Jules Ferry \u2013 On French Colonial Expansion<\/i><\/p>\n
A<\/strong>uthor: <\/b>Jules Ferry was born April 5, 1832, in Saint-Di\u00e9, France.\u00a0 He was educated as a lawyer. Before serving two terms as prime minister of France (1880-1881, 1883-1885), Ferry was an active politician. He served as the republican deputy for Paris in 1869 and protested the declaration of war against Germany. The government of national defense appointed Ferry as the prefect of the Seine. As prime minister, he passed laws that secularized the French educational system. After Bismarck\u2019s German victory over the French, Ferry began to promote French expansionism.<\/p>\n C<\/strong>ontext: <\/b>Ferry wrote during the period of colonial expansionism and imperialism. This was a time when the powerful, industrialized countries like England began to stretch their constituencies by annexing or establishing protectorates in \u201cundeclared\u201d areas of the world like Africa.<\/p>\n L<\/strong>anguage: <\/b>Ferry\u2019s language was very direct, clear, and assertive. He emphasized and stressed his points by frequent use of the words \u201cneed\u201d and \u201cmust.\u201d Ferry referred to the grave seriousness of the problem of competition and the German and American protectionist policies restricting trade. He also spoke of the necessary French sense of duty to solve the problem.<\/p>\n A<\/strong>udience: <\/b>Ferry made this speech before the French Chamber of Deputies on March 28, 1884.<\/p>\n I<\/strong>ntent: <\/b>Ferry hoped to convince the Chamber of Deputies to take up a more rapid and vast policy of colonial expansion for economic and political achievement amidst the globalizing competitive atmosphere.<\/p>\n M<\/strong>essage: <\/b>Ferry justified the need for a vast policy of colonial expansion with the need for economic success. He realized that competitive trade was globalizing and that to prosper, a country needed to attain a vast network of economic outlets. His solution was colonial expansionism, a policy that offered more outlets for exports. With more outlets, France would have a more competitive edge while rivaling the other industrialized nations like Germany, England, and the United States. Ferry also asserted that the French people, as a \u201csuperior\u201d race, have a duty to reign over and civilize the \u201cinferior\u201d races, which is reminiscent of Rudyard Kipling\u2019s \u201cThe White Man\u2019s Burden.\u201d Ferry saw colonial expansion necessary for France\u2019s global rank.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Jules Ferry \u2013 On French Colonial Expansion Author: Jules Ferry was born April 5, 1832, in Saint-Di\u00e9, France.\u00a0 He was educated as a lawyer. Before serving two terms as prime minister of France (1880-1881, 1883-1885), Ferry was an active politician. … Continue reading