A History of Violence When governments ignore their citizens the violence of a realm will increase. This reality is displayed in “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift, “Violence Vanquished” by Steven Pinker, “Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell and other historical facts. When a government ensures that the basic needs of their people are met, poverty decreases and crime and violence decrease. When the government doesn’t do this the opposite happens. By ignoring citizens they will be left with meeting their own basic needs. In theory people can do this, but not when others hold them back.
Once a government stops protecting its people and starts exploiting them it becomes difficult to avoid poverty. This apathy on the government’s part causes an increase in violence. The Roman Empire once had a democratically elected government that had sympathy for its people. The Republic eventually transitioned into an Empire whose only interest was the accumulation of wealth and power. After transforming into an autocracy, Rome annexed numerous foreign lands and neglected and abused their new citizens. As a consequence, the additions to the empire developed a tendency towards violent reatment of their tyrannical overlords.
For instance, fighters from Germania slaughtered thousands of soldiers in The Battle of Teutoburg Forest with the aid of Roman general Arminius who betrayed the Romans because he despised how they treated conquered people (“The Ghost Warriors”). The Empire itself eventually fell due to its Imperial government ignoring several problems, such as its people’s suffering and the need to protect its own lands before conquering foreign ones. Because the Romans treated those they conquered like subhuman garbage, violence broke out. terest in its people’s welfare will keep violence low. Crime was high in ancient times before the rule of law was enforced. Murder often went unpunished and highwaymen roamed the countryside in search of unsuspecting prey. After it became clear that they were losing profitable peasants because of their apathy, early nation states decided it was time to act. Rulers kept “Itheir] subjects from cycles of raiding and feuding” by enforcing laws against domestic violence, much as when “a farmer tries to prevent his livestock from killing one another” (Pinker, 700).
When governments didn’t take an interest in keeping their citizens alive, armed robbers plagued city streets and disputes often resulted in injuries. Kingdoms that were willing to devote resources and manpower to ensure their people’s safety were less violent. When a government provided for the welfare of its people, peace was established. On the contrary, violence went by unchallenged when a government was apathetic to its citizens’ well-being. A mother country’s mistreatment and neglect of its colonies leads to a dramatic increase in violence.
Eighteenth century Ireland was ne such colony. After years of English rule the island’s towns were “crowded with beggars of the female sex, followed by three, four or six children, all in rags” (Swift, 752). These children would have to grow up fighting or stealing to get food, increasing violence in itself and then creating a whole new generation raised by violent parents. The effect of the British charging the Irish unbearable fees, paying them little or nothing for their labor, and exporting their resources without proper pay was an increase in violence.
If the government provided the oor and homeless with the basic necessities they needed to get back on their feet or lowered the rent to a bearable amount, this situation could easily have been avoided. The English chose to ignore the suffering of their subjects and reap in the ill-gotten profits. A government that takes The American colonies of the 18th century were another victim of an apathetic government. During the Colonial Period, England was driven by a desire to conquer more than their European foes such as Spain and France, and they couldn’t care less that their colonies were treated poorly.
The British, for example, exploited America. They taxed common items such as tea, newspapers and playing cards and its soldiers invaded the homesteads of regular citizens whenever they needed the free housing. To add insult to injury, the Americans did not have a say in their own governing as Parliament made all the authoritative laws for them and no representatives were allowed who weren’t British. Unfortunately for King George III, some of his subjects would rather die than suffer such abuse, even when it was done under the pretext of keeping the colonies safe.
The unbearable treatment would lead to the most violent conflict imaginable, war. The Americans’ intent was not to wage war. They pleaded to the British king in the Olive Branch Petition. They promised to remain a faithful colony to their mother country if only some representation in the Parliament could be granted. The British government, especially its king, didn’t give their pleas any notice and as a result thousands of violent deaths would ensue in the War for Independence. Violence will be a response when a foreign administration ignores the traditions and sanctities of a conquered group.
Burma was a relatively happy country for most of the nineteenth century. The Burmese fought the British Empire for years to maintain their independence but the superpower didn’t care that their future subjects desired to be free, and finally conquered them in the late 1800’s. England redrew the borders of Burma and made it part of India, even though Burma was a totally separate country with its own cultural and political identity. After years of oppression under a government that ignored their well-being, the Burmese of 1920 were sick of and dying under foreign rule.
As a young officer in Moulmein, Burma, George Orwell was “an obvious target and was baited whenever it seemed safe to do so. When a nimble Burman tripped [him on a football field] and the referee (another Burman) looked the other way, the crowd yelled with hideous laughter. ” (216). After enduring bullying at the hands of the Burmese, Orwell’s main purpose as an officer was to appear strong and wise in front of the Burmans. This resulted in Orwell violently murdering an elephant to maintain an air of superiority. In sum, because the British government didn’t care about the Burmese, tensions ran igh which led to violence.
Violence increases when governments ignore their citizens. Violent crime was high when the early states failed to protect their people. Once ancient rulers decided that their subject lives were worth protecting, a relative peace graced their kingdoms. On the other hand, after the Romans neglected the citizens of their newly annexed lands, their people broke out into violence. The Burmese grew tired of their British rulers and bullied any European they saw after sustaining years of apathy and malice. This created tensions etween the Burmese and Anglo-Indians, leading to greater harm.
Ireland erupted into violence, poverty and crime after the British disregarded the needs of the poor. The American colonists went to war with England because their right to representation was laughed at and ignored. Treating one’s citizens apathetically lowers the standard of living for all but the wealthiest few, and in turn creates an environment where brute force is the most practical means of obtaining sustenance and channeling rage. Violence will increase when a government doesn’t invest in the Well-Being of its people.
