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What did columbus describe in his letter to luis de santangel
Christopher columbus overview essay
Christopher columbus overview essay
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When Christopher Columbus set sail to discover new lands to make a name for himself, as well as bring pride back to his home land of Spain, he was aided by the royal family to complete his quest. While traveling back home to Spain after his voyage, Columbus decided to pay tribute to his sponsors by writing a letter to Luis de Santangel (who was the secretary to the royal court), explaining his exploits to the family who made his success possible. While reading this letter, I cannot help but notice how Columbus is desperately trying (and succeeding) to brag to his financial suppliers. For example, he elaborates upon the island of Espanola (which he names after Spain), bragging about how marvelous and plentiful it is. He goes on to describe the abundant trees and the fruit that they bear, the wide-open pastures that are perfect for breeding cattle and building settlements, the endless amounts of gold, and he even describes the melodic birds who are always singing their tunes. …show more content…
In reality, was Espanola really that marvelous? Everyone has their own beliefs, but conspiracists such as myself believe that Columbus is a master in exaggeration, and his tales of Espanola and the other grand islands could have all been Spanish propaganda created to instill nationalism and to dream of a perfect idea/image of a future for Spain that simply was not
The political climate in the United States has recently been very intense, all beginning with Trump and his negative remarks against the immigrant community. His most famous and derogatory words calling Mexicans rapists and drug dealers (Reilly), sparked a huge uproar in the defense of the Mexican people who have chosen to immigrate to the United States. Along his path to the presidency he has time after time belittled Mexicans and their culture. That, however, has not stopped the Mexican band, Calibre 50 from shedding light on an all too real journey and attempting to fortify their fans for a common cause. Almost a year into Trump’s presidency Calibre 50 released the music video for their song, “El Corrido de Juanito.” The music video follows the journey of a man crossing the border to which it then shows him trying to make a life for himself in the United States as a gardener and a chef. The video attempts to show what it is like to illegally
Among the many things that individuals enjoy doing with their families, visiting amusement parks is at the top of the list. Sea World is a multi-billion dollar chain of marine animal parks, aquariums, and animal theme parks. (Wikipedia) When people are watching the rehearsed performances that the animals and the trainers do, the animals and the trainers seem to be happy. Witnessing the interaction between the animals and the trainers can remind individuals of the beauty of nature and it serves as entertainment.
Love is not given, but is instead earned. From this simple concept arises the existence of the thin line between lust and love, becomes hazardous during the unstable bond and passion between Neil and Brenda in Roth’s Goodbye Columbus. The presence of greed and selfishness within Brenda, unfortunately takes a toll on the chance of a healthy relationship, and eventually foils their armour. Continuously, she denies Neil of his true identity, and slowly creates a mask for him to cover up and hide himself in shame. The life of Neil’s present is Brenda’s past, and she strives to gain his trust in order to reform his life in the similar fashion. In the end, it proven that their love for one another is not authentic, and instead is mutated into something
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.
In 1492, Christopher Columbus was a self-made man who worked his way up to being the Captain of a merchant vessel. He gained the support of the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, for an expedition to the Indies. With the support of the Spanish monarchy, he set off to find a new and faster trade route to the Indies. Upon the arrival of his first voyage, Columbus wrote a letter to Luis de Santangel, a “royal official and an early supporter of his venture,” in February 1493 (35). The epistle, letter, entitled “Letter to Luis de Santangel Regarding the First Voyage” was copied and then distributed in Spain before being translated and spread throughout Europe. The Letter is held in such regard with the people as it is considered the first printed description of the new world. Through his description of the nature of the islands, Columbus decided the future fate of the islands. His description of the vast beauty of the nature around him, declares both the economic and nationalistic motivations for colonizing the new world.
Christopher Columbus was a cruel, delusional, and self-centered man who does not deserve high praises for the discovery of America.
Published in 1493, Luis Santangel received the embellished journal of Christopher Columbus as validation for the much-promised riches in the Indies. Centered around an era of power and conquest, Columbus tapered his writings and findings to pacify his Royal sponsors for the voyage. Santangel was also one such wealthy sponsor. Although the tone of the letter was vastly hyperbolic, Christopher Columbus still managed to document the labeling of the numerous islands and its topography. Yet even the size and measurement is a bit exaggerated as well referring to one island being twice as large as that of Great Britain and Scotland. Columbus did his best to acknowledge various “thousands upon thousands” in this letter with that of spiceries and gold mines with mountains in a “thousand shapes...full of trees of a thousand kinds” as well as deeming the exotic islands incomparable to any other islands that “there could be no believing without seeing” firsthand. Colu...
Europeans saw the New World as a great, beautiful "discovery" from which they could acquire resources for their own countries. According to Christopher Columbus's "Letter to Luis de Sant' Angel," he says there are "great rivers and excellent waters" and "many mines of metals." He also makes mention of the trees, birds, fruits, and other features of the island. It can be inferred, by his descriptions of the rivers, that the Native's water was cleaner and more abundant with resources and fish than Spanish rivers. As for the "mines of metals," he later clarifies that gold, which is a very valuable resource, is one of the metals in the mines. Relationships with the Europeans started out well before soon turning sour. For example, Columbus states
My piece of non-written text is by Brooke Thiele: The Fall to a Sea Called home. In this piece she employed multiple modes of expression and feeling to question herself and her place in the world around her. The fall to a sea called home explores her life, her identity – she was taken in and adopted from Korea by a white family from Green Bay Wisconsin, but still used parts of her Korean culture to give account of her life. Through pansori a traditional Korean musical story telling form. Thiele’s version of hanbok, a traditional hand painted Korean dress, is updated with materials that reference the acid washed denim of her childhood. A second more symbolic piece is revealed under black strobe light pictures of leaves (Thiele, Haggerty museum).
In addition Columbus made deals with both the Spanish and Portuguese officials to maximums his profits from his so called Discoveries. Van sertima states that Columbus was trying to line
Although Columbus was increasing the wealth and strength of Spain, he was “a catastrophe for the indigenous inhabitants of the lands” (Belasco 67). He had no remorse for the natives as he proceeded to establish plantations, enslave them, slaughter them, and create a new colony called Espanola on their lands. According to Schuman, Howard, Barry Schwartz, and Hannah d’Arcy, Christopher Columbus “deserves condemnation for having brought slavery, disease, and death...
Although this essay is historically accurate it lacks important details, which might paint a different view of Columbus. Boorstin writes favorable of Columbus and depicts him as a heroic and determined figure who helped shape history, but he neglects to include Columbus’ unethical acts committed in the world that was not supposed to exist, the Americas. When Columbus first discovered the New World, he took care that the royal standard had been brought ashore and he claimed the land for Spain in front of all, including the indigenous population who had been sighted even before Columbus made landfall. According to the medieval concepts of natural law, only those territories that are uninhabited can become the property of the first person to discover them. Clearly this was an unethical act. Thus, the first contact between European and non-European worlds was carried out through a decidedly European prism, which ensured Spanish claim to the islands of the Americas. Faced with a colony in an inhospitable area, the Spanish soon inaugurated the practice of sending regular military parties inland to subdue the increasingly hostile natives. Members of the indigenous population were captured and enslaved to support the fledgling colony. The object of Columbus’ desire changed from exploration and trade to conquest and subjugation.
The Journal of Christopher Columbus, was the first voyage and most positive of encounters with the people of the new world the Americas. After leaving from the city of Granada on the 12th of May, 1492 sailing west with three sea vessels. On Thursday the 11th of October after encountering the heaviest seas during the voyage, they began to notice parselas and a green rush near the base of the vessels. In that afternoon the Pinta crew saw “a cane and a log; they also picked up a stick which appeared to have been carved with an iron tool” reviving their hope in the admiral. After sailing for five long discouraging months early the following morning in the distance they found themselves upon the small island of Lucayos. The
Consider the ethnicity that you identify as; how would you react if your culture or ancestors were not depicted correctly in the media? Sadly, all ethnicities have stereotypes that often shape the way that people view that certain race. Focusing on one ethnicity, Native Americans are viewed many different ways, depending on the person. Often times, the media is most responsible for creating movies or books that misinform the public about Native American values, culture, or history because of common stereotypes and the lack of knowledge about the history of Natives.
They did seem more primitive than the people of Spain because of their lack of clothing. When Columbus says, “…, and all of them I have taken possession for their highnesses,” (Brophy, pg. 383) he is saying that the people of the Canary Islands do not have the same appreciation for wealth, land, and possessions like the people of Spain do. In the letter he relays to the King and Queen of Spain how the islands look. He tells other factual information like the demographic of people on the new islands and the high population of natives he encountered. He states that the people of the islands are not that diverse, that means that physically they all share common features such as skin color and hair color. He also states factual information when he talks about the physical geographical features and climates of the new land. He talks about the mountains and sierras that exists and also talks about the harsh sun and tropical climate. He writes in his letter that the “Indians” do not wear clothes and do not have any iron weapons. He refers to the natives as Indians various times in his letter, so I think that he thought that he landed in India. I am surprised that at this point that India was not explored enough for Christopher Columbus and his crew to not realize that he was in a whole different area. At first I was surprised that he had anything positive to say about the natives who he viewed as primitive, there was various times when he referred to the natives as generous. Columbus said, “And this does not come because they are ignorant; on the contrary, they are of a very acute intelligence and are men who navigate all those seas… ” (Brophy, pg. 383), that was surprising because in certain parts of the letter it seems that he was looking down on the natives. It was surprising that he actually