A fair number of people have pointed to steampunk, decrying it as a genre that encourages and glorifies imperialism.
And equally vocal amount like to ignore the cultural oppression, limitation of rights and blatant racism that is part and parcel with Victorian era London, and a lot rarely think outside Victorian era London. (A lot also completely neglect the tech and history in favor of the fashion, but that’s not the point of this post.)
I actually hail from neither of those camps, but allow me to state a firm thesis before continuing on:
I actually hail from neither of those camps, but allow me to state a firm thesis before continuing on:
Steampunk is not an opportunity to justify, glorify or ignore imperialism and its ramifications.
However.
(The following post seeks to establish a firm middle ground about imperialism in steampunk, as well elements of racism and sexism derivative of the era. If you are an angry anti-imperialist, please use your brain before responding. If you are an apologist, likewise. So long post ahoy.… WE RIDE!)
