Kipling's Culture Criticism

In the 1800’s it was completely fine to express and take pride in European superiority. Society dictated that the white man had a burden to “save”, “upscale” and “civilize” all cultures that did not match the dominating culture of Western Europe and North America. Motivated by power, nationalism and economic gain, European countries proceeded to bring vast areas of the planet under their control through the guise of bringing civilization. Many legitimately believed that it was their god given duty to spread the tenements of European society, and that colonization was both a profitable and humanitarian effort. Rudyard Kipling’s poem “The White Man’s Burden” is a satirical description of the “whole hearted” effort of the European power’s to envelope the planet. Kipling ends his poem stating “Comes now, to search your manhood 
through all the thankless years
 cold, edged with dear-bought wisdom,
 the judgment of your peers!,” suggesting an ominous future for those powers who choose to colonize. While the poem criticizes the foundations and meanings behind imperialism, it is also marked with evidence of societies influence on self-status of Europeans. Through his words, Kipling himself seems to feel some sense of superiority over those conquered (Your new-caught, sullen peoples,
 Half devil and half child), suggesting true internationalism was still a far off concept.