Christopher Columbus and Diego Duran’s view
of the Native Americans differed due to their occupations. Therefore, as
captain of a fleet of ships, Christopher Columbus’ knowledge would lie in
maritime shipping. Thus, being well traveled throughout Europe,
he accrued knowledge that is reflected in his journal. As a result, his
opinions and feelings towards the Native Americas were inspired by his European
ethnocentric views. On the other hand, Duran was influenced by the inquisitions
in Spain.
This had a strong influence on his opinions and feelings of the Native
Americans. Furthermore, Duran’s criticisms are influenced by his superior
knowledge of the Bible and the Catholic Church. As a result, Duran’s and
Columbus’ writings influenced many historical authors. These historical authors
reinterpreted Columbus
and Duran’s opinions of the Native Americans. Therefore, the historical authors
used these opinions to reinforce their arguments in their books.
The first example of these writings comes
from Columbus.
With an ethnocentric view point, Columbus
demonstrates a superior attitude towards the Native Americans. On October, 12,
1492, Columbus
documented his first opinions of the Native Americans.
I
knew that they were a people who could be more easily freed and converted to
our holy faith by love than by force, gave to some of them red caps and glass
bead to put round their necks, and many other things of little value which gave
them great pleasure, and made them so much our friends that it was a marvel to
see.[1]
He
claims that Native Americans were people who could easily be converted out of
love rather than by force. He formed this idea because the natives demonstrated
a friendly curiosity towards him and his crew. Columbus’ superior attitude would interpret
this friendliness as a weakness in the Natives.
Furthermore, Columbus
views the natives as a less intelligent people. Due to Columbus’ European background, he marvels at
the native’s acceptance of gifts. He judged the native’s reactions by how he,
as a typical European, would react towards the same gifts. Columbus would not have accepted such a
simple gift. He would have perceived it as a prank.
In the book Christopher Columbus the author John Boyd Thacher interprets this
passage in a different perspective. Thacher believes Columbus thought the Natives Americans would make
good citizens for the Spanish Crown due to the native’s conversion to
Christianity out of love and not force. Therefore, Thacher believes that Columbus had an ulterior
motive. Columbus’ motive was to ship the natives
back to Spain
to learn the Spanish language for future voyages as interpreters. Thacher
believes that Columbus
had little use of the natives as slaves. This comes from the weaknesses the
natives display due to there friendly behavior towards Columbus and his men.[2]
Columbus’ superior view of the natives can be
interpreted as weak by other authors. Therefore, Duran’s opinions of the Native
Americans were also interpreted to describe the Natives. Duran justifies his
derogatory insults of the natives by the word of God. Duran quotes, “But, Our
Lord and God, we are witnesses to the fact that these miserable nations are now
being subjected to all the labors and misery and punishments caused by their
evil ways and abominations and idolatries.”[3]
Duran believes the reasons the Native Americas were in misery was due to the
use of idolatries.
These Native American idolatries are against
the teachings of the Catholic Church. However, Duran believes God is in control
of their impoverished environment. He sees the native’s world as less than
equal to Spain.
Therefore, Duran views the barely clothed natives living in huts in the middle
of the wilderness as miserable and primitive. However, coming from Spain,
Duran was accustomed to a more technically advanced society. This is due to his
perceptions of Spain
living in the proper graces of God and the idolatrous Native Americans living
in misery because of their evil ways.
To support these ideas of Duran’s religions
views of the Native Americans, in the book Our
Lady of Guadalupe and Saint Juan Diego, Eduardo Chávez
believes that Duran’s duties were to destroy the devil who has consumed the
Native Americans. Chavez even goes further to say, that at the end some of Duran’s
passages; Duran refers to the Natives Americans as weeds in a garden. These
weeds need to be pulled so the roots do not come back as other weeds. Chavez
uses this to support the idea that genocide was acceptable by the Spanish
priests and conquistadors. Therefore, Genocide will end the idolatrous
evil ways of the Native Americans. As a result, the generations after the
genocide will not know about evil idolatrous rituals that created their
impoverished environment. The Native Americans will now be able to live as good
Christians in the eyes of God.[4]
Authors use Duran’s opinions of the Natives
Americans to describe the view points of the Spaniards. On the other hand, they also use Columbus’ journals to
support their arguments towards the Native Americans. An example of this is a
comparison to fowl in his journal. Columbus wrote that the
natives had curiously inspected the Nina in the middle of the night. The
natives were caught by his men rowing up to the boat. However, they swiftly
escaped by their skillful use of canoes. As a result, Columbus ordered his men to follow them.
In response, Columbus writes, “Some of my people went on
shore in chase of them, but they all fled like fowls.”[5]
This is an example of Columbus’
narrow minded perceptions of the Native Americans. He used the derogatory
comparison of “fowl” for his description of the natives. Therefore, this
comparison shows a behavior of fear. Columbus’
derogatory comment on the Native Americans is a typical behavior. When people
of superior attitudes fear people they perceive are inferior to them the end
results will be verbal insults.
Columbus’ journals compare the Native Americans to
fowl. Therefore, in the book The Armature
of Conquest: Spanish Accounts of the Discovery of America,
1492, Columbus
inspires the author Beatriz Pastor Bodmer. Bodmer analyzes Columbus’ journals. As a
result, Bodmer comes to his own conclusions on why Columbus referred to the Native Americans as
animals and beasts. In the chapter Discourse of Mythification, Bodmer presents
a slow and gradual change in Columbus’
perceptions towards the Native Americans. Bodmer concludes that Columbus categorized the
natives as animals because they did not speak the Spanish language. Furthermore,
the natives worshiped idols and practiced cannibalism. Bodmer ends the chapter believing Columbus could change the natives by shipping them back to
Spain
as slaves therefore purging this beastly behavior out of the Native Americans.[6]
Bodmer uses Columbus’
journals to conclude his argument about the Native Americans; therefore, Columbus’ words live on. Authors
also use Duran’s journals in describing the Natives Americans. Duran’s derogatory views of the natives were
cowardly, pusillanimous and fearful. Duran states, “Among the other misfortunes
God foretold for these people was that they would have cowardly, pusillanimous,
and fearful hearts, so that they, who were many, nevertheless would flee from
few.”[7]
This proves that Duran does not view the natives in a positive aspect.
Therefore, Duran uses the word pusillanimous
to describe the native’s behavior. This word means lack of courage,
faint-hearted and timid in nature.
Furthermore, this term can describe animals with cowardly spirits. Duran
uses this word because of the fear the natives demonstrated in their contacts
with Duran and other Spaniards. Therefore, he cannot see the Native Americans
as conquistadors because of the lack of courage they demonstrated. This lack of
courage can be attributed to earlier contacts with the Spaniards. The Spaniards
killed off many natives with their guns and steel weapons. Therefore, the
Spaniards are viewed by the natives as being feared. The result of the Native
American’s fear was to run. Duran perceives the natives like a heard of dear
who are fleeing from a hunter.[8]
On the other hand, Duran’s feelings about the
Native Americans changes as he gets older. Duran takes an interest in
documenting the Mesoamerican culture during the 16th century. In the
book The Aztecs, author Richard
Townsend uses Duran’s journals to describe the Native’s pre-Christian beliefs and
daily events. Townsend paraphrases Duran, when Duran explains the origins of
the Aztecs. The Aztecs believed they originated from caves and springs during
the time of genesis. Therefore, the Aztecs believed they were born from a
female earth who was a primordial mother. Furthermore, Townsend uses Duran’s
descriptions of the daily lives of the Mexicas to show how women helped strengthen
the economy. Women collected fish, frogs and birds around the lakes. In return,
they sold them at markets in the towns of Tenochtitlan
and Tlatelolco. These are examples on how Townsend avoids any negative text in
Duran’s journals and focuses only on Duran’s positive attributes to the Native
Americans.[9]
Columbus and Duran have similar opinions on
the Native Americans they encountered. Columbus
takes a superior attitude towards the Native Americans due to his European
ethnocentric interpretations. On the other hand, Columbus’ opinions are far less critical than
Duran’s. Duran’s opinions of the Native Americans are derogatory and demeaning.
However, Duran’s opinions change over time and become more accepting of the
Native American culture.
Therefore,
some of the authors use the opinions of Duran and Columbus in the manor to portray
Spain
as a villain. On the other hand, other authors only use the descriptions that
come out of the opinions Duran and Columbus for their arguments. These authors
seem to avoid the negative perceptions of Columbus and Duran. The opinions of
Duran and Columbus are examples on how historical authors have interpreted the
history of the Native Americans.
Work Cited
Beatriz Pastor Bodmer. The Armature of Conquest: Spanish Accounts of the Discovery of America, 1492-1589. Lydia Longstreth, Trans. Palo Alto: Stanford University Press, 1992.
Christopher Columbus. The Journal of Christopher Columbus during his First Voyage, 1492-1493,
and Documents Relating to the Voyages of John Cabot and Gaspar Corte Real. Clements
R. Markham, Trans. London: Lincoln’s
Inn Fields, W.C., 1893.
Diego Duran. The History of the Indies of New Spain.
Doris Heyden, Trans. Oklahoma: University
of Oklahoma Press, 1994.
Eduardo Chávez. Our
Lady of Guadalupe and Saint Juan Diego: the Historical Evidence. Carmen Trevino and Veronica Montano, Trans.
Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publisher Inc, 2006.
John Boyd Thacher. Christopher Columbus: His Life His Work His Remains, Vol.1. New York: Ams Press Inc, 1967.
Richard Townsend. The Aztecs. London:
Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2000.
[1] Christopher Columbus, The Journal of Christopher Columbus During
his First Voyage,1492-1493, and Documents Relating to the Voyages of John Cabot
and Gaspar Corte Real, Clements R. Markham, Trans.(London: Lincoln’s Inn
Fields, W.C., 1893),36.
[2] John Boyd Thacher, Christopher Columbus: His Life His Work His Remains, Vol.1, (New York: Ams Press Inc, 1967), 533-555.
[3] Diego Duran, The History of the Indies of New Spain, Doris Heyden, Trans. (Oklahoma: University
of Oklahoma Press, 1994), 5.
[4] Eduardo
Chávez, Our Lady of Guadalupe and
Saint Juan Diego: the Historical Evidence, Carmen Trevino and Veronica Montano, Trans.
(Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publisher Inc, 2006), 133.
[5] Christopher Columbus, The Journal of Christopher Columbus During
his First Voyage,1492-1493, and Documents Relating to the Voyages of John Cabot
and Gaspar Corte Real,43.
[6] Beatriz Pastor Bodmer, The Armature of Conquest: Spanish Accounts of the Discovery of America, 1492-1589, Lydia Longstreth, Trans. (Palo Alto: Stanford University Press, 1992), 41.
[7] Diego Duran, The History of the Indies of New Spain, 4.
[8] Diego Duran, The History of the Indies of New Spain, 5.
[9] Richard Townsend, The Aztecs, (London: Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2000), 54,
57, 65.
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