Why We Should Rethink The Columbus Legacy
Howard Zinn’s point on how we regard on how we teach and learn about Columbus is that the historians only focus on one criteria on how Columbus had found this land but didn’t focus on the crueler facts that the Arawaks faced, like how they were enslaved to work for the Spaniards. Howard Zinn thinks that we should rethink the Columbus Legacy and it’s implications for the present and future because of the factors that the historians didn’t put in their teachings and books.
In History textbooks, Christopher Columbus is known for the man who founded North America. Which is technically not true since the Arawaks were already there. In the textbooks, they usually only point out the good things about Columbus, not how he acted or the actions he
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Not only to show just their perspective, but to show the facts that were revealed by the experiences from their side and not the Spaniards. A quote from Chapter 1, “If history is to be creative, to anticipate a possible future without denying the past, it should, I believe, emphasize new possibilities by disclosing those hidden episodes of the past when, even if in brief flashes, people showed their ability to resist, to join together, occasionally to win” (Zinn 8). This quote tells us how Zinn wants history to reflect on our human actions as a country. Zinn doesn’t want to go on in the future and have future possibilities without the knowledge of the past.
Many historians and textbooks argue that Christopher Columbus should be celebrated for his accomplishment, of finding new lands. A quote from the text,“When we read the history books given to children in the United States, it all starts with heroic adventure-there is no bloodshed-and Columbus Day is a celebration” (Zinn 5). With this in mind Zinn had made an argument as to how this was wrong. That there was
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The quote from the text, “‘The cruel policy initiated by Columbus and pursued by his successors resulted in complete genocide.’... But there was no flaw, no dark side to the most outstanding and essential of all his qualities-his seamanship” (Zinn 6). This argues Zinn on how he says that historians did not focus on reality of what happened back then, but Samuel Morison did tell what was happening during that
Point Of View In Zinn's Honoring Christopher Columbus
168 Words | 1 PagesIn the book Zinn, The author gives a point of view of Christopher Columbus that is usually not given. Most of the time the story of Christopher Columbus is told from a historian point of view. They usually tell you of his mission, and of the three ships that he takes in order to find gold and other new riches. Zinn informs us that he is not the hero that, that we all think that he is. It shows us that he tortured, abused, and overwhelmingly embarrasses the Arwark Indians.
Christopher Columbus: Hero Or Villain
87 Words | 1 PagesChristopher Columbus is a man who is known in society simultaneously as a hero and a villain of his time. What if the world had to pick only one, what would it be? Many new studies and scholars believe that Columbus was the villain of his story not a hero as past information would lead us to believe. Past documents were all written from the Europe’s point of view, this would lead to extremely biased documents because Europe was the side to profit unlike the Native
Howard Zinn History Is The Memory Of States Sparknotes
2095 Words | 9 PagesThe viewpoint is wrong because it is written from the the point of view of the upper class and ignores millions Howard Zinn shows of the whole columbus not just the european side of history of him. We see the slatter not just the glory we see the human toll not just the conquest. We see the colonisation of the Americas and all the blood that was shredded for it. Columbus was even quoted in saying as soon as he got of the ship he was forcing the natives to tell him what they had and to give him all of their possessions. Howard zinn says history books as an explorer and the cause one of the world's worst genocides in history.
Compare And Contrast Zinn Vs Schweikart
944 Words | 4 PagesThe first chapter of both APeople’s History of the United States (Zinn, 1980) andA Patriot’s History of the United States(Schweikart and Allen, 2004) tells the story of the discovery of the New World. Beginning with the landing of Columbus in the Bahamas, these accounts are told from two separate perspectives. Zinn often refers to the telling of history as a tale between victims and executioners, saying that in the “inevitable taking of sides which comes from selection and emphasis in History” he prefers to stand on the side of the victim, whereas Schweikart and Allen tend to stand behind the executioner. Much of APatriot’s Historyis spent arguing the accuracy of the number of natives murdered by invading European entities, attempting to minimize the blame reflected on these executioners.
Christopher Columbus Historiography Analysis
749 Words | 3 PagesLoewen argues, “The authors of history textbooks have taken us on a trip of their own, away from the facts of history, into the realm of myth.” As historical events regress further into the past, writers may misinterpret facts that they may have studied. A story of discovery and friendship or a tale of conquest, murder, and greed, which of these are Christopher Columbus’ true stories? I believe the best method to teach American high school students about Christopher Columbus’ story is through historiography because historiography teaches students to compare and distinguish different outlooks from different writers’ point of views instead of just remembering misinterpreted facts. Historiography would guide and force students to study and learn history through a diverse set of historians who focused on the same subject and come to different conclusions.
Christopher Columbus: A True Hero
1068 Words | 5 Pages“The US honors 2 people with holidays bearing their names. Martin Luther King Jr, who gave his life combatting the legacy of slavery, and Christopher Columbus, who initiated it in the first place. (Yewell, Dodge, DeSirey 11)”. Christopher Columbus, often known as a brave adventurer, was actually a perpetrator of genocide. Columbus Day should not be celebrated because of the horrendous behavior Columbus showed off, between the atrocities committed against the Natives and the greed he possessed shows that he is not in fact a hero, but instead a villain.
James Loewen Herofication Chapter Summaries
783 Words | 4 PagesIn this chapter James Loewen approaches “Herofication” in history as a sense of idolization and false misinterpretation of figures in history. Loewen throughout the chapter surrounds the making of heroes, in which he describes as a degenerative process. He explains that “heroes” are shaped and built up and taught in the classroom most times leaving out and belittling other heroes even when having extensive backgrounds. The chapter ties back to what he believes the textbooks got wrong, he compares to notable figures in history, Helen Keller and President Wilson and how they are depicted. Loewen argues that text books fail to show the relationship between a hero and a person instead they give highlights of the “hero” and don’t give a full
Argumentative Essay: Is Christopher Columbus Worth Honoring?
215 Words | 1 PagesWhen I was younger I was under the impression that Christopher Columbus was a great man and that he discovered America. We celebrate Columbus day because we honor him for “discovering America”. From this new information that I have learned today, Christopher Columbus is not the man iv have been taught about.
Why Do We Celebrate Columbus Day Essay
823 Words | 4 PagesFinally, we should celebrate Columbus Day because he brought value to America. When I say "value" I mean he made America worth something. Not money-wise but more livable through goods and services for citizens here in America. Basically the "west Indies" people lived off natural resources and made shelter from their surroundings. When Christopher Columbus arrived he made businesses for people who wanted to work, and he made trade markets for people who wanted to buy goods from the old world such as jewelry, jewels, spices, perfume, etc; only the wealthy bought such items.
Columbus And The First Thanksgiving Summary
841 Words | 4 PagesAccording to Loewen, few textbooks explained how Columbus was involved in the slavery and the exploitation of Indians. Another error that we have learned in schools about Columbus is that he was the first person to “discover” America. However, this is an error because people from other continents had already reached America before 1492. In fact, we forget
Christopher Columbus's Negative Impact On The World
503 Words | 3 PagesSome say Christopher Columbus was a hero because he was the explorer that discovered America. In reality, Christopher Columbus had an incredibly negative impact on the world because he enslaved the Native Americans, didn’t help the kind Natives when they got infected by diseases that the Spaniards had brought to America, and killed off most of the Native American population. The tactics he chose to use were violent and destructive by the standards back then and now. First, Columbus treated the Native Americans like uncivilized people by enslaving them and forcing them to work for him although they greeted him and his crew peacefully. ” They could make fine servants,”(document 2) he wrote in his journal,”I took them by force.
Howard Zinn's The Cruelty Of Christopher Columbus
455 Words | 2 PagesHoward Zinn takes the perspective that Christopher Columbus is not the hero that many people perceive him to be. He views him as a cruel and greedy leader who went to the Americas causes death in his wake for his unquenchable search for gold. Columbus took advantage of the Native Americans because at first they were "so naive and so free with their possessions"() by forcing them to collect gold for him else face the punishment of death. While Columbus may or may have not been as heartless as he is made out to be, he is not truly the one to blame for the harsh treatment of the natives on the Caribbean Islands. Almost every other European (at that time) that could have been in his position would have undoubtedly done the same things as Columbus.
Essay About Christopher Columbus
447 Words | 2 PagesI could see how some people might still get upset over celebrating the holiday. According to our textbook, Columbus was convinced he was “an agent of God’s divine plan”. He also left about forty men on Hispaniola and captured a dozen Indians to present as gifts to the Spanish King and Queen. President Benjamin Harrison first declared Columbus Day a national holiday in 1892, four hundred years after the first voyage.
Argumentative Essay Outline Of Columbus
469 Words | 2 PagesArgumentative Essay Outline I. Claim: Celebration of Columbus Day should be abolished due to Columbus’ harsh treatment toward the Native Americans and fallacies in his exploration. II. Sub-Claims: A) Reason: Columbus’ exploration was not meant to discover America but to conquer and exploit existed American civilizations.
Analysis Of Columbus The Indians And Human Progress
251 Words | 2 Pages“Columbus, the Indians, and Human Progress”, chapter one of “A People’s History of the United States”, written by professor and historian Howard Zinn, concentrates on a different perspective of major events in American history. It begins with the native Bahamian tribe of Arawaks welcoming the Spanish to their shores with gifts and kindness, only then for the reader to be disturbed by a log from Columbus himself – “They willingly traded everything they owned… They would make fine servants… With fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want.” (Zinn pg.1) In the work, Zinn continues explaining the unnecessary evils Columbus and his men committed unto the unsuspecting natives.
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