Are American Indians Lawfully Sinners or Just Uninformed?
In chapter six of Francisco De Vitoria’s book, “Vitoria: Political Writings,” titled, On the Americans Indians, Vitoria considers various arguments regarding the dominion of the “barbaric” American Indians by determining if sinners, unbelievers and children as well irrational and mad men should have dominion over property and over themselves. Although I agree with Vitoria’s conclusion that American Indians should be treated as any other Christian (250), in this paper, I will be exploring what constitutes both a sinner and an unbeliever and determine if they are appropriate labels for the American Indians. I believe this is an important argument for the many religious leaders whispering in the crown’s ear; it would inspire them to fight for the opportunity to send more missionaries way sooner, which would have changed the course of history.
Vitoria first and foremost, wishes to establish that without consulting other wise men, one cannot be a wise ruler (237). With …show more content…
While ignorance and generalization regarding the “barbaric” American Indians is expected from Europeans, who never stepped foot in the Americas, there is a problem with the course of Vitoria’s argument. Firstly, when Vitoria proclaimed sinners and unbelievers incapable of being true masters, he failed to define the terms. In fact, he also failed to rationalize calling the American Indians barbarians in the first place, but as I said, that was a common notion and his ignorance is understandable given the circumstances. However, it is important to note that Vitoria overlooks the glaring problem that the American Indians did not have the same exposure to religion and “the book” as the Europeans did; therefore, it is unfair to hold them to the same
In chapter six of Francisco De Vitoria’s book, “Vitoria: Political Writings,” titled, On the Americans Indians, Vitoria considers various arguments regarding the dominion of the “barbaric” American Indians by determining if sinners, unbelievers and children as well irrational and mad men should have dominion over property and over themselves. Although I agree with Vitoria’s conclusion that American Indians should be treated as any other Christian (250), in this paper, I will be exploring what constitutes both a sinner and an unbeliever and determine if they are appropriate labels for the American Indians. I believe this is an important argument for the many religious leaders whispering in the crown’s ear; it would inspire them to fight for the opportunity to send more missionaries way sooner, which would have changed the course of history.
Vitoria first and foremost, wishes to establish that without consulting other wise men, one cannot be a wise ruler (237). With …show more content…
While ignorance and generalization regarding the “barbaric” American Indians is expected from Europeans, who never stepped foot in the Americas, there is a problem with the course of Vitoria’s argument. Firstly, when Vitoria proclaimed sinners and unbelievers incapable of being true masters, he failed to define the terms. In fact, he also failed to rationalize calling the American Indians barbarians in the first place, but as I said, that was a common notion and his ignorance is understandable given the circumstances. However, it is important to note that Vitoria overlooks the glaring problem that the American Indians did not have the same exposure to religion and “the book” as the Europeans did; therefore, it is unfair to hold them to the same