Bentley and Ziegler present Columbus much better than what Loewen accuses textbooks of doing. They are much better because of their strict adherence to not their or anyone's beliefs or opinions, but mainly solid facts and evidence. They don't sugarcoat achievements and make people such as Columbus look even better than what he is.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
James Loewen: Chapter of Christopher Columbus
I don't find James Loewen's argument on Christopher Columbus convincing at all really. In all honesty, after reading his works, I realize that Columbus wasn't as great as everyone thought he was. People believed that he was this kind, hearted adventurous fellow, but in reality, he was the opposite. For example, he mistreated various amounts of people from both genders, male and female, when he reached certain places like the Carribean. Also, the very fact is that Columbus is supposedly the first person to reach the Americas, but this is just a speculation. After all, Zheng He and his fleet were also others who supposedly might have beaten Columbus at this game of hide and seek 70 years prior. However, Zheng He's expedition seems more legitimate because there is more information that supports his than Columbus'. Columbus' claims and supports were mainly backed by the Christian faith and there wasn't really concrete evidence of his achieving the Americas first.
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I think you need to go back and read that selection again. Loewen isn't arguing whether or not Columbus was first, he's definitively clear that Columbus wasn't. His point, though is about Columbus' behaviors and the textbook mis-statements and falsehoods that perpetuate a myth about Columbus.
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