Imagining Christopher Columbus, a famous navigator who explored the Americas and paved the way for European colonization, and Thomas Hobbes, a well-known philosopher known for his political theory, corresponding to each other allows for exploration between their two differing views on earthly and divine rule. Columbus, who had the ideals of the 1400s religious convictions, and Thomas Hobbes, who had the blooming ideals of the 1600s skepticism, would present contrasting perspectives on sovereignty and divinity. A conversation between Columbus and Hobbes would lead to a debate that displays the differences between the pseudo-medieval worldview and the early modern perspective. If Christopher Columbus and Thomas Hobbes could correspond with each …show more content…
The execution of King Charles I is a clear display that rulers derive their authority from the consent of the people rather than a divine right. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on Navigator Columbus. Warm Regards, Thomas Hobbes Response from Christopher Columbus to Thomas Hobbes Dear Hobbes, You are misguided as well as your words, and I hope that you will be ‘“freed [from error] and converted to our Holy Faith by love’’’ and my words (Jerusalem 265). To claim the legitimacy of sovereignty comes from a social contract among men that ignores the divine order that governs our world. God has led me and his people through our conquest and exploration, and it is his will that has allowed us to succeed, not a human agreement. Your view that God does not determine sovereignty disregards centuries of tradition and power given and willed by God. The victories of the Reconquista were clear signs of God’s favor. Our Highness “undertook the reconquest of the kingdom of Granada” with very little money and prevailed due to the workings of Our Lord (Prophecies …show more content…
Oh, how people have fallen. I hope God has mercy on those who have been misguided. I firmly remind you that divine sovereignty is essential for earthly rule, and human constructs like the social contract pale in comparison to the wisdom of God’s plan. Yours Sincerely, Christopher Columbus. Response from Thomas Hobbes to Christopher Columbus Dear Navigator Columbus, Your unwavering belief in divine sovereignty is, I fear, a broader reluctance to embrace reason and progress. The idea of divine sovereignty leads to tyranny and hinders the development of a unitary society. You speak of the Reconquista as if God had wished it, but all I saw was a series of political and military campaigns driven by human ambition. The social contract is not a weak foundation, but a natural agreement created by the people “seeking to escape the state of nature”. It holds the artificial sovereign accountable and ensures greater unity. The execution of King Charles I was a necessary step towards establishing a government where rulers are held accountable to the
Canadian history has shaped Canada's future for centuries now. Without the great explorers of their time, and maybe even our time, provinces and territories, gulfs, bays, rivers and land would be lost and undiscovered for many years. Our great country can thank many brave and brilliant explorers and their crew, for founding our name, and creating such an amazing land. Jacques Cartier, John Cabot and Henry Hudson, all managed to explore much of Canada. Through discovering the islands of Newfoundland, and Prince Edward Island to locating the Hudson Bay, these 3 explores endure Canada's harsh winters, famine, scurvy and much more, to begin the great discover of all of Canada.
Many consider Columbus a Hero, others believe he was selfish and self centered. Myint author of “Christopher Columbus: Hero or Villain?” and Ransby author of “Columbus and the Making of Historical Myth.”, are faced with the same dilemma. From a young age children are taught about Columbus and his greatness, but the books fail to document the atrocities committed in the process. Most of the books use biased language; little evidence and vague language is used to hail Columbus as a great hero. Myint provides a more objective stance, while Ransby condemns Columbus entirely. However, both suggest to consider Columbus a hero is a mistake.
Two of the readings assigned that stuck out to me were the detailed journals of famous European explorers Christopher Columbus and Samuel de Champlain. These writings discuss their observations and experiences during their explorations to the New World. “Letters of Columbus, Describing the Results of his First Voyage” by Columbus and “From the Voyages of Samuel de Champlain” by Champlain both contrast in their opinion of the worth of the New World’s lands as well as their interactions with the Natives that these explorers came across.
invincible. For though there are many of them likely, yet they were not certain. It might be sundry of the things feared might never befall; others by provident care
According to the Columbus journal he said “I ordered each man to be presented with something”(Columbus Excerpt 5). He also said “Indians found without a copper token had their hands cut off and bled to death” (Columbus Excerpt 4). So like most of the Europeans he was a two-faced hypocrite who made promises but didn’t keep them. Columbus did violent crimes in the name of Spain, He didn’t think the Native Americans were worth anything he thought they were just “Arawak men and women, naked, and full of wonder” (Columbus Excerpt 3). All so it wasn’t just the doings of Columbus people all over Europe thought that slavery was legal including
Christopher Columbus can in no way, shape, or form should be considered a hero. A hero is someone who performs good deeds for the sake of others and not for their own benefit. Christopher Columbus did not do a single good deed in any of his four voyages in the late 1400's. 1492, proved to be a good year for Spain and Columbus , but it would become known as the year of hell for the Indians who occupied the land. Columbus and his crew basically enslaved a whole race of men, women, and children. The Natives were plagued by disease and forced into labor for the sole benefit of finding gold. How can one who is suppose to stand for such democracy assume the position of such a horrible dictator?
Though Christopher Columbus and Bartolomé de Las Casas interacted with different groups of Native Americans, or Indians as they were mistakenly referred as, during different centuries, they both encountered similar experiences. Christopher Columbus, the first European to make contact with the Indians of the Bahamas, landed on an island inhabited with docile, rudimentary Native Americans who treated the explorers with hospitality instead of hostility. Christopher Columbus wrote this about the natives; “they are very simple and honest, and exceedingly liberal with all they have; none of them refusing anything he may possess when he is asked for it, but on the contrary inviting us to ask them. They exhibit great love towards all others in preference to themselves: they also give objects of great value for trifles, and content themselves with very little or nothing in return.” These natives owed the conquistadores nothing but gave generously regardless. Bartolomé de Las Casas also observed similar traits of humanity. “They have been endowed with excellent conduct…. for they are not stupid or
America is a nation that is often glorified in textbooks as a nation of freedom, yet history shows a different, more radical viewpoint. In Howard Zinn’s A People's History of the United States, we take a look at American history through a different lens, one that is not focused on glorifying our history, but giving us history through the eyes of the people. “This is a nation of inconsistencies”, as so eloquently put by Mary Elizabeth Lease highlights a nation of people who exploited and sought to keep down those who they saw as inferior, reminding us of more than just one view on a nation’s history, especially from people and a gender who have not had an easy ride. In some respects, we can attribute the founding of America and all its subsequent impacts to Christopher Columbus. Columbus, a hero in the United States, has his own holiday and we view him as the one who paved the way for America to be colonized.
For generations upon generations, students have been taught about the “hero” Christopher Columbus who had discovered our new world. However, to say he was a hero would not exactly be the truth; Columbus was an eccentric man who cared much more about his profits than the well being and even lives of the natives. It is documented in journals that he and his crew had slaughtered entire villages at a time, and that he had even killed people just for the point of testing how sharp his sword was. Not only did Columbus and his crew have a thing for violence, on multiple accounts crew members wrote down every single successful rape of women; and used the voyage to help begin a slave export for the royalty of Spain.
Thomas Paine was one of the great supporters of the American Revolution. He was a journalist and used his pen and paper to urge the public to break free from Great Brittan. He wrote anonymously, yet addressed the public as he spoke out about his beliefs. The first pamphlet he published, influencing independence from Brittan, was called Common Sense
...d said that living under John Smith’s rule was almost like living under a dictatorship. Columbus, on the contrary, made sure that his whole crew would get an equal say on how they should rule the colony. So now not only can one see how conceited John Smith was, they can also see that he was a cruel man.
American success history recognizes the contributions made by two of its renowned leaders. The two are regarded as heroes despite the obvious differences between them abound. The two figures are regarded with comparable amounts of reverence even though they lived their lives in different ways. Nevertheless, both Benjamin Franklin and Fredrick Douglas gained their status through treading pathway of hard work. This paper, therefore, seeks to discuss the experiences that shaped the lives of both Franklin and Douglas. It also seeks to analyze the life of Fredrick Douglas as presented by John Stauffer. In comparing the two personalities, I will lay much emphasis on the role education played in making better the lives of Franklin and Douglas. In this regard, it is worth noting that although their education was not that formal, it shaped their lives immensely. Franklin education, for instance, came while working under his brother James as an apprentice printer during his teen years. On the other hand, Douglas’s tale is much bleaker, but it depicts the use of wits coupled with natural talent to pull oneself to a respectable stature (Zafar 43). It is clear that Franklin persuasive rhetorical skills, which came in handy, in writing and oratory skills were natured by induction to printing apprenticeship as well as a great access to a variety of books. Critiques in later years would argue his love for books and learning made Franklin become an accomplished speaker, thinker, author, and a statement. In a nutshell, access to books and love for learning shaped Franklin’s Character to a great extent.
[2] Columbus is a mainstay of American patriotism. He is the patron saint who planted the seeds of our nation. Our culture has been lulled into his heroic myth for hundreds of years and has celebrated this man with much pomp and circumstance. Columbus’ worthiness has been the subject of much controversy and is now being linked to such un-heroic terms as mass murder, holocaust, and genocide.
Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in fourteen-hundred-ninty-two. He came over from Spain in three ships, the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria and discovered America, or at least that was what I was taught in elementary school. Since then there has been much controversy going on over the issue of weather or not Christopher Columbus really “discovered” America because when he landed in San Salvador he was not alone. Native Americans already inhabited the land and they had been there long before Columbus, but this doesn’t mean that he should be atacked stripped of his dignity.
It is crucial to understanding the theories and writings of Hobbes and Aquinas in order to understand the different theories of how man can view human natures innate or survival instincts. Through understanding how Hobbes and Aquinas’ theories contrast, one can better understand how to view natural law, and the writings of any political doctrines during their time period.