Why Were The Europeans Able To Be 'Native Americans Or Conquerors'?
“The discovery of America, and that of the passage to the East Indies by the Cape of Good
Hope, are the two greatest events recorded in the history of [human] kind” —Adam Smith, in
The Wealth of Nations When it comes to the Europeans conquering the Americas, Professor Jared Diamond, of
UCLA, has come up with the theory that what separated the winners from the losers, was not luck, strength, or numbers, but the lay of the land. It was the geographic locations where the diverse cultures chose to stay that determined their ability to grow, and flourish, or be left behind in terms of welfare. So, why exactly were the Europeans able to conquer the America’s, and why is it that they are said to be “accidental conquerors”? To start, at that time, the America’s were settled largely by Native Americans of course, …show more content…
When the Europeans first started their conquests in South America, they were met by these very different cultures, who probably had no idea what to think of these white men. These native people did not have a unified name for themselves. As a result, the Europeans called them “Indians”, which was a term that came from Christopher Columbus’s idea that he had found a new passage to India. The
Europeans had several opinions of the Natives. For one, they found that the Indians were receptive, gentle, and eager to trade. But at the same time, some of the Natives were said to be less than receptive, or peaceful. This may be in part to how the Europeans treated them. Often the Europeans would peacefully introduce themselves to the Natives, to only take them captive, take their belongings, or kill days later. These interactions alone show that the Europeans were very dominant over the Indians. One of the main reasons the Europeans enjoyed so much success in their conquests was
Hope, are the two greatest events recorded in the history of [human] kind” —Adam Smith, in
The Wealth of Nations When it comes to the Europeans conquering the Americas, Professor Jared Diamond, of
UCLA, has come up with the theory that what separated the winners from the losers, was not luck, strength, or numbers, but the lay of the land. It was the geographic locations where the diverse cultures chose to stay that determined their ability to grow, and flourish, or be left behind in terms of welfare. So, why exactly were the Europeans able to conquer the America’s, and why is it that they are said to be “accidental conquerors”? To start, at that time, the America’s were settled largely by Native Americans of course, …show more content…
When the Europeans first started their conquests in South America, they were met by these very different cultures, who probably had no idea what to think of these white men. These native people did not have a unified name for themselves. As a result, the Europeans called them “Indians”, which was a term that came from Christopher Columbus’s idea that he had found a new passage to India. The
Europeans had several opinions of the Natives. For one, they found that the Indians were receptive, gentle, and eager to trade. But at the same time, some of the Natives were said to be less than receptive, or peaceful. This may be in part to how the Europeans treated them. Often the Europeans would peacefully introduce themselves to the Natives, to only take them captive, take their belongings, or kill days later. These interactions alone show that the Europeans were very dominant over the Indians. One of the main reasons the Europeans enjoyed so much success in their conquests was