Pick a country in the global core and one in the periphery (as defined in your textbook) that have a former colonial relationship. Why does one of these countries have a larger, more diversified economy than the other? How does the world-system model help to explain these differences? Are some places caught in a poverty trap despite decolonization?
The relationship between Spain and Venezuela has changed among the centuries. All began in October 12 of 1498 when Christopher Columbus arrived in what he would call later; it’s little Venice comparing this early town with the Italian city (see maps 1 and 2 on the anexus). Over time, Spain took away most of the mineral richness of Venezuela, installing kingdoms and creating small cities around the mainland. However, not all that Spaniards left in the Latin American countries were poverty, inequality and corruption. The Iberic Empire brought a whole knowledge in economy, religion, education, culture and industrialization. In this essay I would like to explain the economics systems in Spain as well as Venezuela and their neighbors of Latin America. How was Venezuela’s society build? Which are the differences between Spain and Venezuela in the economy field?
Before the colonization, different types of tribes like Caribes, Yanomamis, Wayuus, Caracas, etc populated Venezuela. They had a rudimentary economy based on trades: each family was in charged of the collecting of a different type of plants, fruits or animals. Each item had a value in references with the rest of them, for example a watermelon had the same value as ten limes. Primitivism was all over the place, starting on the language passing through alimentation and finishing on the medical attention. With the arrival of the Spaniards, all this economic system went away as well as the culture, religion and language. Suddenly these tribes fund themselves in a no return road, where they could accept the Spanish policy or otherwise die for their believes. Most of them choose the second one and fought against the Spaniards leaving their children orphans.
The Spanish Empire was forced to send people to their new colonies in order to lay down the King’s will. They were in charged of building a new society. “To create an American empire, Spain had to export people – people to convert the Indians to Christianity, to found cities, and to settle the land … to be governed”. (J.H. Elliot. Spain And Its World 1500-1700. New Haven and London Yale University Press. 1989) (See page 13) Thus, emigration in Spain raised its highest rate ever. People who were labeled as dirt blood pretty much immigrants and their descendents, decided to emigrate to America looking for new opportunities, This is one of the theories that explains the lack of success on the American empire. The Spanish Crown did not send their most prepared citizens to the “new world”. Most of the people who arrived in Latin America where criminals and non-prepared individuals with no idea of how to raise or build a society capable of avoid inequality and poverty. Thus, these countries in this case Venezuela were raised on bad columns. Lack of education, was one of the reasons that made easier the Spanish empire settlement in Latin America.
In late 1700s, two causes lead the decolonization of Venezuela and the rest of South America. One of them was the surge of different movements in the world that gave rise to The Enlightment, the French Revolution, the Independence of the United States. The other one was the born of a new generation, filled by Venezuelans who had a high level of education. Simon Bolivar and Francisco De Miranda were one of the leaders that where in front of the revolution in order to win the independence of Latin America. Starting in Argentina and ending in Cuba. With their succeed, all the trades between Venezuela and Spain disappeared leading the surge of The Great Colombia, a big republic conformed by Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela. With Simon Bolivar as president. Therefore, a “new” economic system was born with all the Spanish roots, focusing on one single product to explode and export. In late 1800s Venezuelan economy began to switch from coffee to cocoa and then to oil/petroleum becoming the richest former colony of Spain in the world.
Summarizing, Spain and Venezuela economies are similar. Nowadays, Spain is struggling with the recession and there’s many people loosing their jobs and houses. This phenomenon has forced companies to reduce their payroll job. In the other hand Venezuela is struggling with the dilemma of socialism and capitalism; all of the formers presidents were capitalists but the recent one wants to settle the socialism as the politic system. As a result, lots of transnational companies have left the country afraid of the situation and investors are looking at Venezuela as a lawless country taking their money of the republic. Bibliography
(J.H. Elliot. Spain And Its World 1500-1700. New Haven and London Yale University Press. 1989)
(J.H. Parry. The Spanish Seabourne Empire. New York. 1969)
