Price Of Progress Research Paper

Throughout history, the phrase “Is the price of progress worth it” has been the critical foundation of the topic of European Exploration including the perspective is it worth it if it meant total obliteration towards other civilizations. Ignition for European Exploration by British and Spanish was fueled by various purposes, such as wealth, expansion of land, the spread of the religious faith, economic opportunities, mercantilism, and more. While in treacherous exploration, Europeans endeavored an abundance of hardships, and vanquished Native American civilizations, by treating them with such cruelty and brutality, all for the price of progress. Due to the long-lasting impact of a decrease in the Native American civilization, because of European Exploration, the price of progress isn’t worth it if it means the destruction

of other civilizations because, in this instance the cost had more significance than the potential "progress".
When European explorers came to the Americas they encountered Native Americans that had already been settled in the land.

One explorer, in particular, was Hernando de Soto's expedition began in the Southwestern corner of Georgia in 1540. Although, Native Americans in the area where convivial, and shared resources like food with the Spanish, de Soto, and other Spanish conquistadors dealt with them cruelly. One of his expeditions in Alabama sparked a war with the local natives, however, they were not a match for the technologically advanced weapons the Spanish had, killing thousands of their people. Additionally, de Soto and his men were thought to be the first European peoples to discover the Mississippi River, but he soon died from a fever. Throughout the years following de Soto’s exploration, they found no riches and returned to Spain with only their lives, European disease had a major impact on the Native Americans. Over time the Native American civilization began drastically and dramatically decreasing due to the European diseases, such as measles and chickenpox, that they had no immunity to, henceforth showing this cost has a superior

value.
On the other hand, some people say that the price of progress is worth it regardless of the expense of others at stake. For example, when European Explorers, like James Oglethorpe, came to colonize Georgia, they built settlements on land that the Natives had destroying their civilization and showed no respect for them. Others will argue that throughout the years Georgia has developed economic success and stability, that wouldn’t be possible without the barbarous actions upon the natives done by the British, affecting our present-day society. Nonetheless, the work in progress of an early colony’s economy shouldn’t come before the survival of an innocent civilization. The Native Indian were all people -women, men, children, and elderly- and they deserved the utmost respect from the Europeans, instead of having to sacrifice the demolition of their entire population for exploration progress.
Ultimately, as can be seen, during Spanish exploration in the Americas, they encountered the Natives and dealt with them harshly, for the long-term goal of finding riches in the New World, overall being unsuccessful. Due to these conditions, progress didn’t occur making all of the gruesome and dastardly actions towards the Indians, not any amount measurable to have any value for development. Although the success of the early colony of Georgia began with European Exploration and included unrighteous treatment to the local natives, it’s impudent attributes serve a far more importance than the price of progression. As many have stated, “Earn your success based on service, not at the expense of others.” (H. Jackson Brown Jr.)