Why were the Europeans arrogant and ignorant in their assumption that they were bringing civilization to the countries they colonized?

Answer 1

Depending on how the question is read, it could be one of two very different questions, which can be seen below. For the sake of clarity, the definitions of arrogance and ignorance are below:

• Arrogance: Believing one's abilities to be superior to those of others, usually without having examined any evidence.
• Ignorance: Having minimal or no knowledge of a particular situation or culture.
  

1) How does the way that Europeans assumed that they brought civilization...show arrogance and ignorance?

One of the prevailing ideas in Europe during the Imperialist period was that there was one natural progression of human civilization from less civilized to more civilized. Such ideas were canonized by philosophers like John Stuart Mills who argued that various places are at different stages of development and the development existed in parallel, without any allowance for cultural uniqueness. Rudyard Kipling took this further, arguing that the Europeans had a duty (White Man's Burden) to help the other peoples around the world to progress to the European level. This demonstrates that the Europeans were extremely arrogant about their position, holding that all other cultural groups were innately inferior. When pressed to explain why they thought that other groups were inferior, they made arguments that come apart quite quickly when local explanations are actually examined. A perfect example is that when Europeans conquered the Congo, they thought the native Congolese were just too stupid to build irrigated cities along the rivers and were just acting as tribes in the highlands. The Belgians founded Leopoldville (now called Kinshasa) at the Congo River delta as a display of their advancement. However, the local Congolese did not build cities in the lowland regions not from stupidity, but from the heavy presence of malaria-bearing mosquitoes and other disease-bearing insects that only stay in lowland regions. Thousands of Belgian colonists died within a few years of malaria and other African illnesses before remedies could be fashioned.

2) What motivated the European arrogance and ignorance that led to their assumption that they brought civilization...?

European arrogance in this regard primarily derives from the technological advantage that Europeans enjoyed over other civilization-groups. Europeans were the only industrialized group, often challenging enemies with spears and bows. Europeans also remembered that they too had come from similar origins, but mlllenia previous and therefore, saw themselves are more advanced with a right to rule over others. Compounding this, in the case of Africa, was the fact that Africans had been European slaves for centuries, leading to Europeans having a strong racist view of them as brutes and "ape-like" persons.

Answer 2

Europe has done nothing but good for Africa. I dont see Africa shipping us food, clothes, clean water.