Eric Beckman reviewed Trouble with Empire by Antoinette Burton
Review of 'Trouble with Empire' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Excellent and useful read for World History teachers. Burton shows how colonials subjects contested the authority of the British Empire throughout its existence. Burton argues that scholars need to look beyond facile rise and fall narratives of the British Empire. As a World History teacher this book encouraged me to incorporate resistance to empire from the beginnings of discussions of the "New" imperialism in the 19th century, instead of reserving these stories for a later discussion of decolonization. I will also be mining the book for stories to illustrate the ongoing, Empire-wide resistance to British imperialism. From the Epilogue (p. 219):
"...the history of the British empire is not rise and fall but skirmish, scramble, stumble, recover; not up and down but perpetual crash and burn; not success and failure but fail, fail, fail and make the most of it--with an eye on your backyard and your hand on your …
Excellent and useful read for World History teachers. Burton shows how colonials subjects contested the authority of the British Empire throughout its existence. Burton argues that scholars need to look beyond facile rise and fall narratives of the British Empire. As a World History teacher this book encouraged me to incorporate resistance to empire from the beginnings of discussions of the "New" imperialism in the 19th century, instead of reserving these stories for a later discussion of decolonization. I will also be mining the book for stories to illustrate the ongoing, Empire-wide resistance to British imperialism. From the Epilogue (p. 219):
"...the history of the British empire is not rise and fall but skirmish, scramble, stumble, recover; not up and down but perpetual crash and burn; not success and failure but fail, fail, fail and make the most of it--with an eye on your backyard and your hand on your Martini rifle."