British Takeover of India
World History F
3/20/13 Domination and Industrialization
In the 19th century, Imperialism was introduced to India and impacted the nation both in positive and negative ways. While Imperialism still had negative effects on India, the positive outweighed the negative in that railroad systems and the increase in agriculture led to industrialization and a better economy for India. Despite the detrimental cultural aspects implemented by the British occupation of India, Imperialism benefited the nation of India in the long run. Although there was an improvement in the economy and industrialization of India through the British occupation, the negative consequences felt by the Indian population outweigh any good that they may have done. While the British resided in India, they established a social ranking complex called a caste system. The caste system divided Indian society into different sections, Brahmins (priests), Kshatriyas (warriors and rulers), Vaisyas (traders, merchants, and minor officials), Sudras (unskilled workers), and the Harijans or “untouchables”, deciding power and wealth depending on which level a person belonged to (British Impact). While the people of the upper caste lived very comfortably, with money and power, the lower castes lived very tough lives in the ruts of poverty. People were not allowed to transfer or move up or down through the castes, which left the people barely scraping by without any way to improve on their lives. This had an extremely detrimental effect on society because it left generations of people stuck in poverty without any way of moving up, not to mention a whole class of people who were completely isolated. Overall, the British occupying India was completely wrong and negative, because not only did they ruin the lives of people living at that time, but for many to come as things like the caste system are still in place today. This cannot be overlooked despite anything positive
3/20/13 Domination and Industrialization
In the 19th century, Imperialism was introduced to India and impacted the nation both in positive and negative ways. While Imperialism still had negative effects on India, the positive outweighed the negative in that railroad systems and the increase in agriculture led to industrialization and a better economy for India. Despite the detrimental cultural aspects implemented by the British occupation of India, Imperialism benefited the nation of India in the long run. Although there was an improvement in the economy and industrialization of India through the British occupation, the negative consequences felt by the Indian population outweigh any good that they may have done. While the British resided in India, they established a social ranking complex called a caste system. The caste system divided Indian society into different sections, Brahmins (priests), Kshatriyas (warriors and rulers), Vaisyas (traders, merchants, and minor officials), Sudras (unskilled workers), and the Harijans or “untouchables”, deciding power and wealth depending on which level a person belonged to (British Impact). While the people of the upper caste lived very comfortably, with money and power, the lower castes lived very tough lives in the ruts of poverty. People were not allowed to transfer or move up or down through the castes, which left the people barely scraping by without any way to improve on their lives. This had an extremely detrimental effect on society because it left generations of people stuck in poverty without any way of moving up, not to mention a whole class of people who were completely isolated. Overall, the British occupying India was completely wrong and negative, because not only did they ruin the lives of people living at that time, but for many to come as things like the caste system are still in place today. This cannot be overlooked despite anything positive