Fame Of Christopher Columbus

“As the classroom rhyme goes, Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492…” states that you sailed to America but doesn’t say what he did after he got there. “ But there is more to the story of the explorer” but many people don’t know it. Many things that happened involving Columbus’s story is not told and some people never get know. The historical records has cast Columbus into the shadow of enormous

One would expect these immense accomplishments to go to a person’s head, but Columbus manages to be humble: “O I am sure they really come from Thee!/The urge, the ardor, the unconquerable will/The potent, felt, interior command, stronger than words/A message from the Heavens, whispering to me even in sleep/These sped me on” (insert citation). Columbus gives all of his credit to God, instead of believing that he simply was an incredible explorer.

Throughout recorded human history, authors, leaders, and researchers, have documented the past from many different perspectives, and viewpoints. Not every historian has the same stance on a certain issue, therefore, differences in point of view occur in almost every writing. In the textbook The American Pageant, A People’s History of the United States by Larry Schweikart, and Michael Allen, and Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States, the reader can see many different perspectives throughout each reading. The infamous explorer known as Christopher Columbus, has been documented in many different ways. Depending on the reading, Columbus has be called everything from a “[...]symbol of the new age of hope”, to an inhuman tyrant who captured Indians and turned them into slaves.

After many centuries, a lot of controversy still surrounds Christopher Columbus. He remains to be a strange figure in history regarded as a famous explorer and a great mariner who made many discoveries in his days. Other people still regard him as a visionary and a national hero while others chose to remember him as a brutal and greedy person who used the rest of the humanity for his own selfish gains. Despite the fact that there have been protests in his being honored through a holiday referred to as the Columbus Day, he still deserves recognition and acknowledgement as a historical figure performed a great role in the making of the modern world.

In 1492, Italian cartographer and explorer, Christopher Columbus, set off on a mission from Spain in order to find a quicker, alternative route to Asia. With him, Columbus brought eighty-seven men and three ships, the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa María, to sail across the large and vast Atlantic Ocean. Unfortunately for Columbus, a new route to Asia was never discovered by Spain that year because he had arrived in the Caribbean, which was found in North America. Thinking that he had just entered the Indies, he started to call the people of this land, “Indians”. These Indians were actually Native Americans who had lived on these lands for thousands of years prior. Immediately, letters from Columbus to the King and Queen of Spain were sent by boat back to Europe and soon Columbus was seen as the man who helped create a bridge of prosperous trading and riches between Europe and “Asia”.1 While this discovery proved that Columbus was a hero-like figure to Spain, it’s what he did within the new land that actually makes him one of the biggest villains to ever set foot on Earth. But what classifies this explorer as a villain? Columbus captured thousands of natives, many of which were sent back to Spain to live and work as slaves. Along with that, Columbus also forced the Christian religion onto them, spread diseases that killed thousands of lives, and used violence as a means of persuasion and control.2 Corrupted by his pursuit of riches,

It is thought by many that Christopher Columbus was a skilled sailor on a mission of greed. Many think that he in fact did it all for the money, honor and the status that comes with an explorer, but this is not the case entirely. Columbus was an adventurer and was enthused by the thrill of the quest of the unknown. “Columbus had a firm religious faith and a scientific curiosity, a zest for life, the felling for beauty and the striving for novelty that we associate with the advancement of learning”. He had heard of the legendary Atlantic voyages and sailors reports of land to the west of Madeira and the Azores. He believed that Japan was about 4,800 km to the west of Portugal. In 1484, Columbus wanted support for an exploratory

Jack Weatherford in his essay “Examining the Reputation of Christopher Columbus” proposes the idea that Columbus was not the person who people believe to have accomplished all the things we were told about him at a young age. Weatherford's determination and his persuasiveness can be seen with his use of emotional diction, fluid tone, and the logos juxtaposition of Columbus’s events with others.

Written by Jack Weatherford, professor of anthropology, “Examining the Reputation of Christopher Columbus” describes the misconceptions of Christopher Columbus, and who he was as a person. Through his writing, Weatherford is able to show readers that Columbus was not the hero he was made out to be. Weatherford uses tools such as diction, juxtaposition, and facts in the form of evidence to support his claim.

For my compare and contrast paper I decide to write about Christopher Columbus because he is big in geography and his name is known throughout the world, and not only in the United States, and he did a lot in his lifetime. And I know every student will learn about him in schools. Christopher Columbus is mentioned in Davis’ book; however, I also decide to do my own research as well.

Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer who received credit for the discovery of the Americas in 1492. His goal was to discover another route to India instead, he sailed across the Atlantic Ocean and arrived in Hispaniola which is present day Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Although, historians argue he did not technically discover the Americas, he opened trade routes between the Old World and the New World. He influenced later explorers and impacted the development of the Columbian Exchange. The historians present their attitudes towards the consequences and outcomes of Christopher Columbus and his discovery. They also state their argument on his controversial legacy about whether Christopher Columbus should be perceived as a hero or a villain.

Jack Weatherford, professor of anthropology at Macalester College, describes the misconceptions of Christopher Columbus and who he was as a person in his essay, “Examining the Reputation of Christopher Columbus”. Through his writing, Weatherford is able to show readers that Columbus was not the hero he is made out to be. Weatherford uses tools such as negative diction, juxtaposition, and facts in the form of evidence to support his claim.

Christopher Columbus was(and still is) celebrated. But more and more people are starting to question his voyage. The order sons of Italy wrote in “ why we should celebrate Columbus day” that Columbus is a positive figure and that his expeditions had many positive consequences. But Howard Zinn writes in “ Columbus and the Indians that he was an enslaver who killed many people. Another point of view is Mary Ann Castronovo’s, she writes in “ in person; in defense of Columbus” that Columbus should be remembered but not celebrated. This shows that Columbus is a debated and challenged character in our past.

Although the feats of Columbus were significant and greatly beneficial to society, the question may be raised at this point on why the controversy surrounding Columbus even exists, seeing the substantial contributions Columbus made to society, both of then and now. The

Christopher Columbus’s life was filled with adventures and new beginnings that would leave a remarkable impression throughout history. Born in 1451 in Genoa, Columbus from an early age would become well acclimated to sailing as he began his career aboard a merchant ship and later study mathematics, astronomy, cartography, and navigation. Growing up and experiencing new thing Columbus began to come up with a plan different from all others to set sail across the Atlantic instead of going around the African continent. With his ideas being turned away from both Portugal and England it was Ferdinand and Isabella who took sympathy upon him and financial back his voyage as they both had hopes of gaining fame and fortune. In 1942, Columbus began his voyages and would carefully document each experience in the form of letters that would have a lasting impact on the world. I believe with the dramatic change in tones we see between the first and fourth letters it gives us the reader a true insight into Columbus’s mental and physical emotions over the years. Furthermore, these letters allow us to explore a part of history that is considered monumental while gaining information of what took place over a ten-year journey.

As far as I can recall my existing knowledge from kindergarten to high school, Columbus has always been described as a heroic figure who overcame countless obstacles fearlessly and finally found the “New World.” For a long time, there were numerous authors, poets, and painters praising Columbus’s legendary journey and his extraordinary contribution to mankind. However, after reading “The Discovery of the Bahamas,” the sailing logs written by Columbus, I figured that Columbus may not be such a man who is worthy of all the praises. There are two literary works related to the subjects. The painting, “Christopher Columbus at the royal court of Spain,” was created in 1884 by Václav Brožík, and depicts Columbus requesting, from Queen Isabella, King Ferdinand and groups of courtiers, funding for additional voyages. The poem, “Prayer of Columbus,” written by Walt Whitman in 1874, expresses Columbus’s praise of God for all his achievements, believing that God would still be on his side even though he had been through all the sufferings. While Brožík’s painting creates imagery, directly expressing Columbus’s ambition by his posture, and implied Spaniards’ eagerness of power and building empires with the reactions of Queen Isabella I and Ferdinand V and a gathering of courtiers, Whitman employs repetition and religious iconography to create a sharp contrast between Columbus’s fearless, unconquerable mind in his early life and his helplessness at the end of his last voyage.