...Columbus: Hero or Conqueror? Why should we devote a day of celebration to a man who led to the systematic oppression and killings of millions of people? Columbus Day is a very popular holiday in the United States, but many people fail to understand that is based upon the maltreatment and suffering of an entire race of people. Although Columbus Day does contain some historical merit, it still celebrates a man who exploited the Native people, led an era of destruction, and did not even discover America. Columbus only caused great despair and does not deserve a day in his honor. Columbus was oppressive to the Native people and only sought to satisfy his thirst for gold. Admittedly, Columbus sparked global interactions that finally linked the “new world” to the “old world” in the form of the Columbian exchange. However, the exchange between the Americas and Eurasia had deadly consequences, leading to infectious plagues that ravaged the Americas. Furthermore, anthropologist Jack Weatherford argues that Columbus cultivated the establishment of atrocious institutions such as slavery in...
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...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....
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...1. His main purpose for writing A Peoples History of the United States is to give information in a fair way. 2. His thesis for the first 11 pages is to describe past events as they happened. 3. Columbus is portrayed in traditional books as a false hero because his discovery was accidental. HE slaughtered, abused and exploited the natives who were nice to him when he got there. 4. He thinks nobody should take the memory of the nation as their own. 5. One motive that drove Columbus to oppress indigenous peoples was Gold. It was a sign of wealth and he wanted as much of it as possible and he also wanted to find a shorter route to India. 6. Bartolome de Las Casas was originally a cpnquistador but then turned into a priest and a promoter of peace. 7. The signifigance of Powhatans statement was to show that...
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...Is Christopher Columbus a hero or a villain? Based on the documents I read, the info told me that Christopher Columbus was a hero. But I personally think that he was both. He did discover land, and traded with Indians but at the same time he did kill a lot of people, and he was not very kind to everyone. The documents that i read also showed that he was a villain and a hero, but in most of the documents it stated that he was more a hero than a villain. In document 1 the info tells me that Christopher Columbus was a hero. In his diary he was a hero because he was being nice to the native American. The native Americans came up to there boat in big canoes and brought balls of cotton, parrots, and javelins to trade with them. Most people would...
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...even now, we were always taught that Christopher Columbus was America's hero. Many people believe that, but maybe it's time to step back and look at the facts. I believe that Christopher Columbus is a villain not a hero. I'm gonna give you my insight on why I don't believe Christopher Columbus was a hero to America. Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer discovering new land for the king and queen of spain. He got money from them to sail and find the water route from Asia to Europe. He accidently landed in America thinking it was a different country. He and they Indians were friendly with each other and so on so forth took America and claimed it to be his. “Half a millennium before Columbus “discovered” America, those Viking feet may have been the first European ones to ever have touched North American soil.” (http://www.history.com/). Before...
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...My previous knowledge of Christopher Columbus was that he was the man known for discovering America and also the man to learn that the world was not flat. He was always portrayed as a hero in my eyes ever since I was a kid. Being able to learn more about him and getting to listen to these lectures and reading more about him has really opened my eyes to the true Columbus. My impressions of Christopher Columbus when I was younger was that he was a hero and one of the most important American history influencers. He was known for so many great things, little did I know he is truly a villain. He took credit for things he did not do himself. America celebrates Columbus for the only reason of when Columbus landed in the New World on October 12,...
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...Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus is best known as the one who discovered America. Christopher wasn’t just an Italian explorer, he was also a navigator, and colonizer. His “discovery” was made when he wanted to try and find an alternative way to reach India and traveled west. When he had reached what Columbus thought was India, he found himself face-to-face with Native Americans who he then named “Indians.” Many would say without Columbus we wouldn’t have America, but maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing. If Columbus had not “discovered” America, the Native American race might not have been so low. Technology probably would not be as advanced, such as in industrialization, therefore the Earth’s population could have been lower causing...
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...Is Christopher Columbus A Hero Or A Villain? Christopher Columbus is a hero and a villain. Christopher Columbus is a hero because without him discovering the Dominican Republic he wouldn't have open the gateway for exploration into the new world. The gateway for exploration in the new world was great because it brought over many things that weren't native to this land. For example Cattle, Horses, Rats, Sugar, Wheat, and etc. This gateway was called the Columbian Exchange. The Columbian Exchange didn't just bring animals and food it also brought diseases such as smallpox, Influenza, Measles. These diseases almost wiped out the Native American population, but there was another reason their population diminished but we'll get into that later. Even though I don't want to admit it without Christopher Columbus the Triangular Trade might have never happened and that would've meant slaves wouldn't have been taking from Africa and brought to the United States and that means African American people...
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...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...
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...1. In Christopher Columbus’s extracts he is described as a hero for being the first to discover the “New Land” which to me, is very admirable. Christopher spent several years to get sponsored by the Queen of Spain to sponsor his first voyage with much hope and expectations for this journey. He set sail in 1492, finding the new land and meeting the “Indians” now known as, the Native Americans. Christopher brought a few men back from the New Land, receiving gifts such as, “balls of cotton thread…and many other things such as glass beads and hawk’s bells” (Columbus). Hopeful thinking for what else Christopher could discover with more time. Thus, becoming a true Hero. 2. Las Casas views about Christopher Columbus as a hero contradicted how Columbus...
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...A hero is someone who is admired for their courage, has achieved outstanding accomplishments throughout their life or their noble qualities, such as honesty and loyalty. At an early age we were taught that Christopher Columbus was a hero, that he sailed across the Atlantic ocean and found a new world with people who were already living there. He was also considered a hero because he brought back some of the natives, and gold for the King and Queen of Spain, who sponsored his expeditions. The most prudent position for me is Columbus is not a hero, because he enslaved the natives, used violence against them, and murdered the ones who didn’t obey him. One argument that strongly supports my position on the issue of Christopher Columbus is not...
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...Christopher Columbus is one of the most controversial figures in history. While his discovery was monumentally important in the development of America as we know it, it is my belief that Columbus himself was ultimately a villain. In the process of revolutionizing the Western World, Christopher Columbus established European control of the Americas through committing unjustifiable and unforgivable atrocities. Furthermore, he committed these atrocities not with noble intentions, but rather with selfish and avaricious motives. When determining whether Christopher Columbus was a hero or villain, it is important to know his intentions in discovering and conquering America. These intentions are revealed to us through our historical knowledge of Columbus’...
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...has great history and tradition, from the Revolutionary War to the occupation of Afghanistan. When people who write about history discuss that of the United States, they often consider how eminent this country is and the great deeds other people of that country have done. Historians who write about the history of America often write about how it has had a share of great heroes from Christopher Columbus, Woodrow Wilson, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, etc.. Nevertheless, historians often seem to not remember to mention the real heroes of America like, for example, John Brown and the Native Americans. Much of the history that historians write about don't always show precision. Since many historians only write about one side of history, it only makes it worse by not revealing the factuality of history and creates an erroneous image of what really took place. Many of our nation's great leaders have been distinguished as individuals who have the best interest of the country and every action they take on behalf of the country befittingly. For instance, in the book, Lies My Teacher Told Me, by James Loewen, he writes, "Under [president] Wilson, the United States intervened in Latin America more often than at any other time in our history." (Loewen, 16). What reason did the United States have to start an intervention in countries that are diminuitive in size and population and are poverty-stricken? The only thing that the United States gained from the...
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...because it’s accepted by a majority.” Rick Warren. Christopher Columbus was an Italian born explorer who sailed from Spain with the approvement and doubts of king Ferdinand and queen Isabella in the late 1400’s in an attempt to find a water route to Asia. While his quest to find that route was unsuccessful, he did introduce Europe to a new world which was largely unknown to them prior to his voyage, and set in motion a cultural exchange that has drastically changed the future of the majority of the world. The question that is being asked Is; is Christopher Columbus a hero or a villain? A hero is someone who sacrifices for others, is admired for courageous or small acts that are relatively selfless. A Villain is an intentionally bad person, who harms others or breaks the laws, for their own benefit. When you look at the evidence, Columbus was a person who harmed others intentionally for his own benefit....
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...To some Christopher Columbus was a brave explorer who went out to the unknown and discovered new land, new people, a new world, some may even call him a hero. To me, he's better described as a greedy, destructive being. August 1492, after thirty-three days at sea, Christopher Columbus and his crew discovered new land for Spain. What they thought was Asia, was actually the Caribbean Islands. Columbus was an explorer who tried to find a shorter route to India. He'd been trying to make this exploration happen sooner but didn't have the money. Eventually, after asking many to help him with this quest, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella finally agreed. When he discovered the “Indies” he met new people. The Taino people Columbus discovered...
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