English Exploitation In Cabeza De Vaca

Colonization opened a new world for those in search of religious freedom or a chance at success that so many dreamed of; however, this new world was also a world that was feeble and a perfect host for the exploitation that others sought. From the earliest days of the settlement when Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca penned his dedication in 1542, the exploitation of those in lower classes is abundantly clear. This exploitation was not just carried out by those in the newly founded colonies. England consistently placed nearly unfathomable tariffs on the colonists while also depriving what many would argue are fundamental human rights. Thomas Paine laid out the extent of English exploitation in his writings Common Sense and The Crisis, No. 1. Exploitation …show more content…
This journey was consistently plagued with hardships and failures with many times due to the corrupt leadership of Panfilio de Naváez. Yet his writings to Emperor Charles V, the grandson of Ferdinand and Isabella - two very prominent promoters of exploration in the ‘New World,’ spoke to a very different account. They show a man with genuine intentions, but also show a man plagued with a struggle. The struggle Cabeza de Vaca faced was often an internal struggle - torn between his own beliefs and those of the elite classes. He sorted through a maze of interdependence between those in lower socioeconomic classes and the elites while constantly trying to find a balance between the values he held and those held by his …show more content…
He describes an initial encounter filled with optimism, “… we gave thanks to god our Lord for choosing to bring us out of such a melancholy and wretched captivity” (Cabeza de Vaca 49). This anticipation and optimism quickly became anger and animosity, “…after this we hot a hot argument with them, for they meant to make slaves of the Indians in our train” (Cabeza de Vaca 50). These slave traders called themselves Christians, however the capture and brutal treatment of the natives, was a far cry from the religion they preached. This injustice deeply resonated with Cabeza de Vaca and this was an instance in which he refused to suppress his values to appeal to the King. His expressed discontent with the actions of the “slave traders” resulted in his arrest at their hands. “… the Christians subtly sent us on our way in the charge of an alcalde named Cebreros, attended by two horsemen. They took us through forests and wastes so we would not communicate with the natives and would neither see nor learn of their crafty scheme afoot” (Cabeza de Vaca 51). The Christians not only arrested Cabeza de Vaca, they consciously took action to keep him from warning the natives of the impending doom they most certainly faced. Cabeza de Vaca’s actions today would likely be compared to a martyr in today’s sense of the