Destruction of the Indies contains an account, written by Bartolome De Las Casas, of the Spanish conquer of the Indian natives in the Indies. During this tyranny, the Spaniards have no regard to native life because of their greed and ignorance. Also, the Spaniards have agreements with the kings of various Indie lands that they break, because of their sole self interest. Finally, it is a very interesting question, as to why Las Casas wrote this letter to Emperor Charles, instead of saying something to the head Spanish tyrants in the Indies. Destruction of the Indies shows how brutal and backstabbing the Spaniards were while taking over the natives' lands, while nobody opposed it.
There were many places in the Indies where the Spanish were inconsiderate, to say the least, of Indian life. When the Spanish invaded Hispaniola, the solo cause for the murders of the natives was greed, and they wanted to stuff themselves with riches. The tyrants burned the Indians alive and did not spare anyone including children, women, or elderly. Also in Hispaniola, the Spaniards made a rule that for every one Christian that was killed, they would slay one hundred Indians. This was pure brutality and ignorance for the natives' lives. In New Spain I and II, the basic idea of the Spanish was "to wreak cruel and most singular slaughter, so that those meek lambs might tremble before [the Spaniards]" (pg. 30). The Spaniards even sang songs about killing the Indians and the misery they caused them. Lastyl, in Panuco and Jalisco the cruel tyrant, Guzman, took the natives and sold them as slaves, while wasting the lands and leaving them depopulated. This was ignorant because now the land was unable to be used and there was no natives left to live where they once prospered. Guzman used the excuse that he gave thanks to God for his tyrannies, so they were justified. The Spanish had no consideration for any native life when they were conquering the lands.
When the Spaniards came to new lands, sometimes they would establish agreements with the native King, in exchange for land use and riches. In Hispaniola, the Indians provided the Christians with food and worked hard to produce for them, but the Christians had no remorse for the natives, sparing none. The Indians treated the foreigners with respect, but did not receive the same in the slightest bit. When the Spaniards invaded Trinidad, they issued an agreement and trust with the Indians. However, the Spanish broke the agreement and took the natives as slaves. Lastly, in Peru the natives and Spaniards lived peacefully together for six months, but the Spanish turned on the Indians and made them slaves, leaving the island almost without people. The Spaniards broke promises with the natives and took advantage of them.
Las Casas wrote the letter to Emperor Charles to inform him of what was going on in the New World, and to try and stop it. However, it would have taken a while for the emperor to receive the letter. Las Casas could have stood up against the brutality in a different way, but chose not to. One reason why is because he knew Charles wouldn't approve of the acts, where the tyrants that were with him did not care. Also, Las Casas could have been afraid of being killed by the leaders, because they didn't want opposition in their own group. Lastly, Las Casas could have enjoyed the riches that were gained by the Spaniards without killing anyone himself. Sending a letter to Emperor Charles was the safest thing to do, but not the most effective.
The account of the Destruction of the Indies shows how ignorant and brutal the Spaniards really were. They based their tyrannies on greed and riches. The people of the Indies were happy to establish agreements and trust, but the Spaniards backstabbed them and took all of the land, while killing the natives. Las Casas could have done more, but would have risked his life and fortune in the process. The Spaniards were selfish people and took control of the Indies, letting nobody or any beliefs getting in their way.
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Monday, September 10, 2012
The Epic of Gilgamesh
There are many strong themes in The Epic of Gilgamesh that even relate to prime examples in today's society. One theme that I took interest to was that Gilgamesh and Enkidu's friendship/love for one another grows stronger after every battle they have together. From tablets I through XII, the two characters continue to become closer after each fighting. There are three major events that support the theme that Gilgamesh and Enkidu are closer after a battle of some sort.
The prelude/first tablet introduces Gilgamesh and his great city of Uruk. Even though the city is great, the people of Uruk are tired of Gilgamesh and ask the gods to do something about it. In response, they create Enkidu, a man of the wild made from clay. Gilgamesh becomes knowledgeable of Enkidu and sends a prostitute to weaken him, so that he is able to defeat him in battle and keep his reign. This is successful, but Enkidu concedes that he is not as strong, and the two men kiss, embrace, and become friends, and eventually brothers. This shows that through the battle of the two, they create a friendship with the utmost respect. This can compare to modern day, when professional hockey players respect one another enough that they ask the opposition to fight before they drop the gloves. They are friends afterwards and have respect for the opponent, even though they "battle."
Another battle that occurs with Gilgamesh and Enkidu is when they battle Humbaba. At first, the people of Uruk try to persuade the two not to go, but Gilgamesh and Enkidu rally together and leave. Enkidu continues to encourage Gilgamesh whenever he is hesitant, and they become even closer on their journey towards Humbaba. After Gilgamesh dreams, he always shares them with Enkidu, and this also shows how the battle against Humbaba brought them together. When they defeat Humbaba, Enkidu wants Gilgamesh to kill Humbaba right away, hinting that he is jealous that Humbaba could take Enkidu's place in Gilgamesh's life. Gilgamesh listens to Enkidu, despite believing they could be cursed afterwards, because they are brothers. This bond is shown as almost unbreakable and as strong as ever.
Lastly, the battle against the gods, when Enkidu becomes sick brings the two characters very close. When they "lose" this war, Gilgamesh is shattered. He shouts his grief to the city elders. Gilgamesh then goes into the wild to live like Enkidu was meant to. He tries to support Enkidu's death by representing him in the present. In the end, Gilgamesh experiences a "rebirth" after travels caused by Enkidu's passing.
The two characters friendship becomes stronger after each battle they participate in together. Also, with this comes the strength increased in each individual. After the battle between the two, the battle against Humbaba, and the battle against the gods during Enkidu's death, Gilgamesh and Enkidu are closer together every time. The Epic of Gilgamesh demonstrates how a relationship can become more tightly knit after every fight spent together.
A modern day example where there are many battles that increase the level of friendship between two people is in the movie, Miracle. Two players on the team, Jack O'Callahan and Rob McClanahan hated each other during tryouts and into the first couple practices of the 1980 US Olympic hockey team. The reason for this hatred was from a previous incident between their respective clubs in the NCAA hockey championships, when McClanahan took a "cheap shot" on Jack O'Callahan. However, after they started battling (playing games) together, they developed a strong friendship, as if they were brothers. Just like Enkidu, O'Callahan suffers an injury that prevents him from playing in the Olympics (considerable to death for a hockey player), but McClanahan rallies behind him and supports him during the whole games. The hockey games or battles bring the two players closer to one another, after they started off as enemies.
The prelude/first tablet introduces Gilgamesh and his great city of Uruk. Even though the city is great, the people of Uruk are tired of Gilgamesh and ask the gods to do something about it. In response, they create Enkidu, a man of the wild made from clay. Gilgamesh becomes knowledgeable of Enkidu and sends a prostitute to weaken him, so that he is able to defeat him in battle and keep his reign. This is successful, but Enkidu concedes that he is not as strong, and the two men kiss, embrace, and become friends, and eventually brothers. This shows that through the battle of the two, they create a friendship with the utmost respect. This can compare to modern day, when professional hockey players respect one another enough that they ask the opposition to fight before they drop the gloves. They are friends afterwards and have respect for the opponent, even though they "battle."
Another battle that occurs with Gilgamesh and Enkidu is when they battle Humbaba. At first, the people of Uruk try to persuade the two not to go, but Gilgamesh and Enkidu rally together and leave. Enkidu continues to encourage Gilgamesh whenever he is hesitant, and they become even closer on their journey towards Humbaba. After Gilgamesh dreams, he always shares them with Enkidu, and this also shows how the battle against Humbaba brought them together. When they defeat Humbaba, Enkidu wants Gilgamesh to kill Humbaba right away, hinting that he is jealous that Humbaba could take Enkidu's place in Gilgamesh's life. Gilgamesh listens to Enkidu, despite believing they could be cursed afterwards, because they are brothers. This bond is shown as almost unbreakable and as strong as ever.
Lastly, the battle against the gods, when Enkidu becomes sick brings the two characters very close. When they "lose" this war, Gilgamesh is shattered. He shouts his grief to the city elders. Gilgamesh then goes into the wild to live like Enkidu was meant to. He tries to support Enkidu's death by representing him in the present. In the end, Gilgamesh experiences a "rebirth" after travels caused by Enkidu's passing.
The two characters friendship becomes stronger after each battle they participate in together. Also, with this comes the strength increased in each individual. After the battle between the two, the battle against Humbaba, and the battle against the gods during Enkidu's death, Gilgamesh and Enkidu are closer together every time. The Epic of Gilgamesh demonstrates how a relationship can become more tightly knit after every fight spent together.
A modern day example where there are many battles that increase the level of friendship between two people is in the movie, Miracle. Two players on the team, Jack O'Callahan and Rob McClanahan hated each other during tryouts and into the first couple practices of the 1980 US Olympic hockey team. The reason for this hatred was from a previous incident between their respective clubs in the NCAA hockey championships, when McClanahan took a "cheap shot" on Jack O'Callahan. However, after they started battling (playing games) together, they developed a strong friendship, as if they were brothers. Just like Enkidu, O'Callahan suffers an injury that prevents him from playing in the Olympics (considerable to death for a hockey player), but McClanahan rallies behind him and supports him during the whole games. The hockey games or battles bring the two players closer to one another, after they started off as enemies.
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Introduction and Miner's Body Ritual among the Nacirema
Hello class, my name is Matthew Phillipes and I am a transfer sophomore studying Secondary Education (Business, Computers, and IT). Another high academic interest area of mine is economics and international business. I am very intrigued by non-fiction readings especially including business and sports literature. The last college I attended was Wesley College in Dover, Delaware; it was a small private college that consisted of only about two thousand students. The much different landscape of Temple has been a joy so far and I only hope it gets better. My career goal is to become a teacher at a prep school or a professor at a university, while also coaching a high level of ice hockey. During this course, I hope to achieve a better comprehension level and be able to go in depth with the readings that we do, as I have just skimmed the surface of books I usually read. This class will let me explore not only the story, but all aspects of the writing. Along with going in depth with the readings, I am looking forward to exploring certain aspects of religious writing and places of worship in the city for the Literary Philadelphia project. Coming from a split religious household, with religion being distant from my life, I would like to connect the different religions in Philly with the literature written about each one. I was born in Irvine, California, but my hometown for 10 years has been Emmaus, Pennsylvania, which is located in the Lehigh Valley (an hour north of Philadelphia).
Body Ritual among the Nacirema, written by Horace Miner can be perceived as a terrible city at first. To be honest, I did not catch on to what he was referencing until a classmate hinted at it before we discussed the writing in class. After reading it the second time, Miner is accurate in portraying American society, even if it is much different than the normal view. The cleverness of spelling Washington backwards and discretely describing the location of Nacirema adds to the confusion of what group he is talking about at first. Between the medicine men, holy-mouth-men, lalipso ceremonies, etc. Miner successfully creates the illusion of a society that represents that of the United States'. One who is not carefully reading this literature could easily become judgmental of how terrible the society is run, eventually learning that is their own. I believe the purpose of writing Body Ritual among the Nacirema is to show that one has their own beliefs of how a society should be run, however they cannot be judgmental of another group, because their own society and rituals are just as different to someone else. I know that I was taken by surprise when I found out Miner was writing about the American society, and it showed me that I shouldn't come to such quick conclusions about others and their beliefs. Also, to understand the reading, one also has to understand the situation it was written in. This includes when, where, and how. Therefore, being accepting of all cultures and societies is crucial to be able to go in depth with any literature. The author might not be of your origins, but one can still understand the whole experience by taking a step back and accepting the society of the author. One modern topic that would work with Miner's style is Mixed Martial Arts fighting. A writer could consider this "a fight to the death" or "a cage brawl" because of the brutality of the sport. If I read that a society had a weekly gathering where thousands of people came to watch two people battle to knock the other out, I would be thinking that it was crazy. However, in 2012 UFC is a huge money-making company that puts on events around the world. Many people attend these fights, and even more buy it on pay-per-view TV. Now, I have realized that I need to emerge myself in a society before I can make judgments and statements about them. As Miner shows in Body Ritual among the Nacirema, anyone's rituals can seem pretty ridiculous when put in a certain content. Without going in depth with a reading, one cannot grasp the true meaning of it. Understanding the times of the literature and the society it was written in is a huge component of obtaining the significance of each piece of writing. I enjoyed this reading and look forward to becoming part of the society of each author/writing when reading in Mosaics I.
Body Ritual among the Nacirema, written by Horace Miner can be perceived as a terrible city at first. To be honest, I did not catch on to what he was referencing until a classmate hinted at it before we discussed the writing in class. After reading it the second time, Miner is accurate in portraying American society, even if it is much different than the normal view. The cleverness of spelling Washington backwards and discretely describing the location of Nacirema adds to the confusion of what group he is talking about at first. Between the medicine men, holy-mouth-men, lalipso ceremonies, etc. Miner successfully creates the illusion of a society that represents that of the United States'. One who is not carefully reading this literature could easily become judgmental of how terrible the society is run, eventually learning that is their own. I believe the purpose of writing Body Ritual among the Nacirema is to show that one has their own beliefs of how a society should be run, however they cannot be judgmental of another group, because their own society and rituals are just as different to someone else. I know that I was taken by surprise when I found out Miner was writing about the American society, and it showed me that I shouldn't come to such quick conclusions about others and their beliefs. Also, to understand the reading, one also has to understand the situation it was written in. This includes when, where, and how. Therefore, being accepting of all cultures and societies is crucial to be able to go in depth with any literature. The author might not be of your origins, but one can still understand the whole experience by taking a step back and accepting the society of the author. One modern topic that would work with Miner's style is Mixed Martial Arts fighting. A writer could consider this "a fight to the death" or "a cage brawl" because of the brutality of the sport. If I read that a society had a weekly gathering where thousands of people came to watch two people battle to knock the other out, I would be thinking that it was crazy. However, in 2012 UFC is a huge money-making company that puts on events around the world. Many people attend these fights, and even more buy it on pay-per-view TV. Now, I have realized that I need to emerge myself in a society before I can make judgments and statements about them. As Miner shows in Body Ritual among the Nacirema, anyone's rituals can seem pretty ridiculous when put in a certain content. Without going in depth with a reading, one cannot grasp the true meaning of it. Understanding the times of the literature and the society it was written in is a huge component of obtaining the significance of each piece of writing. I enjoyed this reading and look forward to becoming part of the society of each author/writing when reading in Mosaics I.
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