Chapter 1: Columbus, The Indians, And Human Progress:
This chapter described the putative discovering of the Americas. It had two common themes; the author laid out how he would be discussing the chapters throughout the book and he discussed how Columbus “discovered” the Americas. Zinn described, in horrifying detail, the mass genocide that took place due to the greed of the individuals who “found” this great land. I put found in quotations, because it is a myth that Columbus and his crew found America. They really found the Bahama Islands, and even then, all he found was an already populated land. There were natives, known as the Arawaks, already living there, and they had been there for centuries before Columbus arrived. The natives greeted …show more content…
Some were burned alive. Many were boarded onto ships and sent back to Spain. Mothers were euthanizing their own children so that they did not have to endure suffering brought on by the Spaniards. Many natives starved to death. If they did not starve to death, they were dying other ways. Many began committing mass suicide, ingesting a form of poison. The natives would rather die than have to live with the Spaniards because of how horrendous the Spaniards treated them. A once flourishing population was dwindled down to nothing because of the ravenousness of another. This sets up a common theme for the rest of history, as we have learned it.
I have three insights after reading this chapter. One of my insights is that we celebrate Columbus Day as if he was a hero for discovering our homeland. Banks even closed down for the holiday. But the truth is, he was nothing more than a mass murderer, with a wicked amount of greed. He did not hesitate to annihilate anyone who obstructed his pursuit of riches, and the deaths of these individuals were never swift or painless. This often involved making the person bleed out or burn to death, which are very barbaric ways of killing …show more content…
The ship ran out of food during their journey, which ran longer than was planned. The chapter said that on another trip, thirty-two children died of starvation or disease, and they determined that the most uncomplicated way of dealing with the situation was to hurl them overboard into the ocean.
One insight for this chapter is that the rebellions happened because of the economic struggles that were occurring. Many people were living in poverty, and many others were profiting from it.
Another insight is that the rebellions showed just how well that the whites and the slaves could work together; that there really were not nearly as many differences between them as everyone thought. Even though they were told they had many differences and that one was more superior to the other, they were able to set that aside for a common goal.
The last insight is that the government only had one plan: divide and conquer. This pattern is very similar to the one that we saw in chapter one, with the wrath of Columbus. Their entire plan was based on greed, and the desire for
This chapter described the putative discovering of the Americas. It had two common themes; the author laid out how he would be discussing the chapters throughout the book and he discussed how Columbus “discovered” the Americas. Zinn described, in horrifying detail, the mass genocide that took place due to the greed of the individuals who “found” this great land. I put found in quotations, because it is a myth that Columbus and his crew found America. They really found the Bahama Islands, and even then, all he found was an already populated land. There were natives, known as the Arawaks, already living there, and they had been there for centuries before Columbus arrived. The natives greeted …show more content…
Some were burned alive. Many were boarded onto ships and sent back to Spain. Mothers were euthanizing their own children so that they did not have to endure suffering brought on by the Spaniards. Many natives starved to death. If they did not starve to death, they were dying other ways. Many began committing mass suicide, ingesting a form of poison. The natives would rather die than have to live with the Spaniards because of how horrendous the Spaniards treated them. A once flourishing population was dwindled down to nothing because of the ravenousness of another. This sets up a common theme for the rest of history, as we have learned it.
I have three insights after reading this chapter. One of my insights is that we celebrate Columbus Day as if he was a hero for discovering our homeland. Banks even closed down for the holiday. But the truth is, he was nothing more than a mass murderer, with a wicked amount of greed. He did not hesitate to annihilate anyone who obstructed his pursuit of riches, and the deaths of these individuals were never swift or painless. This often involved making the person bleed out or burn to death, which are very barbaric ways of killing …show more content…
The ship ran out of food during their journey, which ran longer than was planned. The chapter said that on another trip, thirty-two children died of starvation or disease, and they determined that the most uncomplicated way of dealing with the situation was to hurl them overboard into the ocean.
One insight for this chapter is that the rebellions happened because of the economic struggles that were occurring. Many people were living in poverty, and many others were profiting from it.
Another insight is that the rebellions showed just how well that the whites and the slaves could work together; that there really were not nearly as many differences between them as everyone thought. Even though they were told they had many differences and that one was more superior to the other, they were able to set that aside for a common goal.
The last insight is that the government only had one plan: divide and conquer. This pattern is very similar to the one that we saw in chapter one, with the wrath of Columbus. Their entire plan was based on greed, and the desire for