Unit 4: Nationalism, Industrialism, and Imperialism
Lesson A: Birth of the Imperial World
Activity 3: Social Darwinism and the White Man's Burden
As you saw in Activity 1, racism was one of the motives behind imperialism. Around the world, forms of racism have long been a part of the human experience. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, however, Social Darwinism and other theories provided a new basis for racist thinking.
Presentation Activity - Social Darwinism and the White Man's Burden
Mini Lesson
When you are ready, select the play button to learn about Social Darwinism and the White Man's Burden.
Classroom Activity - Social Darwinism and the White Man's Burden
Discussion
Directions: In this activity, you will discuss the ideas of Social Darwinism and the White Man's Burden that you just explored in the presentation.
Prepare a response to the discussion questions below. Follow your teacher's directions to participate in your class discussion.
- How was racism used as a justification for imperialism?
- How do you think the people of the colonized countries felt about some of the ideas of Social Darwinism, scientific racism, and the White Man's Burden?
Select the link to review the Discussion Scoring Tool (pdf).
