Rudyard Kipling's 1899 poem "The White Man's Burden" embodies the European man's view of imperialism, Eurocentrism and social Darwinism. Four centuries before 1899, such ideas were briefly mentioned in Christopher Columbus' letter to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. However, in 1899, these attitudes were strengthened and took on their full meaning. The American and European imperialism of the 19th century was the most influential of all time in the history of human civilization. The overwhelming motive for imperialism came from social factors, including religion and social Darwinism. Missionaries frequently rushed to Africa and Asia to convert their populations to Christianity. On the other hand, Social Darwinism advocated survival of the fittest by applying science to racism, which fueled ideas of European racial superiority. After landing on the African continent, Europeans felt they had a duty to civilize Africa, which is explicitly stated by "The White Man's Burden." When white men invaded the countries of Africa, they saw a new group of people wearing very little clothing and living in simple buildings. This gave Europeans the idea and need to help these people develop and evolve socially (Bentley and Ziegler 912). Rudyard Kipling's "The White Man's Burden" encouraged the United States to impose colonial rule on the Philippines. Stanzas like "Waiting heavily harnessed, On people floating and wild - Your people newly captured and sullen, Half devil and half child", indicate that Kipling believed that maintaining overseas colonies was a burden on the The colonial empire because the empire was responsible for inferior people. His reference to Filipinos as being both half devil and half child explicitly means that the new ca...... middle of paper ......entley, JH, Ziegler, HF Traditions & Encounters: A Global Perspective on the past. Vol II – From 1500 to the Present. Fourth edition. McGraw Hill, 2007.2. Reilly, K. Story Worlds: A Comparative Reader. Third edition. Bedford / Saint-Martin, 2007.3. “Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815).” History of the war. 2000. Dugdale-Pointont. April 27, 2008 < http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/wars_napoleonic.html>.4. "Convention revising the General Act of Berlin, of February 26, 1885, and the General Act and the Declaration of Brussels, of July 2, 1890." American Journal of International Law. 1921, 15(4), 314-321.5. “Social Darwinism.” Explore the world of replicators. 2000. Think Quest. April 27, 2008 .6. “The Age of Discovery.” HCS-OSU. 1992. OSU. April 27 2008 .