Europe And The New World :: essays research papers fc

Europe and the ‘New World’ Tutorial Question: Why were the ‘westerners’ (Spanish, English, Portuguese’s, French etc) able to displace the native people’s of America with, seemingly, relative ease? Was this evidence of a superior ‘civilisation’? Many believe that there is a great difference between ‘westerners’ and the native people of the lands they conquered. The truth is, that there is not great distinction, except in the minds of white men. ‘Westerners’ such as the French, Spanish, English and Portuguese have always believed in their own superiority. This confidence gave them the strength to displace the natives and also the justification for doing so. The civilized world seemed to grow, and change with new directions being mastered all the time, the ‘non civilized’ world seemed to stand still in a era recognized by Europeans as unprogressive and primitive. The Europeans viewed the Native Americans with mixed opinion, in many ways they despised their ignorance, while at the same time being in awe of their innocence. Despite this, leading opinion was that the native people of the new world were inferior to the Europeans and would have to become domesticated if they were to survive in the ‘new world.’ However was this triumph over the inhabitants of the land evidence of a superior civilisation? How does one define ‘Civilisation’? For if we are to discuss what is a superior and an inferior race then understanding of the term ‘civilisation’ is critical. The term ‘civilisation’ is used everyday and is understood by everyone, yet a proper definition is more difficult to pin down. The oxford university dictionary defines civilisation as: ‘a developed or advanced sate of human society.’ This is helpful, yet the question of how developed or how advanced is still relevant. Others have said that a civilized society is different from an uncivilized society because of certain attributes such as writing, cities, building etc. But agreement is difficult, it is much more safer not to rely on a single definition, instead look at examples of what everyone has agreed to call civilisations such as Greek or Rome . However, the term ‘civilisation’ still seems to be from a western point of view, for natives are not seen as civiliz ed because they do not fit into any definition mentioned above. The Native Americans were not advanced, they did not have buildings or cities and their lifestyle and customs had hardly resembled that of Greece or Rome.