Anna-Maria Nau
Dr. Lee Simpson
Honors 3
2.11.2015
The Male versus Female View on the Conquest of New Spain It is generally accepted that men and women have different perceptions and views. In addition, one’s culture and environment he or she was raised in, greatly influences how a person sees and understands things. It is also a fact that the male and female brains are not the same; they differ in both their looks as well as in their functions. Due to this, both genders would perceive and view events differently, supplying us with distinct insights. Keeping this in mind, men and women would thus interpret the conquest of New Spain in different ways. Each gender would view this historical event from their own perspective and thus have their …show more content…
They were either given as a gift of peace or kindness or used as slaves to fulfill the wishes of their male counterparts. The Indians believed that by giving the Spaniards some of their young girls they would reproduce and thus strengthen their friendship with the Spaniards. The Spaniards graciously accepted these gifts of kindness every time, not thinking twice about how their actions would affect these young Indian women. As stated in Bernal Diaz’s Book, The Conquest of New Spain, “they told Cortes that as we were now their friends they would like to have us for brothers and to give us their daughters to bear us children." Women would strongly oppose these actions, labeling them as inhumane and morally incorrect. They would not agree with young girls and grown up women to be used by men to fulfill their pleasures and sexual desires. A woman is also a person with feelings and rights just like any other man and should therefore be dealt with respect rather than used as a prostitute or slave. Indian men during the period of the conquest were allowed to have more than one wife. This is where one’s culture plays an important role when viewing this topic. Most women would disagree with the fact that Indian men were allowed to have more than one wife. On the other hand, women from Arabian countries most likely would view this situation as being normal due to their upbringing and cultural norms. As stated in an article about the women from the Middle East by Mona Eltahawy, in most parts of the Middle East men are allowed to have several wives, which they mistreat on a daily basis, hardly ever being punished for their crimes. Due to this culture, women from the Middle East would perceive the mistreatment of women during the conquest with little
Dr. Lee Simpson
Honors 3
2.11.2015
The Male versus Female View on the Conquest of New Spain It is generally accepted that men and women have different perceptions and views. In addition, one’s culture and environment he or she was raised in, greatly influences how a person sees and understands things. It is also a fact that the male and female brains are not the same; they differ in both their looks as well as in their functions. Due to this, both genders would perceive and view events differently, supplying us with distinct insights. Keeping this in mind, men and women would thus interpret the conquest of New Spain in different ways. Each gender would view this historical event from their own perspective and thus have their …show more content…
They were either given as a gift of peace or kindness or used as slaves to fulfill the wishes of their male counterparts. The Indians believed that by giving the Spaniards some of their young girls they would reproduce and thus strengthen their friendship with the Spaniards. The Spaniards graciously accepted these gifts of kindness every time, not thinking twice about how their actions would affect these young Indian women. As stated in Bernal Diaz’s Book, The Conquest of New Spain, “they told Cortes that as we were now their friends they would like to have us for brothers and to give us their daughters to bear us children." Women would strongly oppose these actions, labeling them as inhumane and morally incorrect. They would not agree with young girls and grown up women to be used by men to fulfill their pleasures and sexual desires. A woman is also a person with feelings and rights just like any other man and should therefore be dealt with respect rather than used as a prostitute or slave. Indian men during the period of the conquest were allowed to have more than one wife. This is where one’s culture plays an important role when viewing this topic. Most women would disagree with the fact that Indian men were allowed to have more than one wife. On the other hand, women from Arabian countries most likely would view this situation as being normal due to their upbringing and cultural norms. As stated in an article about the women from the Middle East by Mona Eltahawy, in most parts of the Middle East men are allowed to have several wives, which they mistreat on a daily basis, hardly ever being punished for their crimes. Due to this culture, women from the Middle East would perceive the mistreatment of women during the conquest with little