civilizing

Colonialism, once equated by the West with civilizing progress, became synonymous with iniquity.

“They believed that their society was making progress, that it was gaining greater control over nature, that they were becoming more civilized and were civilizing the environment around them,” Golinski said.

One might guess that the civilizing influence of Boomtown would form the arc of the season.

“The official reason given was that it was about evangelizing the Vietnamese and civilizing the population. The reality was that the French were there to extract the country’s minerals and plant rubber plantations.”

He cited Philippine national hero Jose Rizal’s description of justice “as the foremost virtue of the civilizing races. It subdues the barbarous nations while injustice arouses the weakest.”