Colonization – Economic vs Religious Views
Part I
One of the major themes in this week’s readings and lectures is the disconnect between the religious justification for colonization and the economic incentive underlying colonization. The Spanish in particular struggled to reconcile their goal of converting the Americas to Catholicism with the conquistadors’ manic propensity for violence and exploitation.
Write a brief paragraph providing evidence of the religious and profit-driven rationale for colonization. Use at least two examples from the De las Casas readings (“The Black Legend” and the preface from Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies) to show how the Dominican friar favors the religious justification. How does he portray the indigenous Americans, and how does he portray the Europeans? Why do you think he portrays them this way? (In other words, what is his bias?). Colonization – Economic vs Religious Views.
Compare De las Casas’ account with Bernardino de Sahagun’s “The Battle for Tenochtitlan”. Use at least two pieces of evidence from the Sahagun reading. How does Sahagun portray the indigenous Americans, and how does he portray the Europeans? Why do you think he portrays them this way? Again, what is his bias? You may either discuss this in a separate paragraph or weave the information of each reading together in a single paragraph. Who do you think provides a more objective description of events, De Las Casas or Sahagun?
Part II
Colonization – Economic vs Religious Views. Olaudah Equiano and Phillips paint a vivid picture of the Atlantic Slave Trade in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. In another paragraph, use at least 2 examples from The Life of Olaudah Equiano and “A Journal of a Voyage Made in the Hannibal of London 1694” to explain how the slave trade was an interconnected, globalized endeavor. How do the two readings corroborate each other? I would like you to identify demographic patterns (gender, ethnicity, age, or economic status) among those who participated in the slave trade. In your paragraph, formulate your own argument about the slave trade based on evidence from the readings and lecture. Use APA referencing style.