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Learning Exercise

Native People Meet the Conquistadors

This assignment asks students to compare the conquistadors' vision of their incursions into western hemisphere with the native populations' experience.
Course: Survey of Early American Literature
Material:
American Indian History and Related Issues
Date last modified:
May 16, 2002
Created by:
Kim Marie Lewis
License:
creative-commons creative-commons by
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American Indian History and Related Issues

American Indian History and Related Issues

This Website contains artwork, photographs,video and sound recordings which reflect the history and culture of Native... see more

Material Type:
Collection
Author:
Dr. Troy Johnson, CSU Long Beach
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Exercise




Reading Tasks:


  • Read the "Letter to Luis de Santangel Regarding the First
    Voyage" by Christoper Columbus. (This letter is anthologized in many Survey of
    American Literature texts. Specifically, it is available on pages 11-14 in the
    The Norton Anthology, vol. 1, 5th edition.)


  • Read the "The Devastation of the Indies" by Bartolome de
    las Casas. (This letter is anthologized in many Survey of American Literature
    texts. Specifically, it is available on pages 16-18 in the The Norton
    Anthology    , vol. 1, 5th edition.)



    Online Tasks


  • Go to "American
    Indian History and Related Issues" at www.csulb.edu/projects/ais/nae


  • Read the introductory material under the "American
    Indian History and Related Issues" website.


  • Click on Spanish in Meso-America


  • View the engravings and the descriptions on this page.


    Writing Tasks


  • Use complete sentences, to answer the following questions:


      1. What were Christopher' Columbus attitudes toward the "New World" and its inhabitants. Give at least five specific examples.


      2. What were Bartolome de las Casas' attitudes toward the "New World" and its inhabitants. Give at least five specific examples.


      3. How were the two explorer's attitudes similar?


      4. How were the two explorer's attitudes different?


      5. Describe the experience of the native people when the conquistadors arrived. Be specific.



      Please note that the "American Indian History and Related Issues" lacks sources for the quotes that accompany the illustrations. Thus your answer to #5 should be primarily based on the online illustrations, rather than the accompanying text.

      6. Was the clash between these two peoples inevitable? Why or why not?

    • Disciplines

    Audience

    Topics

    Literature
    History
    Native American Experience
    Diversity

    Type of Task

    Learning Objectives

    1) Give students an introduction to the first European writings in the "New World."

    2) Introduce students to the experiences of the prominent conquistadors in the southern western hemisphere.

    4) Encourage students to assess the attitudes of those conquistadors.

    5) Introduce students to the experience of the native populations in contact with those conquistadors.

    6) Encourage students to think critically about the clash between the two populations