Chapter 3 of the book Approaching the Other: the Four Projects of Western Domination. The systematic endeavour of colonialism was criticised since the 15th century. The chapter charts some of the ways of the critique, and discusses the reasonings through which the critique has usually turned into advocacy for the colonial project. Evolution of the idea of progress is traced and its implication for legitimacy of colonial rule is stressed. inspired by the critical analyses of the colonial discourse, provides the discusion of ideas, emanating from Europe, that inspired the ambitious and concerned effort to change the non-European spaces and their societies. Introductory discussion of the terms colonization, colonialism, and imperialism is followed by a discussion of the motives for voyages of exploration. Then several attempts at typology of colonies are presented to support the claim that colonialism was informed beside common assumptions also by politically different discourses. It is illustrated on the example of the British and the French colonial projects. Impact of the European perception of colonized peoples on the evolution of European and Western identity is discussed in the final section of the chapter.