, he continues: without any desire or design on our part, the war has brought us new duties and responsibilities which we must meet and discharge as becomes a great nation on whose growth and career from the beginning the ruler of nations has plainly written the high command and pledge of civilization. In this blatantly racist rendering, Americas newly subjugated people appear far more primitive and barbaric than the older empires load. Take up the White Mans burden The savage wars of peace Fill full the mouth of Famine, And bid the sickness cease; And when your goal is nearest (The end for others sought) Watch Jean Veber,LAssiette au Beurre, September 28, 1901. Xiang, Lanxin. Boxers practiced spirit-possession rituals, often meeting in Buddhist temples, and attacked Christian missionaries and Chinese converts. The famous American writer Mark Twain, for example, wrote a response, "To the Person Sitting in Darkness" that was critical of imperialism and mocked those who thought they were more enlightened than the indigenous people of these areas. Kiplings A poster headlined A Union in the Interest of Humanity Civilization, Freedom and Peace for all Time, probably also dating from 1898, celebrated the rapprochement between the United States and Great Britain with particularly dense detail. ), yesterday we took important commandos. Backed by the formidable Royal Navy, Britain could maintain a policy of splendid isolation independent of European alliances for much of the century. A more earthly approach is taken in the graphic Some One Must Back Up that heads this essay. In an 1895Puckcartoon, A Rival Who Has Come to Stay, John Bull gapes while Uncle Sam proudly displays his prowess as Uncle Sam the Ship Builder. The U.S. Navy moved up from twelfth to fifth place in the world. Periodicals likeLifein the U.S. (predecessor to the later famous weekly of the same title), as well as French and German publications, printed both poignant and outraged visual arguments against the imperialist tide, often with acute sensitivity to its racist underpinnings. An Atlantic Triangle in the 1900s: Theodore Roosevelts special relationships with France and Britain., Spencer, David R. No Laughing Matter. Vol. Generic names on the gravestones are coupled with places of origin, including England, Scotland, Ireland, New Zealand, Canada, Australia, Gibraltar, India, Ceylon, and Egypt, indicating the diversity of those recruited to fight and die for the British Empire. In The Pigtail Has Got to Go, a white-robed goddess wears a star that radiates over a Chinese mandarin. Embracing Technologies of Domination: The Rise of Popular Imperialism in the U.S., 1898-1904. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Dresden International Congress Centre, Dresden, Germany, Jun 16, 2006. This military dimension of the multi-ethnic United Kingdom is often forgotten. One was the second Boer War of 18991902 that pitted British forces against Dutch-speaking settlers in South Africa and their black supporters. The caption quotes one of the presidents speeches: Teaching them the truth of the common fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man, and showing that if we are not our brothers keepers we can be our brothers helpers. Christian missionaries often led the way, followed by politicians, troops, andbringing up the rearbusinessmen. The Boxer Uprising was a godsend for the righteous exponents of a world divided, between the civilized West and barbaric Others. At the same time, Britain was fighting the Anglo-Boer War in South Africa. 8, Issue 4, pp. Take up the White Mans burden Ye dare not stoop to less Nor call The silent, sullen peoples Shall weigh your Gods and you. Analysis The men selected for the task must do it efficiently. In this rendering it is the Bible-toting white invader (The Stranger) who is ridiculed. China in Convulsion. 2 vols. Elle permet aux prisonniers de jouir de la vue du dehors et davoir ainsi lillusion de la libert (Rapport officiel au War Office. Mother countries would often build schools, railroads, and improved communication, along with new medicines and treatments. Commercial interests not only drove U.S. policy in Asia, but also shaped public opinion about it. Comment on Global Research Articles on our Facebook page, Disclaimer: The contents of this article are of sole responsibility of the author(s). Here, perfectly mythologized, is yet another graphic rendering of the mystique of Western civilization., Japan Makes her Dbut Under Columbias Auspices. Udo Keppler,Puck, August 16, 1899. Auto-Truck of Civilization and Trade: the Asia Market. In the eyes of the West, China was dangerously close to chaos as the new century began. AHistory of American Magazines. 83-108 (2006). Pucks cover for June 8, 1898, celebrated this new Anglo-Saxon solidarity and sense of mission with an illustration of two resolute soldiers standing with fixed bayonets on a parapet and overlooking the globe. The caption reads Think It Overa phrase that also appeared later in Mark Twains To the Person Sitting in Darkness essay. Even though the non-whites will judge them for being so controlling, they will have to keep themselves on a motivated track and work without expectations. Girls are part of the obedient older class studying books labeled California, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. The only non-white student in the older group holds the book titled Alaska and is neatly coifed in contrast to the unruly new class made up of the Philippines, Hawaii, Porto Rico, and Cuba. All are depicted as dark-skinned and childish. Imperialism was not only economic and political, but also cultural. An exceptionally vivid cartoon version of Kiplings message titled The White Mans Burden (Apologies to Rudyard Kipling) was published inJudgeon April 1, 1899. When a Chinese coolie strikes a French soldier the result is a public cry of Barbarity! But when a French soldier strikes a coolie, its a necessary blow for civilization. Ren Georges Hermann-Paul,Le Cri de Paris, July 10, 1899. A year later,Judgemagazine published a two-page cartoon by Victor Gillam that sets the contemporary civilization versus barbarism debate against a grand panorama of historical carnage. Hevia, James Louis. Colonial success is equated with chivalry and invincibility.. Source:Library of Congress. Uncle Sam breaks up a fight between students identified as Cuban Ex-Patriot and Guerilla in his New Class in the Art of Self-Government. The famous white-haired general, Mximo Gmez, a master of insurgency tactics in the Cuban Independence War (18951898) reads a book with his name on it. The U.S. must govern its new territories with or without their consent until they can govern themselves.. In the West, China was often characterized as befuddled and archaic under the rule of an inscrutable crone, the Empress Dowager. Source:The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum. The archetypal dominance of Civilization over Barbarism is conveyed in a 1902Puckgraphic with the sweeping white figure of Britannia leading British soldiers and colonists in the Boer War. Revell, 1904). It was the anti-imperialist cartoonists, however, who most starkly posed the question: who is the real barbarian? Hanna was a wealthy businessman with investments in coal and iron who financed McKinleys 1896 election campaign with record-breaking fundraising that led to the defeat of opponent William Jennings Bryan. Notre site en Franais: mondialisation.ca, Rudyard Kiplings famous poem The White Mans Burden was published in 1899, during a high tide of British and American rhetoric about bringing the blessings of civilization and progress to barbaric non-Western, non-Christian, non-white peoples. Jean Veber,LAssiette au Beurre, September 28, 1901. When applied to people and cultures, the survival of the fittest doctrine gave wealthy, technologically-advanced countries not only the right to dominate backward nations, but an imperative and duty to bring them into the modern world. The phrase White Mans Burden caught on with many imperialists to justify the policy as noble. The caption applies the motto united we stand to the Anglo-Saxon brotherhood spreading Western civilization abroad. Britain is digesting China, Egypt, Australia, Africa, Canada, and India. At the core of the White Mans Burden is a reluctant civilizer who takes up arms for the purpose of relieving grievous wrongs, in the words of President William McKinley. (DOI:10.1080/14664658.2011.559749), Twain, Mark. Expansionism promulgated under the banner of civilization could not escape being carried out in global military campaigns, referred to as the savage wars of peace in the third stanza: Such avowed paternalism towards other cultures recast the invasion of their lands as altruistic service to humankind. Cartoonist Victor Gillam turns the tables on American missionary zeal and moral imperative to save the heathen by showing how the Chinese might view the foreign devils in vignettes of ignorance, racism, and extreme violence in the United States. Think It Over. The noble rhetoric that buttressed overseas expansion, as Twain presented it, was largely for Home Consumption, and stood in sharp contrast to the Actual Thing that the Customer Sitting in Darkness buys with his blood and tears and land and liberty. Where the Philippine temptation in particular was concerned, he cited press reports of atrocities by American troops. The Boer War Remembered.The Journal of Historical Review, Vol. Opposing viewpoints usually found expression in simpler but no less powerful black-and-white graphics in other publications. She researches visual narrative and digital historiography using the visual historical record.This article was adapted from Visualizing Cultures. The Battle of Omdurman in September 1898in which British forces retook the Sudan using Maxim machine guns to inflict disproportionate casualties on native Mahdi forceswas followed almost immediately by the Fashoda Crisis with France, in which the British asserted their control of territory around the upper Nile. Now there are thirteen on this one street! American ships for American commerce!!. Silence). Source:Library of Congress. To criticise or hold under too deep a scrutiny is to be accused of being an agent of a new type of colonialism. The word Civilization (with a capital C), alongside Progress, was counterposed against the words barbarism, barbarians, and barbarity, with accompanying visual stereotypes. Historical perspective. On May 1a month before the celebratory second magazine cover reproduced here was publishedCommodore George Dewey destroyed a Spanish fleet in Manila Bay in the Philippines. (In the 1900 elections, Bryan ran on an anti-imperialist platform and was again defeated by McKinley.) No blow has been struck except for liberty and humanity, and none will be.William McKinley. W. A. Rogers,Harpers Weekly, July 28, 1900. U.S. Following its victory over China in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-95, Japan had the heady experience of being welcomed into the imperialist circle. hier encore nous avons pris un important commando. Expert Help. Religion played a major role in the characterization of others as heathens in need of salvation through education, conversion, and civilizing in the ways of Christian culture. So, if we do our duty aright in the Philippines, we will add to that national renown which is the highest and finest part of national life, will greatly benefit the people of the Philippine Islands, and, above all, we will play our part well in the great work of uplifting mankind. Wrapped in Kerosene-Soaked Cotton and Roasted to Death., In this same horrified mode, the July 28 cover ofHarpers Weeklya publication that carried the subtitle A Journal of Civilizationdepicted demonic Boxers brandishing primitive weapons, carrying severed heads on pikes, and trampling a child wrapped in the American flag. '. Uncle Sam and President McKinley countered the assault under another American flag on which was inscribed Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness under treaty rights. The cartoon caption reflected Americas self-image as a reluctant civilizer: Is This Imperialism? Kipling offered moral justification for the bloody war the U.S. was fighting to suppress the independent Philippine regime following Spanish rule. The turn-of-the-century visual record tells us otherwise. The caption refers to a Bible passage in which belief is nearly, but not completely reached. While he originally wrote the poem to celebrate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897, 301-314 (2010). Civilization and its Discontents: The Boxers and Luddites as Heroes and Villains.Theory and Society16(5):675 (1987). Partnership with Great Britain brought the advantage of shared technology to the U.S., but the new American-made ships represented competition for the British shipbuilding industry. In the United StatesPuck,Judge, and the first version of a pictorial magazine titledLife; in FranceLAssiette au Beurre; and in Germany the acerbicSimplicissimuspublished masterful illustrations that ranged in opinion and style from partisan to thoughtful to gruesome. Task must do it efficiently article was adapted from Visualizing Cultures is to be accused being. With many imperialists to justify the policy as noble occupation of the turn of the turn the. Too deep a scrutiny is to Allied reprisals against Chinese civilians following the Uprising..., is yet another graphic rendering of the barbarism in these events, focussing on Allied brutality against Chinese. 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