Upon reading the devastation of the Indies, it is apparent that many ailments of prejudice existed in those times of newly discovered lands and territories unchartered to the Europeans. Those of racism towards an unfamiliar people, a sense of Heathenism assumed upon the Native American civilization, and the brutal savagery demonstrated against the peaceful Native American Indians of this "new world." In the brief account from a sympathetic eyewitness, we see these horrible prejudices manifested through raids and massacrers by a foolish fleet of explorers whom fate would have to land on an unfortunate tribe far devoid of hatred and war. The role that racism plays in this historical account seems to be the foundation on which the oppression was built. Racism can be defined as one group of people claiming another to be inferior by the assumption that there is a connection between biology and culture, that the way one looks determines the way one behaves (Kennedy, lines 2-4). Based upon this definition, it is apparent that the Europeans drew many racist conclusions from the immediate appearance of the native people. The way the native people wore next to no clothing and seemed to be so in touch with nature planted thoughts of inferiority into the minds of the Europeans. The prejudices applied by the explorers ultimately lead to the enslavement and battery of the innocent Indians. Heathenism also played into the unfortunate events following Columbus’ discovery of the new world. Heathenism is a term applied to a group of people which do not follow the god of Christianity, Islam, or Judaism. The Native Americans had no prior knowledge of such religions. That is, they did not reject these teachings, they were merely ignorant to the existence of such institutions. The Europeans, who held religion in the highest regards, took great offense to this different culture and instead of spreading their gospel, condemned the natives to be godless heathens. As a result, treating them as if they were not even human, and took no mercy on the people.
To many of the English colonists, any land that was granted to them in a charter by the English Crown was theirs’, with no consideration for the natives that had already owned the land. This belittlement of Indians caused great problems for the English later on, for the natives did not care about what the Crown granted the colonists for it was not theirs’ to grant in the first place. The theory of European superiority over the Native Americans caused for any differences in the way the cultures interacted, as well as amazing social unrest between the two cultures.
The source of the first passage that I read was History of the Indies written by Bartolome de Las Casas written in 1528. Bartolome was a 16th century Spanish historian, social reformer and Dominican friar/priest, who condemned the treatment of Indians in the Spanish empire. Bartolome widely disseminated History of the Indies and helped to establish the Black Legend of Spanish cruelty (Give Me Liberty, 28). The source of the second passage that I read was the “Declaration of Josephe” which was created by Josephe on December 19, 1681, and Josephe was a Spanish-speaking Indian questioned by a royal attorney in Mexico City investigating the Pueblo Revolt, which is the revolt of the indian population, in 1680, which temporarily drove Spanish settlers out of present day New Mexico
In the fourth chapter titled “Native Reactions to the invasion of America” in the book, “Beyond 1492: Encounters in Colonial North America, the author James Axtell shares with us an essay he wrote and shared at a conference at Vanderbilt University. Historical accounts are followed beginning at the arrival of explorers and settlers until the 1700’s with various Native tribes in North America. Axtell’s goal is to educate us on the multitude of ways Native Americas reacted during various periods of colonization, and the various methods that the Native Americans perished. Axtell also educates us in his essay on the ways that Native Americans tried to ultimately prevent their extinction at any cost. Overall, the authors intent is to educate us
Through the entire article, de las Casas discusses how great the Indians of the New World are. In paragraph 2 he states: "And all the infinite universe of humanity, these people are the most guileless, the most devoid of wickedness and duplicity, the most obedient and faithful to their native masters and to the Spanish Christians whom they serve. They are by nature the most humble, patient, and peaceable, holding no grudges, free from embroilments, neither excitable nor quarrelsome. These people are the most devoid of rancors, hatreds, or desire for vengeance of any people in the world. And because they are so weak and complaisant, they are less able to endure heavy labor and soon die of no matter what malady. The sons of nobles among us, brought up in the enjoyments of life 's refinements, are no more delicate than are these Indians, even those among them who are of the lowest rank of laborers.” They are also poor people, for they not only possess little but have no desire to possess worldly goods. For this reason they are not arrogant, embittered, or
"Heathenism was treated not so much as a specifically religious defect but as one manifestation of a general refusal to measure up to proper standards, as a failure to be English or even civilized." The first encounter with and eventual poor treatment of the Native Americans was all too similar to the relationship formed between the whites and blacks in Africa. Eric Williams goes onto say: "The Indian reservoir, too, was limited, the African inexhaustible", which sounds as if he was speaking of a resource rather than groups of human beings. Interesting.
The article, “Native Reactions to the invasion of America”, is written by a well-known historian, James Axtell to inform the readers about the tragedy that took place in the Native American history. All through the article, Axtell summarizes the life of the Native Americans after Columbus acquainted America to the world. Axtell launches his essay by pointing out how Christopher Columbus’s image changed in the eyes of the public over the past century. In 1892, Columbus’s work and admirations overshadowed the tears and sorrows of the Native Americans. However, in 1992, Columbus’s undeserved limelight shifted to the Native Americans when the society rediscovered the history’s unheard voices and became much more evident about the horrific tragedy of the Natives Indians.
Axtell, James. “Native Reactions to the Invasion of North America.” Beyond 1492: Encounters in Colonial North America. New York: Oxford UP, 1992. 97-121. Print.
In A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies, Bartolomé de Las Casas vividly describes the brutality wrought on the natives in the Americas by the Europeans primarily for the purpose of proclaiming and spreading the Christian faith. Las Casas originally intended this account to reach the royal administration of Spain; however, it soon found its way into the hands of many international readers, especially after translation. Bartolomé de Las Casas illustrates an extremely graphic and grim reality to his readers using literary methods such as characterization, imagery, amplification, authorial intrusion and the invocation of providence while trying to appeal to the sympathies of his audience about such atrocities.
Cabeza de Vaca, like many other Spaniards, wanted to seek fortune in the new world, but things did not go as planned, and he eventually lost everything. Although he came to conquer in the name of Spain, he ended up living amongst the Native Americans in need for survival and became very close to them. Although originally the Spaniards were very narrow minded and believed the Indians were uncivilized and barbaric, Cabeza de Vaca shortly found out that they were not uncivilized, but quite the opposite. He saw that they were just as human as the Spaniards were and were no less than they were. His perception of humanity altered as a result of living with “the others.”
Over the course of history, there have been many different views of Native Americans, or Indians, as many have referred to them. Some have written about them in a positive and respectful manner while others have seen them as pure evil that waged war and killed innocent men, women, and children. No matter what point of view one takes, though, one thing is clear and that is if it were not for these people the early settlers would not have survived their first year in the new land now called the United States of America. In short, it is my belief that the various authors’ viewpoints are simply a reflection of the circumstances of their particular situation. Nevertheless, one question remains: Were the Native Americans good or evil people?
It is evident that the Native Americans were unfairly removed from their homeland because the Europeans settlers saw them as savages not worthy to live among them. The Native Americans responded to their cruelty with pleads of desperation. These pleads of desperation were annoyed and instead excuses of doing what’s “best” for them both proceeded.
The Europeans’ preconceived opinion about the Natives Americans had a big impact in the life of the Native Americans . Many Indians died not only because of the diseases that the Europeans carried, but the cruelty of the settlers and the brutality of slavery also contributed to the destruction of the native population. The ones that entitled themselves as Christians and grabbed about their holiness, marched through the continent expelling people from their own land, raping women and killing people. The Native American culture suffered a great loss as well “European trade goods quickly became part of Native American material culture, and their efforts to gather furs for trade for these goods altered the ecological balance in much of the New
The prevailing opinion is that European explorers came to the America’s to peacefully colonize and gradually begin mutually beneficial relationships with the native people. However, Howard Zinn proves that the majority of explorers could not coexist with the native tribes, as the conquerors slowly stole their land, and did not return the initial hospitality most of the natives had showed to them. Therefore, the European colonizers blatantly ignored the rights of the Native Americans and acted with violence towards them. In order to conquer the natives, the colonizers “set fire to the wigwams of the village” and “ [destroyed] their crops” (Zinn).
The Native Americans were the earliest and only settlers in the North American continents for more than thousands of years. Like their European counterparts, the English colonists justified the taking of their territories was because the natives were not entitled to the land because they lacked a work ethic in which shows that the colonists did not understand the Native Americans system of work and ownership of property. They believed the “Indians seemed to lack everything the English identified as civilized” (Takaki, Pg. 33). Because the settlers were living far away from civilizations, to ensure that they were civilized people, the settlers had negative images of the Native Americans so that they would not be influenced and live like the how the natives do, ensuring that these groups are savages who are uncivilized. Many began to believe this was God’s plans for them to civilize the country in which many would push westward and drive the Indians out to promote civilization and progress. While the United States was still in its early stages of development,
In Thomas King’s novel, The Inconvenient Indian, the story of North America’s history is discussed from his original viewpoint and perspective. In his first chapter, “Forgetting Columbus,” he voices his opinion about how he feel towards the way white people have told America’s history and portraying it as an adventurous tale of triumph, strength and freedom. King hunts down the evidence needed to reveal more facts on the controversial relationship between the whites and natives and how it has affected the culture of Americans. Mainly untangling the confusion between the idea of Native Americans being savages and whites constantly reigning in glory. He exposes the truth about how Native Americans were treated and how their actual stories were