Chapter 1 of Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States discusses the lives of natives of the Americas both prior to and after the arrival of European explorers, and includes a statement by the author on writing history. To begin, Christopher Columbus’s voyages to the Americas are covered heavily in the chapter, and I consider these themes regarding him to be the most important:
• “The information that Columbus wanted most was: Where is the gold? He had persuaded the king and queen of Spain to finance an expedition to the lands, the wealth he expected would be on the other side of the Atlantic—the Indies and Asia, gold and spices” (Zinn 2) and “In addition for bringing back gold and spices, they promised Columbus 10 percent of the profits, governorship over newfound lands, and the fame that would go with a new title: Admiral of the Ocean Sea” (2). These passages explain Christopher Columbus’s motivation for setting sail for his first trip, which was acquiring rare goods to take back to Spain for wealth and …show more content…
First, there was a low amount of support for the American Revolution, and therefore not many opposed to Great Britain governing the US. John Adams had written that only about 1/3 of the population of America was in support of the war, with 2/3 neutral or disagreeing with it. Even Alexander Hamilton could sense that the Americans we not supporting the war in large numbers, writing “They are determined not to be free” (Zinn 77). The militias in the war were tired and unenthusiastic due to poor conditions in the military, mostly stemming from over-controlling leaders. Some states had to allow previously excluded groups to fight, such as poor whites, to fight, due to inadequate support and participation by higher-class
• “The information that Columbus wanted most was: Where is the gold? He had persuaded the king and queen of Spain to finance an expedition to the lands, the wealth he expected would be on the other side of the Atlantic—the Indies and Asia, gold and spices” (Zinn 2) and “In addition for bringing back gold and spices, they promised Columbus 10 percent of the profits, governorship over newfound lands, and the fame that would go with a new title: Admiral of the Ocean Sea” (2). These passages explain Christopher Columbus’s motivation for setting sail for his first trip, which was acquiring rare goods to take back to Spain for wealth and …show more content…
First, there was a low amount of support for the American Revolution, and therefore not many opposed to Great Britain governing the US. John Adams had written that only about 1/3 of the population of America was in support of the war, with 2/3 neutral or disagreeing with it. Even Alexander Hamilton could sense that the Americans we not supporting the war in large numbers, writing “They are determined not to be free” (Zinn 77). The militias in the war were tired and unenthusiastic due to poor conditions in the military, mostly stemming from over-controlling leaders. Some states had to allow previously excluded groups to fight, such as poor whites, to fight, due to inadequate support and participation by higher-class