Guided Pathways: Colonialism and Imperialism

For thousands of years, empires have been one of the world’s most widespread and influential forms of political and social organization.  Ranging in time from the empires of ancient Mesopotamia to the European empires that dominated much of the globe until the mid-20^th century, they have done much to shape the contours of human history.  The study of colonialism and imperialism includes attention to gender, environmental history, religion, slavery, the history of science and medicine, and histories of indigenous peoples.  Colonial authorities remade landscapes, polities, and societies.  Empires also shaped beliefs, impacting the inner worlds of colonizers and colonized alike.

Yet with colonial rule came dissent and contestation.  In the face of often exploitative and hierarchical regimes, colonized peoples sought to retain control of their own lives, refashioning the dynamics of imperial influence in the process.  In the modern era, the legitimacy of empires has been comprehensively called into question.  The phenomenon of decolonization was one of the most important political developments of the twentieth century, and, while imperialism has not disappeared from the contemporary world, colonial practices have taken new forms.

Students who choose to pursue coursework in Colonialism and Imperialism will explore the complex dynamics of colonial interactions, which remain profoundly relevant to the textures and structures of contemporary human experience.