Columbus: A Great Discoverer or Villain Essay -- Christopher Columbus

Columbus: A Great Discoverer or Villain A national holiday celebrating achievements of an individual reflects a nation’s appreciation for that person’s deeds. Christopher Columbus’s Day is an official national holiday in the United States of America. However, a careful examination of Columbus’ expeditions and his methods of settlement in the so-called New World should change the nation’s opinion about the necessity of the holiday. In my way of thinking, Columbus’ arrival to the Indies has brought destruction and death. His motives, such as prosperity by means of exploiting the native population, were immoral, and therefore I cannot accept the idea of celebrating Columbus’ Day as a National Holiday.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Columbus is credited with finding the new world, but did he really discover it? In my opinion, it is not possible to discover land that was already there, occupied by native people. When Columbus claimed to be a founder of the new land, he did not take in consideration a very important aspect about the existing civilization, its customs and traditions that were practiced in that area for thousands of years. Blinded by the idea of prosperity, he ignored the moral beliefs and introduced slavery as a compensation of promised numerous amounts of gold to the Spanish sovereigns. Irving Rouse, the author of the book Tainos, states: â€Å"When the crown complained about the lack of income from the colony, Columbus sent a shipload of captives to Spain to be sold as slaves in a desperate attempt to satisfy that complaint† (Rouse p.151). This serves as a perfect example of how low he thought of natives, not taking in consideration their right to live. Having established goldmines throughout the colony, Columbus found it necessary to take advantage of a local population, Tainos, as means of a cheap labor that was needed for work in goldmines. Rouse states: â€Å"When Christopher Columbus returned to Hispaniola in the summer of 1498, he placated Roldan by authorizing him to seize Indians in the chiefdom of Xaragua and divide them among his followers to use as forced laborers at the goldfields.† (p.153) In his point of view, Taino people deserved to be treated in such a manner, because they constantly rebelled against his rule, not realizing the fact that he was the one that intruded their way of life and caused so many innocent people to suffer. The re... ... point where we stand now. My opponents have tendency to glorify our nation despite the fact that it was build on suffering and extinction of almost entire civilization.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In conclusion, I would like to point out the misinterpretation of Columbus’ actions during the settlement in North America. His arrival to the â€Å"New World† brought along destruction and death. Columbus, after failing to comply with his promise to the King and Queen about increasing their revenues by bringing enormous amounts of gold, introduced the idea of slavery. He also became responsible for extinction of Taino population by forcing them to work in goldmines. Refusing to give up after several attempts to prosper from the â€Å"discovered land† and obvious lack of administrative ability causes even more devastating results described as genocide. After what I have said, the question, whether or not Columbus Day should be a National Holiday in the United States, should not be an issue, since honoring the man who is responsible for elimination of the whole race would be a sin. Such an example of misleading National Holiday left me with a d oubtful feeling about the origin of the rest! Columbus: A Great Discoverer or Villain Essay -- Christopher Columbus Columbus: A Great Discoverer or Villain A national holiday celebrating achievements of an individual reflects a nation’s appreciation for that person’s deeds. Christopher Columbus’s Day is an official national holiday in the United States of America. However, a careful examination of Columbus’ expeditions and his methods of settlement in the so-called New World should change the nation’s opinion about the necessity of the holiday. In my way of thinking, Columbus’ arrival to the Indies has brought destruction and death. His motives, such as prosperity by means of exploiting the native population, were immoral, and therefore I cannot accept the idea of celebrating Columbus’ Day as a National Holiday.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Columbus is credited with finding the new world, but did he really discover it? In my opinion, it is not possible to discover land that was already there, occupied by native people. When Columbus claimed to be a founder of the new land, he did not take in consideration a very important aspect about the existing civilization, its customs and traditions that were practiced in that area for thousands of years. Blinded by the idea of prosperity, he ignored the moral beliefs and introduced slavery as a compensation of promised numerous amounts of gold to the Spanish sovereigns. Irving Rouse, the author of the book Tainos, states: â€Å"When the crown complained about the lack of income from the colony, Columbus sent a shipload of captives to Spain to be sold as slaves in a desperate attempt to satisfy that complaint† (Rouse p.151). This serves as a perfect example of how low he thought of natives, not taking in consideration their right to live. Having established goldmines throughout the colony, Columbus found it necessary to take advantage of a local population, Tainos, as means of a cheap labor that was needed for work in goldmines. Rouse states: â€Å"When Christopher Columbus returned to Hispaniola in the summer of 1498, he placated Roldan by authorizing him to seize Indians in the chiefdom of Xaragua and divide them among his followers to use as forced laborers at the goldfields.† (p.153) In his point of view, Taino people deserved to be treated in such a manner, because they constantly rebelled against his rule, not realizing the fact that he was the one that intruded their way of life and caused so many innocent people to suffer. The re... ... point where we stand now. My opponents have tendency to glorify our nation despite the fact that it was build on suffering and extinction of almost entire civilization.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In conclusion, I would like to point out the misinterpretation of Columbus’ actions during the settlement in North America. His arrival to the â€Å"New World† brought along destruction and death. Columbus, after failing to comply with his promise to the King and Queen about increasing their revenues by bringing enormous amounts of gold, introduced the idea of slavery. He also became responsible for extinction of Taino population by forcing them to work in goldmines. Refusing to give up after several attempts to prosper from the â€Å"discovered land† and obvious lack of administrative ability causes even more devastating results described as genocide. After what I have said, the question, whether or not Columbus Day should be a National Holiday in the United States, should not be an issue, since honoring the man who is responsible for elimination of the whole race would be a sin. Such an example of misleading National Holiday left me with a d oubtful feeling about the origin of the rest!