Rachel Jourdan-Aufiery-The Age of Empire 1-4

The beginning of the reading starts off describing the differences of the world between the 1780s and the 1880s. The first major point made was that the world was much more global in the 1880s and much of the world had already been mapped. Some other advances were in transportation of goods. With advances in railways and steamships, transcontinental and intercontinental trade was much faster and more efficient. Parts of the world that were not as advanced in transportation of goods were places like areas of Africa, Asia, and South America. Furthermore, although communication was expanding and forms of technology were increasing, there were a few negatives. The 1780s experienced more struggles with economies and politics than ever recorded. The per capita gross national product of areas in the 1780s and 1880s is comparable to places labeled as "third world" today. Also, in 1880, there were about two global systems: the dominant and the dependent, or the rich and the poor. The first world or dominant nations were known for their capitalistic development. On the other hand, the larger, dependent, second world nations were united by their dependence on dominant nations. Although it was obvious there were major differences between the two world, the boundaries separating them were not clear. So, in the 1880s, Europe was dominant in capitalist development and were well known for their bourgeois society.
Furthermore, industrialization taking place in the United States was clearly lighting the fire for America to become a global super-power. Not only were the differences between the two worlds separated by econmics, but also politics.In 1875, there were about seventeen nations considered sovereign, including the six "powers." . They were Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary, and Italy. Also, the time period 1875-1914 is called the Age of Empire for several reasons. For instance, there was a new inperialism on the front and the number of rulers of that called themselves emperors was at its peak. For example, rulers of Austria, Germany, Russia, Turkey, and Britain were all called emperors. There was also a new type of empire, called the colonial empire. Around 1880-1914 much of the world was divided into territories under the rule of the politically dominant nations: France, Great Britain, the U.S., Germany, Italy, and a few others.
What I found interesting was that the book highlights the point that about one tourists ventured to Switzerland and around 200,000 of those tourists were from America. Another interesting fact I came across while reading dealt with population. For example, the population of the world in 1880 was almost double the population in the 1780s. What I found rather amusing was that at one point many northern Italians viewed the southern Italians as barbarians partly becuase of their cultural differences. How much did cultural differences play a role between different countries?