Images of Columbus

by
Jennifer Majchrzak

Christopher Columbus is honored as the man who opened the doors to an Age of Discovery and exploration. Although he may not have been the first European to set foot onto the Americas, he did begin a wave of exploration in a new hemisphere. The time period of the age of discovery follows the end of the Middle Ages, which Columbus himself is a product. If it were not Columbus that brought European settlement to the New World, then it would have been some other explorer who probably started out with the same goals and ideas.

However, there are many individuals who would disagree with the above statement. They would say that Columbus destroyed all that was beautiful in the New World with his thirst for greed and fame, that he raped the lands and the women, and disrupted a civilization that lived for hundreds of years.

The question then becomes “Who is Christopher Columbus?” Is he really the man that some Americans describe as a hero, whose “journey was the first step in a long process that eventually produced the United States of America” (Royal 1) and to the “North American Revolutionaries, he was the Founding Fathers’ father” (Gates 29). Or is Columbus’ character flawed as other Americans might suggest. Some describe him as a ruthless slave trader who raped the virgin islands of the Caribbean and started the slave trade between the Old and New Worlds. So which image is right? That question is one that has been debated for years and will continue to be for years to come. It is one in which an individual alone can answer because it not only deals with historical facts but also ethics. This paper will present two opposing sides with enough facts concerning the controversy of the myth of Columbus versus the legend of Columbus in which you can decide if he really is a great hero or a man full of greed.

To fully understand the motives behind Columbus and his idea of sailing westward, you have to look at the time period in which he lived. He lived during a time when Europe was in great turmoil caused by disease, famine, and religious persecution. It was also the beginning of an era when finding a direct trade route to the Indies was important. He had the notion that by sailing westward he would find lands that he could claim in the name of Spain and spread Christianity to the people. The misconception behind the goal of Columbus’ voyages is that he was not out to attain wealth alone, “but to begin the final expansion of the Gospel that would usher in the end of time” (Royal 1). Columbus found truth in the Bible and believed that it was his duty to go out and spread the word of God (Royal 9). Columbus actually believed that it was his duty to spread Christianity to the Indians because when he encountered them he saw no form of worship or any idols that they prayed to for guidance. Columbus believed in the Bible and thought that when he reached this New World he had stumbled upon the entrance to the Garden of Eden.

As young American children we are taught that “Columbus sailed the ocean blue in fourteen hundred ninety-two...” and that he is given fame as the man who brought Europeans to new lands known as the Caribbean Islands. For this reason there are numerous town, cities, and street names in his honor, including our nations capital which bears the name District of Columbia.

The “Admiral of the Ocean Seas” (Gates 30), a title which Columbus called himself, is depicted in school books as the “model of bravery and perseverance, the all wise navigator whose nobility was equal to the discovery, almost to the creation of a New World” (Bushman 89). In 1794, Caleb Bingham published a school book in which he described Columbus as the “Father of American Progress” whose discovery of the New World allowed for a great many changes in progress of enterprise, science, and commerce (qtd in Bushman 104). It is no wonder that children grow up with the notion that Christopher Columbus was a great man who discovered new lands and was met with open arms by the peaceful natives. Columbus describes the natives in his journal entry as “the best people in the world the most peaceable...he cannot believe that a man has ever seen people so good hearted” (Todorov 36). It is quotes like these from Columbus himself that present the image in minds of Americans that his intentions were good and for the benefit of all humans kind. In a sense, all this is very true. Had it not been for Columbus, then we would not have some of the benefits that we do today.

Alan Sanoff writes that he “regards Columbus as the most important figure in human history” (Sanoff 1). Raymond Sokolov is quoted in his article “Stop Knocking Columbus” as saying that Columbus is the most influential man of modern times and that human life is more varied and interesting everywhere today because of the exchange of foods and food ideas that Columbus made possible (1). Like Sokolov, Sanoff believes that Columbus’ discovery created a great mixing of cultures that had a large amount of influence on the people that he encountered (1). Many great ecological changes occurred due to this great clash of cultures (Sanoff 1). Animal and plant species were traded between the Old and New Worlds (Sanoff 1). Cattle, pigs, and sugar moved into this new western hemisphere creating a new diet for the Indians while the exchange of tomatoes, corn, cocoa, and potatoes found its way into Europe (Auchincloss 9). The introduction of horses and the use of the wheel into the New World changed the daily way of life for the Indians (Auchincloss 9) and allowed the Europeans to continue to live their life as it had been in Europe. Sokolov says that the “exchange of foods is only one aspect of the total transformation of human culture that Columbus’ landfall in the Caribbean set into motion (1).

Columbus bashers are quick to judge on the negative character of the man who began the great Age of Discovery. But these people are just looking for facts to scar the character of this man (Royal 3). Historians sometimes do not look at the effects that Columbus’ discovery has given to us today. Environmentalists may argue that with the introduction of animals came the destruction of the countryside and its many natural plants. They could also argue that he brought along diseases in which the natives had no immunity against. What people do not take into consideration is that because of Columbus’ discovery, other individuals were able to produce vaccinations against these diseases and today small pox and measles no longer pose a threat (Sokolov 1).

Another reason in which the four voyages of Columbus should be celebrated is not because of the discovery of new land or the exchange of new foods and ideas, but rather that his discovery united the globe (McNeil 1). Before Columbus’ time the continents remained separated by large bodies of unknown waters in which human, plant, and animal communities remained isolated from each other (McNeil 1). Had it not been for Columbus’ voyages the known continents Europe, Africa, and Asia would not have been able to mix their cultures of the Old World with the New World and create the cultures of today (McNeil 1). The European, Asian, and African civilizations were close enough in which contact could be made and allow the exchange of ideas. When Columbus stumbled upon the Caribbean Islands, he came across a great civilization that had not yet been introduced to those ideas of the other great societies (McNeil 1). This is very important in history because these Indian civilizations resembled those of ancient civilizations (McNeil 1), like those of the Egyptians or Greeks. Through his bringing of European ideas he was able to help the Indian nations advance.

There was also exchange of cultural behaviors that flowed into the Old World from the New World (McNeil 2). “The exchange of new ideas, new resources and new models of political and social life” all intracated its way into the value system of the Old World (McNeil 2).

On the flip side of the argument there are those such as Kenneth Auchincloss who say that the legacy of Columbus is seem much different by other people (9). For some, Columbus’ discovery brought “slavery, conquest, disease, and humiliation” (Auchincloss 9) to the New World. John Dyson describes Columbus as a “compulsive social climber and snob, a religious zealot and prickly character who would knock down anyone who stood in his way” (357). Environmentalist, Native Americans, and religious organizations, such as the Protestant National Council of Churches, find no reason to honor a man who “triggered centuries of slavery, genocide, and environmental degradation” and consider the discovery of the Western Hemisphere to be an “invasion” rather than an opportunity for great things.

Many Columbus bashers, such as Kirkpatrick Sale, will point out the contradictory journal entries that Columbus makes regarding the Indians in his book Conquest of Paradise. As mentioned before, Columbus describes the Indians as peaceful, non-violent individuals. However, in another journal entry he describes the Indians quite differently (Todorov 38). They are now “savages filled with cruelty and inimical” (Todorov 38).

It was because of beliefs like these that Columbus and his men felt that it was their right to steal from the Indians and take whatever they felt they needed. Naturally the Indians began to see this as a new custom and in turn would steal from the Spanish; taking whatever they felt was necessary. However, Columbus felt it was necessary to punish the Indians when they were found to have stole something by cutting off their noses and ears because they were parts of the body that cannot be concealed from view (Todorov 40). It is this attitude that presents the strong Eurocentric image of the white man.

Columbus continually contradicts himself in his journal writings with describing how nice and good-natured the Indians. He in turn uses their warm heartedness as a way to make them good slaves. Columbus did not treat the Indians as the nice people they were but rather allowed them to be treated as “inanimate objects” (McFarland 5). Las Casas who claims to have been friends with Columbus writes about his witnessing of the “dashing of babies against rocks by Spanish soldiers, the atrocities they committed, the rapes, the disembowelment” (McFarland 4).

In February of 1495, Columbus’ ships were about to return home to Spain with its bounty. However the amount of goods expected by the monarchs was rather low so “Columbus therefore turned to a massive slave raid as a means for filling up the ships” (qtd in McFarland 5). Fifteen hundred men, women, and children were captured and penned up and guarded like cattle. Only 500 of the best specimens were forced aboard the ship and sent to Spain. When the boat arrived in port, 300 of the 500 Arawak Indians captured had survived the journey across the sea (McFarland 5). Thus began the great Trans-Atlantic slave route between the New World and Spain with Columbus as the leader.

One objective of Christopher Columbus was to attain wealth through gold and spices. When he first encountered the Indians he noticed small amounts of gold pierced to their bodies. So “he sent the Indians out in quest of gold so he could bring it back to his sponsors in Spain” (McFarland 5). In his quest for gold, Columbus set up a quota in gold for every Indian, man or woman over the age of fourteen, had to get within a three-month period. However, if this quota was not met, then Columbus would order their arms to be chopped off with axes and allow them to bleed to death to set an example for the other Indians to ensure that they would meet their quota (McFarland 5). Obviously Columbus “saw nothing wrong with the enslavement of the American Indians and making them work for Spanish masters” (McFarland 116). Columbus justified his actions by saying that he was sending heathens to Spain in chains not Christians and that African slave masters were sending African slaves to Spain also, so why couldn’t he too (McFarland 116). It was for reason such as these, along with his inability to politically act as governor, that Columbus, along with his brother, were returned to Spain after his third voyage in chains.

Not only did Columbus rape the land of precious metals, he also raped the women. Kirkpatrick Sale in his book Conquest of Paradise writes about a night when Columbus “captured a beautiful Carib woman...conceived desire to take pleasure...which she did not want and treated me with her finger nails...I took a rope and thrashed her well, for which she raised unheard screams...” (140). Here was this Christian man dominating the weaker sex for pleasures of his own.

With Columbus’ arrival in the New World he not only brought with him traditions and customs and cattle and flora of the Old World, he also brought along disease. The native Indians had been isolated from all the viruses and bacteria that live and thrived in Europe. They had no type of immunity or cure for diseases such as small pox and measles that would wipe out millions of Indians (Schroeder 1). It was germs that hurt the Indians more than their enslavement or mistreatment. Columbus was very generous in his giving back to Spain. Not only did he supply wealth to the country, bring back naked Indians, strange birds, and foods, but he also helped to start the spreading of the sexually transmitted disease Syphilis throughout Europe (Auchincloss 9).

Why is none of this information ever taught to children? Could it be that it is too brutal and gruesome and contains images that would resemble those from an R-rated movie? Or is it that it could ruin the image of this great American hero who we have placed upon a pedestal like a mythological figure that could never do anything wrong. But guess what? He is human and yes Columbus did make mistakes. What difference is there between Columbus and other ancient conquerors like those Khans of the Mongol dynasty or African tribes that conquered other civilizations? All of which following Darwin’s age-old saying of the “Survival of the Fittest.”

So then where is my position on the character of Columbus? When I first began researching this paper, I thought that there would be no way that Columbus could not fit the image that I was taught in elementary school. The image of this Spanish explorer who after spending months at sea finally stumbled upon the shores of what he thought to be the opposite side of Cathay or Cipango. I held the image in my mind that he was welcomed upon the shores by the natives in the same fashion that the pilgrims were welcomed onto the shores of North America by the Native American Indians. However, that image became shattered when I read about the brutal treatment of the Indians, their enslavement, and the destruction of a paradise.

Columbus’ vision to spread Christianity to the Indians and baptize them in the name of the Lord was understandable for the time period in which he lived. However, he did not practice what he preached. The fact that the Church allowed the slayings and beatings of people to continue for decades until the Indians were finally declared to be humans really questions my own morals and those preached by the Church. Although Columbus’ intentions may have been good at the time, it has taken five hundred years for people to begin to notice the horror of what actually occurred on the islands in the Caribbean.

However, I do not blame Columbus for what occurred on the islands of present-day Haiti, Jamaica, The Dominican Republic, or the Bahamas. Columbus acted in a manner in which he was accustomed, that being that the conqueror should reap the benefits of those he conquered. It may not be seemed justified in the eyes of Native Americans, or the descendents of the Arawaks or Tianos Indians, but in my beliefs Columbus is a man that brought forth a great many changes to better the way of life for people today. For if it was not for his voyages and his discovery of the this New World then great nations such as the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and many others would not have been created (McFarland 119).

Works Cited

Auchincloss, Kenneth. “When Worlds Collide.” Newsweek Magazine. Fall/Winter 1991:8-13.

Bushman, Claudia L. America Discovers Columbus. Hanover: University Press of New England, 1992.

Confronting Columbus. Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Company, Inc., Publishers, 1992. >P> Dyson, John. “Columbus: For Gold, God, and Glory.” 12/91, vol. 6 no. 12: 357-321.

Gates, David. “Who was Columbus?” Newsweek Magazine. Fall/Winter 1991: 29-31.

McNeil, William H. “How Columbus Remade the World.” NEH Humanities. Vol. 1 no.6: Dec 1985. (CIRS McNeil1.ART)

Royal, Robert. “Columbus on Trial: 1492 v 1992” (CIRS Royal02.ART)

Sale, Kirkpatrick. Conquest of Paradise. A Plume Book. New York, NY 1990.

Sanoff, Alvin P. “The Myths of Columbus.” U.S. News and World Report. 8 Oct. 1990. (CIRS Sanoff01.ART)

Schroeder, Richard C. “Should We Scuttle the Admiral of the Ocean Sea?” The Times of the Americas. 29 May 1991: 20+. (CIRS Schroed1.ART)

Sokolov, Raymond. “Stop Knocking Columbus.” Newsweek Magazine. Vol. 1 no. 6, Dec. 1985. (CIRS Sokolov2.ART)

Todorov, Tzvetan. The Conquest of America. Harper Perennial Publishers. New York, NY 1982.