...On October 20th 1492, Christopher Columbus and what will become the Spanish empire landed on a shore they have never seen in search for a shorter route to Asia. Only, this shore was the in the Bahamas, and the two worlds that had been separated for all of history had now been connected. Throughout nearly the next 200 years, the New World would be changed and in the Spanish minds at the time, for the better. However, those that were not Spanish and the good Catholic they held so highly in their society, this world was no longer home. This severe change has come through the use of an iconic Spanish greed. The term iconic Spanish greed is used to explain the values in their socioeconomic society which had three main categories: gold, God and glory;...
Words: 999 - Pages: 4
...fourteen hundred ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue,” is the beginning of one of history's greatest fabrications. Columbus is portrayed today as a gentleman and an individual who brought prosperity to the new world. A hero is someone who possesses selflessness, humility, and integrity. Christopher Columbus was without a doubt a brave and talented explorer; however, the goal of his voyages were not to discover America or to prove that the world was round or to discover the New World. These theories were proven over 200 years ago by the philosopher Aristotle and the New World was first reached by Leif Erikson 500 years before Columbus. Columbus was only sailing in the interest of finding gold. He was a greedy dictator, exploiting...
Words: 970 - Pages: 4
...Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa Italy, to the son of a weaver. He quickly took to sea in his teens and he started to sail, but on his first trip he was attacked by French privateers off the coast of Portugal. To escape the privateers, he jumped ship and swam to shore, eventually marrying his wife there. He continued to sail around the world, and in the late 1400’s he wanted to find a better route to Asia. He first approached Genoa, then Venice and finally struck a deal with Isabella of Castille and Ferdinand of Aragaon. They funded him and he set off for America. He had three voyages there, and recorded most of it in his journal. Columbus Day is a US National holiday celebrating Christopher Columbus’ ‘discovery’ of America I don’t think that the US celebrate Columbus Day as a national holiday because of how Columbus treated the Native Americans. To prove to Isabella and Ferdinand that the journey to the New World would be profitable “He rounds up 1600 Taínos-- the same people he had earlier described as ‘so full of love and without greed’. Some 550 them -- ‘among the best males and females,’ writes colonist Michele de Cuneo -- and chained and taken to ships to be sent to...
Words: 482 - Pages: 2
...Zheng He vs. Christopher Columbus When you hear the name Christopher Columbus the first thing that probably comes to your mind is that he was the one who founded America. However, if you actually do some research you will find out that he wasn’t the only one. Evidence shows that there was another man who discovered America seventy years before, Zheng He. He was a Chinese admiral during the Ming Dynasty, who also served as the Ming Dynasty Emperor and leader of seven voyages in the Indian Ocean. Christopher Columbus and Zheng He were both great travelers with great differences in their journey. Columbus’ story is one of great greed and domination while Zheng’s however one of a more noble cause. Very rarely, does the name Zheng He ever come up unless you’re in China. But he was a very important traveler in the world of discovery and he predates many of the more famous explorers. The purpose of his travel and explorations was to display the power of China while also creating better relations with other nations and setting up trade agreements in different parts of the world. One of the things that Zheng He’s voyages are known for is the size of the fleets that he commanded. In all, there were seven voyages headed up by Zheng He, including voyages to East Africa, India, and Arabia. Zheng He and his expedition exemplified the highest level of ancient Chinese propriety in terms of foreign trade. Zheng’s voyage stimulated and inspired the development of overseas trade....
Words: 767 - Pages: 4
...Columbus: Hero or Villain As children we learned that Christopher Columbus was a hero, the discoverer of America. Was he? Perhaps he found a land that had not yet been discovered by Europeans, and bought about trades we know of today, but is that enough to be deemed a hero? He has been acknowledged as the man who discovered the world was round, yet “the Greeks knew, five hundred years before Christ, that the world is a sphere”. (Koning 29) So why was he continually credited for discoveries others made before him? To learn about the real Columbus we must look at all accounts regarding his travels, his contributions and most importantly his downfalls. Many people believed Christopher Columbus to have had good intentions, yet in fact, he was deceitful, murderous, and an enslaver of the people inhabiting the so called New World. Christopher Columbus was born Cristoforo Colombo to a merchant and his wife in Genoa. He was a seaman and a chart maker, but he enjoyed being at sea the most. He married and had a son. When his first wife died, he had another son with a mistress. He was looking for funding to set sail on the Atlantic. The year was 1492 when Columbus was finally ready to sail in search of new lands. He had tried several times to get funding for his voyages and it wasn’t until early in 1492 that he received all that he wanted and needed to prepare for his voyage. Despite the uncertainty they felt regarding Columbus achieving his goal of traveling west and finding new...
Words: 1456 - Pages: 6
...Christopher Columbus was a villain because he was motivated by greed, spread disease, and was a slaver. Christopher Columbus was motivated by greed. Columbus wanted to be rich beyond belief. Columbus wanted to have someone besides himself put up the money for his trips across the Atlantic. Columbus made the people of the village (his slaves of the new world) mine his gold to take back to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. Columbus stole the gold from the natives to bring back to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. Christopher Columbus spread diseases across the new land that the Indians had never seen before. Columbus spread Malaria, Mumps, he also spread the deadly Whooping Cough. The natives had no idea on how to fight these deadly and painful diseases so these diseases wiped out every 1 in 3 natives. Christopher Columbus was a slaver. He forced the natives to mine gold for him . He made his sea crew work when they wanted to go back. He made the women of the village do “ACTS” for him. He stole the gold from the natives....
Words: 291 - Pages: 2
...Christopher Columbus: “Hero or Villain?” While many schoolbooks present Christopher Columbus as the famous Italian explorer who discovered America, history has painted a much more complicated picture. For a long time people are arguing was Christopher Columbus actually a hero or a villain? Was the man from Genoa a brave explorer or greedy invader? A gifted navigator or reckless adventurer? The man who laid the foundation for that most glittering daughter of the Western heritage: America is definitely a hero. Christopher Columbus was one of the greatest sailors and explorers of all time; in present time and in the past he represents a hero for the people. “He had made great proficiency in geography, astronomy and drawing, as they were necessary...
Words: 657 - Pages: 3
...Aaron Self Professor Buchholtz ANTH 213 10 October 2012 Columbus Day When I think of Columbus Day, thoughts of childhood appear in my mind before anything else. Spending the day watching parades and hanging out with my friends instead of being at school was always something to look forward to. The romanticized image of who Christopher Columbus was is usually the second thing that arises in my consciousness. In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue, discovery the Americas and paving the way for this great nation to be created. At least that’s what I was taught in elementary and middle school. Now that I am older however, Christopher Columbus doesn’t sound like the hero he used to be. The fact that we celebrate a national holiday in his honor, when a majority of people don’t have a correct impression of him, strikes me as contradictory. This man deserves a day named after him, but doesn’t deserve correct education on his actions and legacy. The correlation between Columbus Day and Christopher Columbus is skewed by relating Columbus with the ideas of patriotism, and national pride. In reality the discovery of America was important, but Christopher Columbus himself should not be celebrated as a figure because of this. The main issues regarding the celebratory image of Christopher Columbus are the common misconceptions of him and his explorations. Firstly he didn’t even discover the Americas. The first written account of westward exploration and discovery was documented by...
Words: 583 - Pages: 3
...1 Journal of Christopher Columbus’s First Voyage Christopher Columbus began his journey on May 12th, 1492 where he traveled to port of Palos where he prepared 3 vessels, well equipped with provisions and crew. On August 3rd he began his sailing with the purpose of reaching the Indies to carry out Your Majesties’ orders. As he traveled he proposed to himself to write his experience with every detail he remembered. As Columbus and his men traveled, he had to reprimand the crew because they let the ship fall off a point and some days later they saw a bolt of fire fall from the sky into the sea which caused the crew to get disturbed and depressed feeling that they took a very dangerous course. As they continued the course the saw rafts of weed in the distance which caused Columbus’s men to be afraid, after they passed them, the fear reduced. The next day, they saw a large number of dolphins which came from the west. Columbus says “where I trust that the great God in whose had all victory lies will give us a landfall.”, in which he expresses his confidence in God being the most powerful and who has the control of what will happen next, which he expects to be good. Also he saw tropical birds, which he knows don’t spend the night at sea. A couple days later, Columbus had their exact coordinates and gave his men the lower figure to encourage them. The further they sailed from Spain, the more they believed they were sailing into a new world from which they would not be able to go back...
Words: 1094 - Pages: 5
...driving force for all cultures can be summed up by one simple word, and that word is greed. Many of the countries that had power at the time were greedy savages and all they wanted was more land and power. Countries that were powerful at the time were Spain, Portugal, Japan, and others. Also in the countries the governing body of them had their way or the highway they did not care what had to be done or who had to be killed. If the ruler of a certain country did not like something they did not care what had to be done to stop it. Powerful countries at the time such as Spain and Portugal only cared about power and one word that sums them up is greed. During the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth century Spain was one of the most powerful countries. When Columbus set sail in 1492, he founded the Americas and all that came with the, such as gold spices, and other expenses, this is how Spain became extremely rich and powerful. This land that Columbus founded was known as the New World. It is described by Michel de Montaigne in Of Cannibals " New World so lately discovered: for that almost touched upon Spain, and it were an incredible effect of an inundation, to have tumbled back so prodigious a mass, above twelve hundred leagues." Columbus was known for founding the Americas, the truth was he set sail for the Indies. When he landed in the America's he thought it was the Indies. As Columbus wrote in his letter to the King and Queen he said " As I know you will be rejoiced...
Words: 1525 - Pages: 7
...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.” -Bartolome de las Casas, on the Taíno Indians Christopher Columbus was the unofficial dictator of the Native American people during a genocide which killed about 12 million people. He began his quest by leaving Europe and going out to explore and find a “New World” - exploring the Caribbean islands. Columbus and his Spanish soldiers ended up torturing and murdering anyone and everyone who did not do exactly what they said, especially a subgroup of Native Americans - the Taíno Indians. Columbus claimed to be exploring and learning about culture, but was instead using the Taíno people for his own personal gain.Unfortunately, many people have been tricked into the lie of Christopher Columbus becoming a hero for discovering the Americas. However, in a display of greed, vanity and efforts to force Christian conversions, Christopher Columbus imprisoned, tortured, and brutally murdered the Taíno people for his own personal benefit....
Words: 566 - Pages: 3
... It is time, at last to speak the unforgiving truth about the settlers coming to America. What would you say is the significance of the Europeans coming to America? Well, there isn't much once seen the mast destruction and harm done. Our nation and economy being shaped by greed does not excuse Columbus, and account for the many lives lost. There are many immoral things to be addressed, but the few that must be, are the great gift of imported diseases brought all the way from lovely Europe to the Western Hemisphere, the horrific and sadistic torture and killing done to the Native Americans, and the impact of the settler’s destruction. First and foremost, the issue being addressed is the importing of diseases from Europe to the Western Hemisphere. Columbus and his settler’s managed to spread syphilis, gonorrhea and smallpox to the Western Hemisphere which in return killed many Native Americans. At the time these diseases were incurable, and so leaving the infected to perish painfully. These diseases, syphilis and gonorrhea originated primarily from food and water which was contaminated with fecal matter, and also caused by unsanitary habits-like the lack of bathing. Smallpox was different due to Columbus purposely infecting the Native American’s Pillow, and blankets. This was intentional and this was murder. In addition to, as if diseases weren’t enough, the Native Americans were killed, maimed, tortured, enslaved, imprisoned, sexually molested, taken away from their families...
Words: 633 - Pages: 3
...Nichole Oliver Professor Scott ENG-ENF 3/III April 23, 2016 We Should Abolish Columbus Day Only two federal holidays in the United States bear the name of two specific men, ironically one of them fought racism -- Martin Luther King Jr., and the other was a genocidal racist – Chistopher Columbus. Opposition to Columbus Day (observed on the second Monday of October) has intensified in recent decades, while the former passes each year with relatively little controversy. The issue of if we should still celebrate Columbus Day is widely discussed. The topic remains important because it concerns fundamental moral and economic questions related to the origin of how Christopher Columbus got his recognition. In my essay I will touch on the ongoing debate of if we should erase Columbus Day as one of our federal holidays. As our young minds are still developing and processing information of our history, which hopefully holds an importance to the American citizens of this great nation, there is a poem taught to children about our history. How does the saying go? Ah, yes! In fourteen hundred ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue… We are taught that Columbus is viewed a valiant adventurer that opened up the worlds eyes by discovering the Americas; on the contrary, he is perceived a symbol of slavery and genocide. His trip to America is often claimed as a voyage of bravery in his attempts to discover new lands and did however lead to the permanent colonization, settlement, political...
Words: 1389 - Pages: 6
...Christopher Columbus deserves acclaim for his accomplishments in breaking down the Western Hemisphere’s isolation from the rest of the world. Although famous for accidently finding the Americas, his stubbornness and tenacity that allowed him to persevere were the real reasons that made him famous. He was a capitalist, pure and simple who desired fame and fortune and traveled to talk with any head of state that he could gain an audience with. In 1485, some seven years before his historic voyage he tried to persuade the Portuguese to back his plan but was rejected because his calculations were not concrete. He then traveled to Spain and gained and audience with the Catholic Monarchs Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon....
Words: 309 - Pages: 2
...Columbus day has been celebrated for hundreds of years without dispute. Columbus is responsible for the world we know today, but is it really worth the millions of lives that were lost? Numerous islands were depopulated and their fertile land wasted, and all this because of our so called “Hero”, Christopher Columbus. All across America people are starting to realize that Columbus was not such a great man and those people want Columbus day dropped as a holiday or the name changed. It should be dropped altogether. rename it to something like “Indigenous peoples day” or even “Exploration day. His exploration was responsible for the lives of millions of indigenous people being lost. But while many lives were lost when the indigenous peoples were taken back to Europe, Horses, written language, and religion were brought to The natives.(Text 2 Paragraph 2) These things allowed the natives to not only survive but to thrive.These things are the reason that the natives were so powerful. With the horses and guns the natives could chase much larger game and not only could they catch it, they...
Words: 598 - Pages: 3
