Unconventional Empires In Modern Times

Empire. . . it’s a word we don’t normally hear, and commonly think of as outdated. Some prominent examples are of the Byzantines, the Inca, Holy Romans, and the Mongols. They all had supreme authority in their periods of power and expanded when it was seen fit or convenient. Over the past several centuries the use of this word has drastically decreased, seemingly indicating there are no empires left. However, we are still part of many unconventional empires.

The most prominent examples are of near-monopolies. Its dictionary definition is “the exclusive possession or control of the supply or trade in a commodity or service, ” parallel to traditional definitions of empire in terms of controlling commercial rather than geographical regions. There are many near-monopolies that people not only are a part of but also contribute to in expanding and growing more powerful. Recently, I was able to better understand and explain this unusual comparison when professor of English Rodrigo Lazo gave a lecture discussing empire and its ruins, emphasizing the role the humanities play in understanding this idea. Part of his definition of the humanities stated, “Humanistic inquiry raises questions about what happened in history…and how we can account for the present…” Essentially, I would analyze the topics discussed and observe how they persist throughout modern day society. The two ideas of empire I chose to focus on were progress and oppression.

Both ideas can easily be applied to Amazon, one of the largest e-commerce companies. It has quickly progressed since it was founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994. It is known as a near-monopoly, and is an empire of our technology-oriented society. Amazon’s success and overpowering nature which creates its imperial reputation can be viewed as a modern paradox. It began as a result of advancements in technology and was facilitated by the innovations that followed, increasing efficiency and relieving the hardship of performing tedious tasks by providing cheaper prices and quick home delivery. With it’s large variety of products and ease with which people can shop online, it dominates over other businesses, especially thriving at a time people focus more on necessity than extravagance.

Amazon’s private brands are top ranking and it argues that its far-reaching presence has allowed small business to compete with larger brands and provided them with a larger platform. This argument has the support of others such as One Click Retail CEO Spencer Millerberg who writes that it also gives other businesses opportunities to improve because "If you're going to learn strategy and best practices from anyone, why not learn from the master?" Even with the amount of support Amazon has, many more are dissatisfied with its actions and their implications arguing against the company’s defenses that it created about 900, 000 jobs in addition to making lives easier.

While Amazon sees itself as the guardian angel of brick-and-mortar businesses, most see it as a formidable power-hungry opponent that can often easily crush its opponents.