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1839 – 1860

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The China pizza slices indicates that China is up for grabs while China is trying to stop the imperialism, but has no say or agency.

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In a French political cartoon, 5 characters, representing Britain, Germany, Japan, Russia, and France split up the territory of China, as the cartoon representing China looks on helplessly. This drawing takes place after the opium wars, where Britain exploited China’s resources and imperialized them. In Britain’s eyes, China was a nation of “savages” and needed to become civilized. The identity of China, because they were not white made it seem justifiable to imperialize and take over to the British. When the British took over and initiated the first Opium war, they made China dependent on Britain. China then lost almost all economic agency.. They couldn’t negotiate terms or demand what they wanted because Britain could threaten to cease exportation of opium, and the entire nation of China had become addicted to opium, creating an endless cycle of dependency.

Myer, H. 1898. En Chine: Le Gâteau Des Rois Et... Des Empereurs.

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China had the nations split up their land and power among themselves, leaving their economic and social agency in the other nations' hands. Germany had their social and mainly economic agency in the hands of the treaty of versailles, decided on by other nations. Both China and Germany had their agency in the hands of another, another who could not care less about how they were being treated, leaving them with little power to change their countries.

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1914 – 1918

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The United Nations was very against Germany after world war one which led to their extreme debt. There are two sources in this box.

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Germany in the Treaty of Versailles 1919

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Germany in the Treaty of Versailles 1919

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At the end of WWI, the United Nations made Germany pay for everything they had done, leading them into extreme debt. It took Germany a while to get out of that debt and inflation and further led their agency to falter. The hyperinflation set Germany into a crisis and set a single US dollar to be equal to four trillion German marks, further hurting Germany's economic Agency. Agency is the lack of ability to change. Germans couldn’t change very much economically, or have a lot of agency in that department, because of the United Nations having Germany pay all their dues, and causing other nations to dislike them as well.

Treaty of Versailles. 1919. Vol. Article 235.

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“In order to enable the Allied and Associated Powers to proceed at once to the restoration of their industrial and economic life, pending the full determination of their claims, Germany shall pay in such installments and in such manner (whether in gold, commodities, ships, securities or otherwise) as the Reparation Commission may fix, during 1919, 1920 and the first four months of 1921, the equivalent of 20,000,000,000 gold marks. “ Germany was put into extreme debt and inflation and being held responsible because of the United Nations impact on them.

Reinhart and Rogoff. Germany Economic Charts. n.d. Guggenheim Investments.

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Both of these instances resulted in groups not having Agency due to other nations not wanting anything to do with them. No place wanted to help either place, and it resulted in them struggling for themselves

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“Young Alexander plundered India.

He alone?

Caesar beat the Gauls.

Was there not even a cook in his army?

Philip of Spain wept as his fleet

Was sunk and destroyed. Were there no other tears?"

A poem written from the perspective of a worker, frustrated with the lack of credit that proletariats receive. The poem resides within a book of poems, written by Bertolt Brecht. The worker questions whether main characters from history truly succeeded by themselves, or if there were a lot of background people who simply did not receive credit.  This was written in the aftermath of the Industrial revolution, where proletariat citizens were the backbone of the country’s economy, yet received no credit due to their low social status. Proletarians were the lower classes of society, mainly the ones contributing within factories workplaces. By questioning whether these “heroes” truly would have succeeded alone, Brecht conveys the lack of credit given to lower class citizens who contributed to their nation. This lack of credit led to lack of agency because they could never move up to a higher social class, and only in a higher social class could these citizens regain the wealth and status to freely life their life.  They are stuck in a cycle of poverty and labor, never able to escape either one. The system of government of the nation supported this cycle, and for that reason, the cycle never ceased.

Brecht, Bertolt. 1947. A Worker Reads History. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc.

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1939 – 1945

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Both The Last Million, or the displaced people, and the germans lost their status due to different nations. The germans lost it due all the issues they caused during the World War, and the UN made them pay. The UN caused them to lose their economic and social agency. Germany however, and other nations who were simply bystanders, caused The Last Million economic and social agency because they left them with no resources and no safe haven to go to.

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The displaced people weren't accepted anywhere and had nowhere to go

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At the end of WWII, the displaced people who were once in camps were released. The issue was they had nowhere to go and nobody accepting them into their country. “The camps in which the last million would spend the next three to five years” The millions of displaced people after WWII had nowhere to go with no identification methods and nobody accepting immigrants. “The last million were able to exert some control over their daily lives in the camps, but not over their futures” “no intention to go home again… with neither the resources nor permission nor the documents they needed to leave the camps and Germany and resettle elsewhere” They were still suffering even after the war had ended, and didn’t have a way to live comfortably for three to five years later. Because other nations didn’t care enough to help them until the United nation granted them Israel, they didn’t have much agency in their futures, as the source says, and only in their daily lives. This affected the displaced peoples social agency. They had low social agency because they had no body or home to go to, and had to live day to day without control of the rest of their life, as the source says.

Nasaw, David. “The Last Million Europes Displaced Persons from World War to Cold War,” n.d.

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1947 – 1991

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Similarly to the displaced people, Guatemala in itself became "displaced". It no longer had a democracy, no longer had a say, no longer had a voice. It was now taken over by the US, with a singular tyrant speaking for them. After Arbenz resigned, Guatemala lost its autonomy, both socially, economically, and politically.

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During the Cold War, Jacobo Arbenz, the president of Guatemala resigned after conflict arose within Guatemala. He gave a speech on June 27, 1954, publicly announcing his resignation from office. In his speech he announced that he, “[has] decided to quite power, turn the executive order to Carlos Enrique Diaz, chief of the armed forces… i ask this as my last act as governing man”. Arbenz knew that the power and influence of the US was so big and strong that there was nothing he could do to fight against their agenda. Hence the lack of agency. The US wanted someone with more capitalist views in power in Guatemala, and Arbenz did not exactly fit the bill. The US scared him out of office and replaced him with a dictator that was more aligned with their ideals. The US did this so they would have more control over the land in Guatemala. This allowed for less agency during this time. Guatemala didn’t quite have control over the geographical and economic standpoints of Guatemala because the new dictator helped the US keep control over their land and therefore United Fruit Company.

Guzmán, Jacobo Árbenz. 1954. “Arbenz’ Resignation Speech.” June 27.

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Brecht, Bertolt. 1947. A Worker Reads History. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc.

Germany Economic Charts, Reinhart and Rogoff, Guggenheim Investment

Guzmán, Jacobo Árbenz. 1954. “Arbenz’ Resignation Speech.” June 27.

Myer, H. 1898. En Chine: Le Gâteau Des Rois Et... Des Empereurs.

Nasaw, David. 2020. The Last Million : Europe’s Displaced Persons from World War to Cold War. New York: Penguin Press.

Treaty of Versailles. 1919. Vol. Article 235.