A People’s History of The United States by Howard Zinn is a book meant to show history in a way it is not usually presented. He cuts out the sugar coating of modern textbooks and aims to show flaws in the traditional tellings of history. In the end, Howard Zinn managed to tell history in a more negative light, but he uses bias and the same techniques he criticizes.
Howard Zinn goes through history in order to break down everything that happens in America from the time Columbus arrives to the Clinton Presidency. He does this in such a way to present a more “real” telling of history. He raises important questions, but he fails to deliver in many regards.
Howard Zinn has a lot to say about Christopher Columbus. He makes many claims about the torture and killings of the native people of the Americas. The problem is, he doesn’t provide sufficient citations. The controversial nature of this book calls for proper citations and footnotes. The reader should have a good sense of the writer’s source material. He goes on to say that two years after Columbus landed, nearly all of the Arawaks had died. This figure is powerful and sounds impressive.
Betzold 2
The problem …show more content…
He claims war is never a proper solution. It would be hard for people to disagree because of the effects wars can have. They are destructive and they have great costs. The problem lies in the fact that war is often necessary. Was the cause of stamping out fascism and bringing down Hitler not worth the cost. It is hard to measure the value of a human life. It is easy to forget that soldiers are human like the rest of us, but we need to remember that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. How much damage could people like Hitler do if they were not stopped. He may have done less damage had he been stopped earlier. There were not many other options to consider. He never states what a proper alternative to war could
Howard Zinn goes through history in order to break down everything that happens in America from the time Columbus arrives to the Clinton Presidency. He does this in such a way to present a more “real” telling of history. He raises important questions, but he fails to deliver in many regards.
Howard Zinn has a lot to say about Christopher Columbus. He makes many claims about the torture and killings of the native people of the Americas. The problem is, he doesn’t provide sufficient citations. The controversial nature of this book calls for proper citations and footnotes. The reader should have a good sense of the writer’s source material. He goes on to say that two years after Columbus landed, nearly all of the Arawaks had died. This figure is powerful and sounds impressive.
Betzold 2
The problem …show more content…
He claims war is never a proper solution. It would be hard for people to disagree because of the effects wars can have. They are destructive and they have great costs. The problem lies in the fact that war is often necessary. Was the cause of stamping out fascism and bringing down Hitler not worth the cost. It is hard to measure the value of a human life. It is easy to forget that soldiers are human like the rest of us, but we need to remember that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. How much damage could people like Hitler do if they were not stopped. He may have done less damage had he been stopped earlier. There were not many other options to consider. He never states what a proper alternative to war could