Contemporary World Events and Issues - Book Report/Review Example

Direct administration of a colony and the people living in it is called colonialism. Imperialism combines colonialism and indirect rule by outsiders over the people in a certain colony. In imperialism, these areas were known as protectorates; the European powers made important decisions and local authorities implemented them. Increased expansion of colonies was fueled by the industrial revolution. Industrialization is the shift from products made by human and animal muscle power and wind and water as sources of energy to using fossil fuels to power machine production.

The sources of energy were coal, oil, and natural gas. Machines produced more goods and used more raw materials than human beings. This called for the expansion of markets and sources of raw materials. Imperialism was also fostered by missionary zeal and patriotism. The European powers needed to spread Christianity, and very few places on earth were unconquered by European powers by the beginning of the World War 1. Scientific and technological advancement in the twentieth century caused optimism and large scale industrialization.

Rivalry between European powers led to World War 1, which led to the modification of the state system developed in Europe and imposed on colonies. The great depression and extreme ideologies in the Soviet Union, Italy, and Germany caused the German attack on Poland, which began the Second World War (1939-1945). Ideologies are sets of interrelated ideas which give meaning to events and formulate government policies. The defeat of Germany in the First World War produced an extreme form of nationalism that enabled Hitler to take over the government.

He installed a racist form of fascism as the official ideology. The Nazis viewed as a state embodied the will of Germans and demanded unquestionable total allegiance. This notion and their goal of dominance over the nations redefined the historical trends of centralization of power and colonial rule. A state is a definite area with a government and loyal populace and is acknowledged by other states. A government is an organization in the society that has a legitimate claim to exercise authority over the population within a territory.

It formulates laws to be obeyed by all the citizens. Legitimacy is the key to the efficacy of highly centralized and dominant institutions. Legitimacy is achieved when the people believe that the administration is justified, that they have to obey the laws, and its rules conform to the conventional values. Nations are cultural or ethnic groups that share numerous characteristics such as religion, language, and history. The sense of devotion and identification with a state is called nationalism.

The feeling of loyalty, by citizens, to a modern state is known as nationalism. The World War 2 caused novel trends that have produced changes in the international system. These are the organizations and processes used by people to interact across state borders. The USA emerged as a superpower in the Second World War and, together with the allies, restructured the international system to foster economic prosperity. The international governmental organizations (IGOs) were formed with membership drawn from states and designed to stabilize the international economy to ensure the economic growth.

The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) was formed to provide economic aid and loans to countries