We humans tend to have very strategic communication skills, we can emphasize what we want our audience to focus on and de-emphasize what we want them to forget. For example, I was telling a friend of a contest that I had won but I left out a very important detail. The reason I had won was because the contestant who happened to be a lot better than me couldn't make it to the contest. Yet when I told the story it was in a way that showed me as the best even though that was far from the truth. One of the greatest "heroes" of all time is credited with the discovery of America, with large scaled bravery, and with spreading the message of salvation in Jesus Christ farther than anyone else. Yet very important details have been craftily omitted such as his slaughter of the indigenous people of America, his cowardice in taking advantage of a people that only treated him with kindness, and the spreading of diseases like Syphilis and Small Pox. Howard Zinn illustrates this exact point very well in his book "A People's History of the United States", stating that a picture has been painted of Columbus that shows him as pure, however, the artist has ignored his blemishes.
Zinn believes that Columbus's voyage to the Americas was one fueled by the idea of wealth and power and upon his arrival other evils such as the idea of slavery, exploitation, and murder penetrated his heart. Armed with Columbus's journals and Bartolome Las Casas's texts Zinn proves the cruelty that possessed Columbus, Zinn quotes Columbus's journal which states "They would make fine servants...With fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want." Zinn believes that Columbus's life and actions have been ridiculously romanticized and that America has been celebrating the life of a mass murderer comparable to Hitler and Stalin. He states that historians have been telling the sweet little tale about Columbus sailing the ocean blue in 1492 but have been ignoring the true nature of this supposed Christian man. "He does not omit the story of mass murder..." says Zinn on Morrison ."..on one page, buried halfway into the telling of a grand romance... He mentions the truth (about Columbus committing genocide) quickly and goes on to other things more important to him." In other words, Morison tells the truth but then conceals it, in order to provide a faux placidity that diverts the reader from the horrid reality of Columbus's actions .
Justified by the fact that we need to modify the story to make them seem much better and greater than they seem to be in actuality. Examples of this are from some media sources like movies and books. Titanic being a prime example of this, the titanic was a real event but the love story was a modified addition that was added to keep the movie interesting. This is the twisted truth, a term used to actual factual people but fictional events that occur with them. This is add interest to the person or the event by adding something that did not occur on that day or during the event. Historical figures are greatly Exaggerated with that common miss conception that makes them seem a lot better than most people. This is not true though historical figures are just like normal people but are greatly exaggerated because of the events they are associated
Ransby believes “Columbus 's image has been scrubbed clean and sanitized by many generations of American historians so that he can now be offered up as a sterling example of the glorious era of discovery.” (Ransby, 1992/2015, p.14). Objective evidence is also a major component in this article. Columbus’s journal proved he wanted to exploit, and enslave the Indians. A population of 300,000 dwindled to a mere one by 1540. (Ransby, 1992/2015, p.12). Many scene of rape, murder and beating were also described in journals of sailors that travelled with
The controversy of whether or not Christopher Columbus should continue to be acknowledged by a federal holiday proves that his legacy has not escaped the scrutiny of history. Arguments born of both sides of the controversy stem from issues such as genocide, racism, multiculturalism, geographical land rights, and the superiority of certain cultures over others. In The Christopher Columbus Controversy: Western Civilization vs. Primitivism, Michael Berliner, Ph.D. declares that recognition of Columbus Day is well-deserved, claiming that Western civilization is superior to all other cultures and Columbus personifies this truth. On the contrary, Jack Weatherford's Examining the Reputation of Christopher Columbus equates Columbus' so-called discovery with brutal genocide and the destruction of ancient sophisticated civilizations. These articles demonstrate two extreme points of view in a manner that makes clear each authors' goals, leading the reader to consider issues of author bias, motivation, and information validity.
Despite being one of the most renowned explorers in history, Christopher Columbus’ legacy remains controversial. The debate on whether Columbus should be celebrated has captured news headlines for decades. While many view him simply as a gifted Italian navigator who laid the seeds for the colonization of the New World, history paints a much more complicated picture. His journal entries and eye-witness testimony reveal Columbus to be a man of intolerance and indifference towards those deemed inferior to himself. Christopher Columbus’ treatment of Indigenous’ people, in addition to his ethnocentric worldview, allows for the conclusion that he should not be idolized as a hero in the modern age.
Along the Columbus journey bits of gold were found amongst the Native Indians which led to Columbus concluding that there was more (Zinn, 2009, p.481). The Native’s were turned into servants looking for a certain amount of gold for Columbus. If they had not met the daily quota their arms were to be cut off (Zinn, 2009, p.481). This is just part of the brutality that Columbus had put upon the Natives. More cruelty can be seen when Columbus sent five hundred Natives as slaves to the King and Queen in Spain. Also stabbing of Indians was done as a sport and those that resisted against the Spaniards were hunted down as animals (Zinn, 2009, p.482). Zinn shows that the Columbus story is one of the many myths of Western civilization. All the stories about Columbus especially in the USA since, it is a celebration are seen as a heroic adventure. However, many teachers argue that children should not be told such a violent story filled with horrific history (Zinn, 2009, p.485). It is important to teach children at a young age the truth about the Columbus story, so that they know what a monster he
However, people tend to forget the other side of Columbus, the side that lusted after gold and resources that often belonged to the native inhabitants he came across in his exploration. In his insatiable greed, he and his crew committed countless atrocities, such as torture and killing of defenseless natives. Columbus’s discovery of these new lands has profound and negative effects as future colonists arrive. “Zinn estimates that perhaps 3 million people perished in the Caribbean alone from raids, forced labor and disease” (Zinn, 1980). Columbus was seen as a cruel man, who saw the peaceful inhabitants as right for the conquering and lead to the devastation of the native population, yet is celebrated every October.
For more than five centuries Americans have lifted Christopher Columbus to heights of greatness and god-like. We celebrate his life as though he was a man that had done us a great favor. In resent years Christopher Columbus has come under scrutiny, his life and works being questioned more than celebrated. There have be many great men and women that contributed to the building of our great nation but they do not receive anywhere as much recognition as Columbus. When a person begins to study the actual accounts of the "finding of the New World" they begin to wonder if Columbus should adored or hated for his actions. As a child I was taught that Columbus was a great man that had accomplished great things for the sake of humanity, but in reality his agenda was not to better humanity but to better himself. He found the Americas by mere chance and he did not even know of what he found. We give him credit for "finding" the Americas but history tells of the people, that he called Indians, already inhabiting the foreign land. So you decide whether or not Christopher Columbus should be revered a hero.
“In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue” is the popular childhood rhyme taught in schools to commemorate the founding of a nation. Rivalry with Portugal and their extensive travels, the printing press and its countless maps, and the longing for cheaper products from Asia set the stage for risk. In August of 1492, Columbus packed up his three ships, the Nina, the
I didn?t know much about Columbus, but when it was taught to us as a class, which was rarely, the lessons were brief and covered only the ?positive? things that he did. That is, from the eyes of those who believe Columbus was a noble man. It wasn?t until 6th grade when my teacher showed my class the book Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong by James W. Loewen that we opened our eyes and saw reality. We had been deceived. Deceived by videos. Deceived by books. Deceived by teachers. But at least it felt good to know the truth-finally.
In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue. However, even after centuries later, little is truly known of the mysterious voyage and findings of the new world.1 By examining “Letter from Columbus to Luis Santangel”, one can further contextualize the events of Columbus' exploration of the New World. The letter uncovers Columbus' subtle hints of his true intentions and exposes his exaggerated tone that catered to his lavish demands with Spain. Likewise, The Columbian Voyage Map read in accordance with the letter helps the reader track Columbus' first, second, third, and fourth voyage to the New World carefully and conveniently. Thus, the letter and map's rarity and description render invaluable insight into Columbus' intentionality of the New World and its indigenous inhabitants.
[2] Columbus is a mainstay of American patriotism. He is the patron saint who planted the seeds of our nation. Our culture has been lulled into his heroic myth for hundreds of years and has celebrated this man with much pomp and circumstance. Columbus’ worthiness has been the subject of much controversy and is now being linked to such un-heroic terms as mass murder, holocaust, and genocide.
Howard Zinn’s main point in chapter one of A People’s History of the United States is that history is more accurate through the eyes of the oppressed. Zinn states that choosing to ignore the oppressed in history is “...more than technical, it is ideological” (Zinn 5). This is because in not paying attention to the subdued, one also chooses to ignore the majority of history. If the champion is the only one who gets to tell the story it is more often than not missing key details and glorified in favor of the oppressor. An example of this is Columbus’ descriptions of the Arawak people. He describes them as ignorant, naive, and even compares them to animals. In reality the Arawaks were a developed people with advanced laws and traditions. Also
Howard Zinn writes from the perspective of the minorities who whites mistreated while Larry Schweikart and Michael Allen write from the more traditionally historical perspective, that of the explorers and settlers. Zinn dives deep into the injustice of the way whites treated minorities while Schweikart and Allen opt to equally explain both points of view. Neither author writes a more correct book and people need both sides to completely understand the history of the United States. Zinn sets out to give a voice to those minorities who historians often glaze over. He attempts to shock the reader with the harsh reality of what transpired in the early days of America’s settlement. Zinn effectively backs up his information with credible primary and secondary sources about the time period, including writings from Columbus himself. The perspective he takes helps to illuminate the unfairness, and some may argue evil, of early American history. However, Zinn focuses primarily on the negative aspects of exploration and rarely mentions the good things Englishmen did, or the positives to their exploration. Schweikart and Allen attempt to balance the perspective of American history in their book. They, also, provide evidence from history to support their claims, and use facts to argue their point. They focus on
Among the many flaws American history textbooks have, one that stands out above the rest is heroification. Heroification is, according to Loewen "A generative process that makes people over into heroes.”(pg.19) Through heroification national heroes such as Christopher Columbus are always portrayed as perfect individuals, with only the best intentions and absolutely no flaws. Textbooks use heroification to inspire, and instate a sense of national pride in students. Though it may instate a sense of national pride in students, it does not present the truth. Heroification leaves out important details of these "heroes" lives, and only presents trivial melodramatic details. By doing this students will never really fully understand why our "heroes" did what they did, and will never know the truth.
King brings up the truth about the vicious captains that are famous for exploring and finding North America. The main idea of his first chapter is simply within the title, Forgetting Columbus. King conveys the reasons why Americans need to forget the stories which they were once told, in order to expose themselves to the unfortunate truths before 1985. For instance, King critiques how whites took pride in massacring Natives in large numbers. Most people have heard about the conspiracy about Columbus mass murdering Natives to get them to comprehend and