Imperialism, pioneer of capitalism Book

As a subject area, this is something that is nearly impossible to describe now in our modern academic
context. Just recently, a scholar by the name of Bruce Gilley published a piece in peer reviewed journal Third World Quarterly titled, "The Case for Colonialism". The author and the journal received violent threats and submitted a withdrawal notice on the paper stating,

"This Viewpoint essay has been withdrawn at the request of the academic journal editor, and in agreement with the author of the essay. Following a number of complaints, Taylor & Francis conducted a thorough investigation into the peer review process on this article. Whilst this clearly demonstrated the essay had undergone double-blind peer review, in line with the journal's editorial policy, the journal editor has subsequently received serious and credible threats of personal violence. These threats are linked to the publication of this essay. As the publisher, we must take this seriously. Taylor & Francis has a strong and supportive duty of care to all our academic editorial teams, and this is why we are withdrawing this essay."

This is unacceptable and totally against what academic inquiry ought to stand for. If the author is so egregious, then target the article concisely with well reasoned critiques. Death threats strengthen the hand of the person targeted, even if their work is ultimately censored. This is an important prefix to my discussion of this book in question by Bill Warren, who was attempting to argue a similar case decades ago, as a Marxist scholar.

As such it is regarded as a highly controversial book, but as a polemical piece of writing, it brings a number of interesting dictums which still have serious ramifications in Marxist theory today. This book was published posthumously, so it was not entirely complete by the time of his death. The output should therefore be read as a series of largely completed musings, which could have been edited or revised more. I respect Warren's contrarian attitude, particularly when dealing with a seriously contentious issue like colonialism. From my reading here are some of the main points addressed in the book are as follows. From each point, it will become clear why each can cause problems:

1)- Marxists deviated from the original works of Marx, by adopting Lenin's ideas on imperialism as being the 'highest stage of capitalism' (). This deviation Warren argues was regressive, particularly when focusing on revolutionary activity. To dismiss potentially progressive initiatives in other countries, which could lead to class consciousness such as increased literary rates and educational reform, means potential workers revolutions are critiqued and halted. Warren is almost taking on a Machiavellian approach to capitalism here. Capitalism can develop the productive forces just enough that workers can then take control.

2)- Warren's problem in outright dismissing colonialism and imperialism blurs important differences between colonial/semi-colonial and neo-colonial conditions. So essentially a blurring of the terminology as a catch all term has been detrimental in reasoned analysis of the deleterious or otherwise effects of colonialism at different stages. There are different types of colonialism and they are all lumped into one single critique.

3)- Not all societies develop at the same pace and can register approximately the same achievements at any given time.

4)- He critiques ethnocentrism and eurocentiric ideas as being silly, or absurd.

5)- Marxists shouldn't "cavil at the thought that progress sometimes requires the use of force" which distinguishes Marxists from Prodhorn anarchists apparently- since Marxists noted that progress was likely to be painful. Thus, Marxists shouldn't be pacifists.

6)- The colonial project was supposedly free of widespread brutality: "This is especially true since the colonial record considering the immense numbers of people involved was remarkably free of widespread brutality" (128)

7)- In sum, Marxist analysis needs to move away from motivations and focus instead on effects. Thus ditch a moralistic deontological approach. The focus needs to be on outcomes, which is why Warren spends so much time highlighting the positive effects of British intervention in places like India.

8)- Marxist analysis preceding Warren's book (1980) focused on colonialism in terms of economic development. So think of the developmental theorists like Frank. Warren argues this is a mistake. Because it divorces material welfare and cultural transfer, as well as the intellectual and cultural foundations of advanced technology, organisation etc. Warren thus argues that to properly analyse the effects of colonialism, you need to focus on all of those factors. (128). Cultural transmission is thus a key point being advanced here. The British were also exporting democracy and their institutions.

"If we consider three of the elements of material welfare particularly favourable to long term expansion of the productive forces- health, education and the provision of new types of consumer goods- it will be seen that the colonial era far from initiating a reinforcing process of underdevelopment, launched almost from its inception a process of development, understood here in terms of improvements in material welfare that also constituted conditions for the development of the productive forces" (129)

9)- Warren notes that the most dramatic and significant and "conclusive proof of the advantages of Western colonisation" is the improvement in health brought about by the colonisers. "In nearly all cases, mortality rates were on the decline and population growth in unprecedented expansion within a few decades of the onset of colonial rule" (129-130). He notes in Africa for example in the 1950s and 1960s, for example when colonial rule ended in Africa, the population had increased several fold" this was a major change from pre colonial stagnation. "Involved here was not simply the prolongation of life but also the reduction of untold suffering from cruel ailments previously considered unavoidable from natural phenomena such as smallpox, diphtheria and tubercolosious"