How does the view of colonialism reflect in “Concerning the islands recently discovered” and “The Venus Hottentot” and how do they compare? Columbus takes a positive view of the colonialism from the perspective of the conquerors. He sees that their encroachment of the islands is beneficial for both the natives and the Spaniards. . He sees them as a source of profit for Spain because the natives have do not have the same concept of values that the Europeans have, to quote Christopher Columbus “ A certain sailor obtained in exchange for a shoelace tips as much worth of gold as would equal three golden coins (Concerning the Islands Recently Discovered page 359).” Like most Europeans at the time of colonialism there was a desire to convert the indigenous populations to Christianity so was true with Columbus “ Let Christ rejoice on earth, as he rejoices in heaven, when he foresees coming to salvation so many souls of people hitherto lost (Concerning the Islands Recently Discovered page 362).” “The Venus Hottentot” shows another side of the effects of colonialism. A Venus Hottentot were certain women taken from Africa who were displayed because of their strange physical appearance. They were placed on show for audiences in Europe to be scrutinized just as it says in the poem “ London’s circuses are florid and filthy swarming with cabbage- smelling citizens who stare and query, “is it muscle? Bone? Or fat? (The Venus Hottentot page 395) The people are dehumanized to the point where they are being shown with pigs who can “tell time and fortunes by scraping his hooves (The Venus Hottentot page 395).” One of the most famous women Sarah Baartman who was a Venus Hottentot was put on display in England where she was displayed for many years until she died and was preserved to still be put on show. These people had every shred of human dignity torn away from them where their “own genitals are public ( The Venus Hottentot page 396).” This also happened in England because these women had very strangely formed genitalia and after they died this was shown to all onlookers seeking the strange. Words 361
#12 Columbus and Alexander What is the connection between the two readings? Do both of these show how the white man is obsessed with examining those that are different from themselves? At first I was unable to connect the two readings, but after reading the poem a second time through, it became a little clearer. These are both about the white man’s ignorance towards those that are different and the belief that they are superior. Columbus says, “the Indians call it Guanahany. I also called each one of the others by a new name. For I ordered the islands to be called Santa Maria of the Conception, another Fernandina, another Isabella, another Juana, and so on with the rest” (Mercer Reader 357). He gives no care to the fact that natives their own name for the islands and places that he “discovered” but he gives them his own names anyway. Columbus also expects the country to be set up in the same way as his own. He sent men to travel and try to find “whether there was a king in this country, or any cities” (357). Columbus and his men come onto the land in which they “discovered” (even though there are already inhabitants there) and begin evaluating the land and the people on it. According to Columbus, there are “great and beautiful mountains, vast fields, groves, fertile plains, very suitable for planting and cultivating, and for the building of houses” (358). Immediately, they claim the land as their own and begin deciding what could be done with it. In the poem “The Venus Hottentot” by Alexander, she is showing the cruelty of what the white men called “science”. The white man says, “science, science, science! Everything is beautiful blown up beneath my glass” (394). The beginning of this poem is all about the white man and his beautiful science where he does research that only he can see. This is contradicted by the woman who was tricked into coming to London with promises of “revenue: half the profits and my passage home” (395), but ends up “a black cutout against a captive blue sky, pivoting nude so the paying audience can view my naked buttocks” (395). The man “investigates between [her] legs, poking, prodding, sure of his hypothesis . . . he complains at my scent and does not think I comprehend, but I speak English” (396). The man automatically believes that she is unable to communicate and treats her like an animal or a scientific piece of evidence verses and actual person. Word Count: 425
How does “The Venus Hottentot” compare to how the Indians or Columbus may have felt during this new journey? How could either of these people have changed their outcomes?
When first reading these two, I thought that “The Venus Hottentot” was a good comparison to how Christopher Columbus and the Indians may have felt when they first met each other. “I left Capetown with a promise of revenue: half the profits and my passage home,” this woman was promised riches yet when she arrived to London she got nothing like that (Alexander 395). This woman went to a new land not knowing what to expect, just like Christopher Columbus traveled to the new world not knowing what lay in store for them. “I proceeded farther, thinking that I would discover some city or large residences,” Christopher Columbus was out trying to find the end of this new world, but did not know where to stop (Columbus 357). “…I proceeded along its coast towards the west for some distance; I found it so large and without perceptible end, that I believed it to be not an island, but the continental country of Cathay…” Christopher Columbus did not know what to expect when he got on that ship and traveled to the new world (357). This same feeling was like the woman who was tricked into going to London. She was promised luxury, “I would return to my family a duchess, with watered-silk dresses and money to grow food…” yet the chance of her ever going home was very slim (Alexander 395). She had been tricked into this lifestyle. “Monsieur Cuvier investigates between my legs, poking, prodding, sure of his hypothesis” this young woman was put through the trials of something unexpected (396). This relates to the same way the Indians probably felt when Columbus showed up in their land. They were found in a compromising place, not the same as this young woman, but it did put them in a place where they were not comfortable and did not know what to do for them.
Christopher Columbus’s short work, “Concerning the islands Recently Discovered” was about his trip that he made to an island, which he described as “very beautiful, and distinguished by various qualities; they are accessible, and full of a great variety of trees stretching up to the stars; the leaves of which I believe are never shed, for I saw them as green and flourishing as they are usually in Spain in the month of May” (Columbus). When he arrived, he was shocked to see that all of the Indians were stuck together like a pack and they “understand everything mutually,” something the King wished he had control over his people (Columbus). However, Columbus still “proceeded farther, thinking that I [he] would discover some city or large residences,” but he found out that the Indians were lacking “every kind of iron” (Columbus). With this advantage, Columbus and his people tried to exchange everything that were worthless for something that was worthy to the Indians. “A certain sailor obtained in exchange for a shoelace tips as much worth of gold as would equal three golden coins” indicated how ignorant the white men were to the Indians. In “The Venus Hottentot” by Elizabeth Alexander, there were some similarities to Christopher Columbus’s short work. In “The Venus Hottentot,” the women were degraded and were used as an entertainment to those who wished to see something strange. They were kept in display glasses and stayed there until they died because they looked “different” from the people around them. Similarly, the women were seen as “science, science, science” instead of a human being (394). They were degraded and cheated for their goods just like the Indians in “Concerning the islands recently Discovered” by Columbus. Both of these groups were welcoming and open to the people who came onto their lands, but the power hungry men were so anxious and desired so much wealth and fame that they took these people and their goods and used it for their own.
1. How is an admiration different from respecting a culture? Christopher Columbus shows that admiration can be felt, written down and claimed, while respect must be brought to an action. He clearly admires the “Indians”, however, he names their islands in his language, “each one (…) by a new name” (357). Columbus likes the indigenous people, who “show greater love for all others than for themselves”, who have an “excellent and acute understanding”, “great love and an extraordinary goodwill” (359-360). However, his personal appreciation does not grow into invaders’ respect towards the natives, for he writes about shipping “many slaves for the navy” and exploiting the newfound land. Columbus’ shown admiration and a rather objective view on the natives crush with the greed of the nation he is serving. Columbus writes about the palm trees that “far excel ours in height and beauty, just as all the other trees, herbs and fruits do” (358). He shows sensitivity towards nature and true admiration writing that “all these islands are very beautiful, and distinguished by various qualities” (358). He does not only mention the economic gains of Spain, he is also lyrical and praises the nightingales in the new land. Nevertheless, he is willing to use the land and its people as a resource for Spain. The contrast between the admiration and the lack of respect illustrates how a man can feel and do both: appreciate and even understand a culture and participate in its destruction. Sure, Columbus did not have a lot of choice. He was serving his country and he was forced to leave his Spanish soldiers to look after the natives; he was forced to report on the unarmed natives, who are “too cowardly” to attack (361). He was a man of responsibilities. 2. In “The Venus Hottentot” Cuvier appreciates beauty of his scientific evidence, but is able to work with the woman without any compassion. Science and art are often compared and seen as similar if not equal (for an example, Nobel prize is given for both). However, art often seems to be more human than science. Is science a part of humanity or is it often apart from humanity? 362 words
What does the letter from Christopher Columbus show about the assumption of one’s culture being correct? Are divisions in society drawn more so around race or around religion?
Both Christopher Columbus and Elizabeth Alexander’s stories show a dark side of human nature. It shows the belief of humans that one man is better than another, and that color makes a difference in the basic assumptions of character. Christopher Columbus declared the natives of the new islands “of all which I took possession for our most fortunate king”. And in “The Venus Hottentot”, a girl of darker heritage is put on display for others to see and observe while she is quite possibly more learned and better educated than the people observing her. All of this was the unfortunate culture that was so prevalent in the past and is still quite prevalent today in many ways as well. What is so funny though is that the natives that Columbus discovers probably have a better sense of justice than the Spaniards do, and yet Columbus finds them strange. Columbus says about them, “refusing no one who asks for anything they may possess, and even themselves inviting us to ask for thing.” (Columbus 359) They show the concept that Jesus proposed in the New Testament as the ideal Jew. He commanded people to give up the riches that you have in favor of the poor, and to care more for the welfare of others than your own. These natives were in many ways better Christians than the Spaniards, but still Columbus says he hopes to be able to convert them (Columbus 359). In “The Venus Hottentot”, a girl of dark skin is put on display in a circus in London. She is viewed as strange and unusual because of her skin. They treat her like an animal. However, through the reading, it is discovered that she is quite intelligent and was deceived about what she would be doing. She is stuck in the stereotypes of society that sticks people in a certain division. This division is not just made around race, but gender as well. Word Count 352
How is the exploitation of an indigenous population justified by Columbus and his explorers? What is the correlation between Columbus’s expedition and Alexander’s writing? One of the main themes within both of these writings is the idea of exploitation. In Columbus’s expedition, he travels to undiscovered islands and observes several different populations of natives, and takes note of how each population treats him and his companions (Mercer Reader 357). Some of them he avoids, for they are hostile, but others make trade with him and are rather friendly (360-361). However, all of the natives that come into contact with Columbus are being exploited in some way or another; for they were all happy and content before Columbus came along. Columbus justifies this exploitation with religion; even going so far as to name the first island he discovered after the name of the Saviour (357). He also mentions the possibility of converting some of the natives to Christianity; something that could be considered morally wrong (360). The justification of an act based on religion is something that has been rather common since mankind’s existence. For example, many of the laws that govern our nation are heavily influenced by religion. Alexander’s writing also talks about exploration, though through the eyes of a woman living in London. The woman in the story leaves her home to gain money, but ends up staying in London, exploiting herself for the entertainment of others (395). This kind of exploitation is not justified at all; calling the people who pay her “twisted” and “deformed” (397). This is where the idea of exploitation differs from that of Columbus. Elizabeth Alexander says the exploitation of the self cannot be justified by any means, whereas Columbus justifies his exploitation of the native people with religion. This kind of distinction between the two seems different, but ultimately, they are the same. The exploitation of anything is something that usually causes more harm than good. (Word Count 323).
Both Christopher Columbus and Elizabeth Alexander talk about spoiling the beauty of a pure thing. In the poem “The Venus Hottentot” by Elizabeth Alexander the girl in the poem is spoiled by people who are exploiting her purity by tricking her into coming to England with them. Had she not been tricked into believing the kindness of these strangers then she would still be safe at home with her family and her “farm life” (Alexander 396). Just as the girl was tricked into believing that she would be safe with her now captors, Christopher Columbus tricked the Indians into believing he was there to help them, but his acts were to make them “friendly to [him]” (Columbus 359). Once he had them believing he was there to help them he was able to take advantage of everything they had. He was always looking at their land for its opportunities and its “suitab[ility] for planting and cultivating, and for the building of houses” (358). He always saw past the people and was looking towards what they could offer him and Spain. Profit allowed both exploiters in both stories to see past the normal human emotion and plight and see it for how it could benefit them. They were able to do things that normally they would not do or condone. They were so convinced in their ways that they were able to lose sight of how they should treat people and were able to commit atrocities. With these acts of inhumanity the people had to separate themselves from their ways. The girl had to separate heself from reality to keep herself safe from the horrible things around her and the Indians had to abandon their ways in favor of a “universal Christendom” that was imposed on them by the Spaniards (362).
This is a definite change of pace regarding our reading set before us this evening. We are given Christopher Columbus’s account of the new world as well as an interesting poem by Elizabeth Alexander. I want to focus on the Alexander poem. “The Venus Hottentot” initially sounds like a simple poem describing the beauty of the world around us. Then Alexander states, “There is unexpected sund today in London, and the clouds that most days sift into this cage where I am working have dispersed. I am a black cutout against a captive blue sky, pivoting nude so the paying audience can view my naked buttocks” (Alexander 395). This is the first stanza of the second part of the poem and truly gives us an idea of what is occurring. It seems a young African American woman is trapped. Maybe this cage is literal or metaphorical, nonetheless it has confined her. She is encased and forced to show herself to the surrounding world. This leads to the idea that she is being held as a prostitute. This idea is confirmed when Alexander says, “Since my own genitals are public I have made other parts private” (396). From this we understand that this woman has been forced to give her body for sexual pleasure to others. We can also tell she was deceived when Alexander says, “I left Capetown with a promise of revenue: half the profits and my passage home: A boon” (395). Instantly, the thought of sex trafficking comes to mind. This woman was promise fortune and fame. Whoever ensnared her with these words knew the truth, yet continued to fool this innocent woman in to a life of solitude. This happens daily in our current culture. Women are deceived or even taken against their own will in order to serve the corrupted ideals of another human being. Why do these atrocities take place? What can we do to prevent them? Word Count: 322
Does sexual exploitation obliterate individualization? Do differences necessarily bring about superiors and inferiors?
Within Alexander’s “The Venus Hottentot” is depicted a woman who “left Capetown with a promise of revenue: half the profits and [a] passage home” (Mercer Reader 395). The individual is subjected to a life so inferior to her superiors, so demoralizing that individualization seems to halt. However, the individual does “speak English [and] Dutch. [She] speak[s] a little French as well… Now [she is] bitter and now [she] is sick” (396). Through the exploitation of her body, emotional and physical suffering breed only writing and imagery so disturbingly grotesque, so refined that the system which oppresses her, to the reader, no longer maintains its validity. It exists now only as a system run by indecency and greed. Since her “own genitals are public, {she] has made other parts private” (396). This serves to illustrate that dehumanization by oppressors is not successful in ridding the individual of any human attributes but serves only as a system collectively executed by members of an oppressive party, leaving only more room for individualization, though not made public. Columbus writes “Concerning the Islands Recently Discovered in the Indian Sea” as a memoir of all that transpired on his immediate journey to the Americas. He notes that “all these islands are very beautiful, and distinguished by various qualities; some [fruit] were in other conditions; each one was thriving in its own way” (358). The fruits in this passage relate to the discovery of different ways of living. Christopher Columbus saw the different plants are beautiful but saw another way of living as human beings as inferior. He hopes that the natives “might be made worshippers of Christ,” (359) as if their own religion was inferior and he had a duty to “save their souls.” There are, however, many similarities between the native and the Spaniards; “for in a short time, we understood them and they us” (359). Commonalities are shown but are overruled by differences in religious and warfare practices.
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ReplyDeleteHow does the view of colonialism reflect in “Concerning the islands recently discovered” and “The Venus Hottentot” and how do they compare?
ReplyDeleteColumbus takes a positive view of the colonialism from the perspective of the conquerors. He sees that their encroachment of the islands is beneficial for both the natives and the Spaniards. . He sees them as a source of profit for Spain because the natives have do not have the same concept of values that the Europeans have, to quote Christopher Columbus “ A certain sailor obtained in exchange for a shoelace tips as much worth of gold as would equal three golden coins (Concerning the Islands Recently Discovered page 359).” Like most Europeans at the time of colonialism there was a desire to convert the indigenous populations to Christianity so was true with Columbus “ Let Christ rejoice on earth, as he rejoices in heaven, when he foresees coming to salvation so many souls of people hitherto lost (Concerning the Islands Recently Discovered page 362).”
“The Venus Hottentot” shows another side of the effects of colonialism. A Venus Hottentot were certain women taken from Africa who were displayed because of their strange physical appearance. They were placed on show for audiences in Europe to be scrutinized just as it says in the poem “ London’s circuses are florid and filthy swarming with cabbage- smelling citizens who stare and query, “is it muscle? Bone? Or fat? (The Venus Hottentot page 395) The people are dehumanized to the point where they are being shown with pigs who can “tell time and fortunes by scraping his hooves (The Venus Hottentot page 395).” One of the most famous women Sarah Baartman who was a Venus Hottentot was put on display in England where she was displayed for many years until she died and was preserved to still be put on show. These people had every shred of human dignity torn away from them where their “own genitals are public ( The Venus Hottentot page 396).” This also happened in England because these women had very strangely formed genitalia and after they died this was shown to all onlookers seeking the strange.
Words 361
Candace's Daily
ReplyDelete#12 Columbus and Alexander
What is the connection between the two readings?
Do both of these show how the white man is obsessed with examining those that are different from themselves?
At first I was unable to connect the two readings, but after reading the poem a second time through, it became a little clearer. These are both about the white man’s ignorance towards those that are different and the belief that they are superior. Columbus says, “the Indians call it Guanahany. I also called each one of the others by a new name. For I ordered the islands to be called Santa Maria of the Conception, another Fernandina, another Isabella, another Juana, and so on with the rest” (Mercer Reader 357). He gives no care to the fact that natives their own name for the islands and places that he “discovered” but he gives them his own names anyway. Columbus also expects the country to be set up in the same way as his own. He sent men to travel and try to find “whether there was a king in this country, or any cities” (357). Columbus and his men come onto the land in which they “discovered” (even though there are already inhabitants there) and begin evaluating the land and the people on it. According to Columbus, there are “great and beautiful mountains, vast fields, groves, fertile plains, very suitable for planting and cultivating, and for the building of houses” (358). Immediately, they claim the land as their own and begin deciding what could be done with it. In the poem “The Venus Hottentot” by Alexander, she is showing the cruelty of what the white men called “science”. The white man says, “science, science, science! Everything is beautiful blown up beneath my glass” (394). The beginning of this poem is all about the white man and his beautiful science where he does research that only he can see. This is contradicted by the woman who was tricked into coming to London with promises of “revenue: half the profits and my passage home” (395), but ends up “a black cutout against a captive blue sky, pivoting nude so the paying audience can view my naked buttocks” (395). The man “investigates between [her] legs, poking, prodding, sure of his hypothesis . . . he complains at my scent and does not think I comprehend, but I speak English” (396). The man automatically believes that she is unable to communicate and treats her like an animal or a scientific piece of evidence verses and actual person.
Word Count: 425
How does “The Venus Hottentot” compare to how the Indians or Columbus may have felt during this new journey?
ReplyDeleteHow could either of these people have changed their outcomes?
When first reading these two, I thought that “The Venus Hottentot” was a good comparison to how Christopher Columbus and the Indians may have felt when they first met each other. “I left Capetown with a promise of revenue: half the profits and my passage home,” this woman was promised riches yet when she arrived to London she got nothing like that (Alexander 395). This woman went to a new land not knowing what to expect, just like Christopher Columbus traveled to the new world not knowing what lay in store for them. “I proceeded farther, thinking that I would discover some city or large residences,” Christopher Columbus was out trying to find the end of this new world, but did not know where to stop (Columbus 357). “…I proceeded along its coast towards the west for some distance; I found it so large and without perceptible end, that I believed it to be not an island, but the continental country of Cathay…” Christopher Columbus did not know what to expect when he got on that ship and traveled to the new world (357). This same feeling was like the woman who was tricked into going to London. She was promised luxury, “I would return to my family a duchess, with watered-silk dresses and money to grow food…” yet the chance of her ever going home was very slim (Alexander 395). She had been tricked into this lifestyle. “Monsieur Cuvier investigates between my legs, poking, prodding, sure of his hypothesis” this young woman was put through the trials of something unexpected (396). This relates to the same way the Indians probably felt when Columbus showed up in their land. They were found in a compromising place, not the same as this young woman, but it did put them in a place where they were not comfortable and did not know what to do for them.
Word Count: 315
Christopher Columbus’s short work, “Concerning the islands Recently Discovered” was about his trip that he made to an island, which he described as “very beautiful, and distinguished by various qualities; they are accessible, and full of a great variety of trees stretching up to the stars; the leaves of which I believe are never shed, for I saw them as green and flourishing as they are usually in Spain in the month of May” (Columbus). When he arrived, he was shocked to see that all of the Indians were stuck together like a pack and they “understand everything mutually,” something the King wished he had control over his people (Columbus). However, Columbus still “proceeded farther, thinking that I [he] would discover some city or large residences,” but he found out that the Indians were lacking “every kind of iron” (Columbus). With this advantage, Columbus and his people tried to exchange everything that were worthless for something that was worthy to the Indians. “A certain sailor obtained in exchange for a shoelace tips as much worth of gold as would equal three golden coins” indicated how ignorant the white men were to the Indians.
ReplyDeleteIn “The Venus Hottentot” by Elizabeth Alexander, there were some similarities to Christopher Columbus’s short work. In “The Venus Hottentot,” the women were degraded and were used as an entertainment to those who wished to see something strange. They were kept in display glasses and stayed there until they died because they looked “different” from the people around them. Similarly, the women were seen as “science, science, science” instead of a human being (394). They were degraded and cheated for their goods just like the Indians in “Concerning the islands recently Discovered” by Columbus. Both of these groups were welcoming and open to the people who came onto their lands, but the power hungry men were so anxious and desired so much wealth and fame that they took these people and their goods and used it for their own.
1. How is an admiration different from respecting a culture?
ReplyDeleteChristopher Columbus shows that admiration can be felt, written down and claimed, while respect must be brought to an action. He clearly admires the “Indians”, however, he names their islands in his language, “each one (…) by a new name” (357). Columbus likes the indigenous people, who “show greater love for all others than for themselves”, who have an “excellent and acute understanding”, “great love and an extraordinary goodwill” (359-360). However, his personal appreciation does not grow into invaders’ respect towards the natives, for he writes about shipping “many slaves for the navy” and exploiting the newfound land.
Columbus’ shown admiration and a rather objective view on the natives crush with the greed of the nation he is serving. Columbus writes about the palm trees that “far excel ours in height and beauty, just as all the other trees, herbs and fruits do” (358). He shows sensitivity towards nature and true admiration writing that “all these islands are very beautiful, and distinguished by various qualities” (358). He does not only mention the economic gains of Spain, he is also lyrical and praises the nightingales in the new land. Nevertheless, he is willing to use the land and its people as a resource for Spain.
The contrast between the admiration and the lack of respect illustrates how a man can feel and do both: appreciate and even understand a culture and participate in its destruction. Sure, Columbus did not have a lot of choice. He was serving his country and he was forced to leave his Spanish soldiers to look after the natives; he was forced to report on the unarmed natives, who are “too cowardly” to attack (361). He was a man of responsibilities.
2. In “The Venus Hottentot” Cuvier appreciates beauty of his scientific evidence, but is able to work with the woman without any compassion. Science and art are often compared and seen as similar if not equal (for an example, Nobel prize is given for both). However, art often seems to be more human than science. Is science a part of humanity or is it often apart from humanity?
362 words
What does the letter from Christopher Columbus show about the assumption of one’s culture being correct?
ReplyDeleteAre divisions in society drawn more so around race or around religion?
Both Christopher Columbus and Elizabeth Alexander’s stories show a dark side of human nature. It shows the belief of humans that one man is better than another, and that color makes a difference in the basic assumptions of character. Christopher Columbus declared the natives of the new islands “of all which I took possession for our most fortunate king”. And in “The Venus Hottentot”, a girl of darker heritage is put on display for others to see and observe while she is quite possibly more learned and better educated than the people observing her. All of this was the unfortunate culture that was so prevalent in the past and is still quite prevalent today in many ways as well.
What is so funny though is that the natives that Columbus discovers probably have a better sense of justice than the Spaniards do, and yet Columbus finds them strange. Columbus says about them, “refusing no one who asks for anything they may possess, and even themselves inviting us to ask for thing.” (Columbus 359) They show the concept that Jesus proposed in the New Testament as the ideal Jew. He commanded people to give up the riches that you have in favor of the poor, and to care more for the welfare of others than your own. These natives were in many ways better Christians than the Spaniards, but still Columbus says he hopes to be able to convert them (Columbus 359).
In “The Venus Hottentot”, a girl of dark skin is put on display in a circus in London. She is viewed as strange and unusual because of her skin. They treat her like an animal. However, through the reading, it is discovered that she is quite intelligent and was deceived about what she would be doing. She is stuck in the stereotypes of society that sticks people in a certain division. This division is not just made around race, but gender as well.
Word Count 352
How is the exploitation of an indigenous population justified by Columbus and his explorers?
ReplyDeleteWhat is the correlation between Columbus’s expedition and Alexander’s writing?
One of the main themes within both of these writings is the idea of exploitation. In Columbus’s expedition, he travels to undiscovered islands and observes several different populations of natives, and takes note of how each population treats him and his companions (Mercer Reader 357). Some of them he avoids, for they are hostile, but others make trade with him and are rather friendly (360-361). However, all of the natives that come into contact with Columbus are being exploited in some way or another; for they were all happy and content before Columbus came along. Columbus justifies this exploitation with religion; even going so far as to name the first island he discovered after the name of the Saviour (357). He also mentions the possibility of converting some of the natives to Christianity; something that could be considered morally wrong (360). The justification of an act based on religion is something that has been rather common since mankind’s existence. For example, many of the laws that govern our nation are heavily influenced by religion. Alexander’s writing also talks about exploration, though through the eyes of a woman living in London. The woman in the story leaves her home to gain money, but ends up staying in London, exploiting herself for the entertainment of others (395). This kind of exploitation is not justified at all; calling the people who pay her “twisted” and “deformed” (397). This is where the idea of exploitation differs from that of Columbus. Elizabeth Alexander says the exploitation of the self cannot be justified by any means, whereas Columbus justifies his exploitation of the native people with religion. This kind of distinction between the two seems different, but ultimately, they are the same. The exploitation of anything is something that usually causes more harm than good. (Word Count 323).
How do Columbus and Alexander connect?
ReplyDeleteBoth Christopher Columbus and Elizabeth Alexander talk about spoiling the beauty of a pure thing. In the poem “The Venus Hottentot” by Elizabeth Alexander the girl in the poem is spoiled by people who are exploiting her purity by tricking her into coming to England with them. Had she not been tricked into believing the kindness of these strangers then she would still be safe at home with her family and her “farm life” (Alexander 396). Just as the girl was tricked into believing that she would be safe with her now captors, Christopher Columbus tricked the Indians into believing he was there to help them, but his acts were to make them “friendly to [him]” (Columbus 359). Once he had them believing he was there to help them he was able to take advantage of everything they had. He was always looking at their land for its opportunities and its “suitab[ility] for planting and cultivating, and for the building of houses” (358). He always saw past the people and was looking towards what they could offer him and Spain. Profit allowed both exploiters in both stories to see past the normal human emotion and plight and see it for how it could benefit them. They were able to do things that normally they would not do or condone. They were so convinced in their ways that they were able to lose sight of how they should treat people and were able to commit atrocities. With these acts of inhumanity the people had to separate themselves from their ways. The girl had to separate heself from reality to keep herself safe from the horrible things around her and the Indians had to abandon their ways in favor of a “universal Christendom” that was imposed on them by the Spaniards (362).
Word Count: 300
This is a definite change of pace regarding our reading set before us this evening. We are given Christopher Columbus’s account of the new world as well as an interesting poem by Elizabeth Alexander. I want to focus on the Alexander poem. “The Venus Hottentot” initially sounds like a simple poem describing the beauty of the world around us. Then Alexander states, “There is unexpected sund today in London, and the clouds that most days sift into this cage where I am working have dispersed. I am a black cutout against a captive blue sky, pivoting nude so the paying audience can view my naked buttocks” (Alexander 395). This is the first stanza of the second part of the poem and truly gives us an idea of what is occurring. It seems a young African American woman is trapped. Maybe this cage is literal or metaphorical, nonetheless it has confined her. She is encased and forced to show herself to the surrounding world. This leads to the idea that she is being held as a prostitute. This idea is confirmed when Alexander says, “Since my own genitals are public I have made other parts private” (396). From this we understand that this woman has been forced to give her body for sexual pleasure to others. We can also tell she was deceived when Alexander says, “I left Capetown with a promise of revenue: half the profits and my passage home: A boon” (395). Instantly, the thought of sex trafficking comes to mind. This woman was promise fortune and fame. Whoever ensnared her with these words knew the truth, yet continued to fool this innocent woman in to a life of solitude. This happens daily in our current culture. Women are deceived or even taken against their own will in order to serve the corrupted ideals of another human being. Why do these atrocities take place? What can we do to prevent them?
ReplyDeleteWord Count: 322
Does sexual exploitation obliterate individualization?
ReplyDeleteDo differences necessarily bring about superiors and inferiors?
Within Alexander’s “The Venus Hottentot” is depicted a woman who “left Capetown with a promise of revenue: half the profits and [a] passage home” (Mercer Reader 395). The individual is subjected to a life so inferior to her superiors, so demoralizing that individualization seems to halt. However, the individual does “speak English [and] Dutch. [She] speak[s] a little French as well… Now [she is] bitter and now [she] is sick” (396). Through the exploitation of her body, emotional and physical suffering breed only writing and imagery so disturbingly grotesque, so refined that the system which oppresses her, to the reader, no longer maintains its validity. It exists now only as a system run by indecency and greed. Since her “own genitals are public, {she] has made other parts private” (396). This serves to illustrate that dehumanization by oppressors is not successful in ridding the individual of any human attributes but serves only as a system collectively executed by members of an oppressive party, leaving only more room for individualization, though not made public.
Columbus writes “Concerning the Islands Recently Discovered in the Indian Sea” as a memoir of all that transpired on his immediate journey to the Americas. He notes that “all these islands are very beautiful, and distinguished by various qualities; some [fruit] were in other conditions; each one was thriving in its own way” (358). The fruits in this passage relate to the discovery of different ways of living. Christopher Columbus saw the different plants are beautiful but saw another way of living as human beings as inferior. He hopes that the natives “might be made worshippers of Christ,” (359) as if their own religion was inferior and he had a duty to “save their souls.” There are, however, many similarities between the native and the Spaniards; “for in a short time, we understood them and they us” (359). Commonalities are shown but are overruled by differences in religious and warfare practices.
Word Count: 324
What do these two readings have in common?
ReplyDeleteBoth “Concerning the Islands Recently Discovered” by Christopher Columbus and “The Venus Hottentot” by Elizabeth Alexander depict a struggle with identity and individualism. The two readings create a sense of worthlessness. In “Concerning the Islands” Columbus tells his men not to take advantage of the natives by trading menial items for gold and silver. Columbus says “They also traded cotton and gold for pieces of bows, bottles, jugs and jars, like persons without reason, which I forbade because it was very wrong” (Columbus 359). The natives of these newly discovered islands did not know how much their belongings were worth. They were eager to trade their items for new, intriguing things. Columbus noted that the natives were not idol worshippers, that in fact, they had a religion similar to Christianity. He found that pleasing, being that he fully intended to convert them, implying a lack a respect for the indigenous religion. Although Columbus found most of the people of these islands to be friendly and peaceful, he had plans to use them and convert them to better suit his needs, and the needs of his country.
Likewise in “The Venus Hottentot” a woman leaves her life in “Capetown with a promise of revenue” (395). This coupled with the earlier image of “genitalia” gives and eerie feel to the reading. Already the author has painted a picture of possible prostitution. This idea that a woman is leaving her home to make money, meanwhile private body parts are being showcased “inside a labeled pickling jar in the Musée de l’Homme on a shelf” (394) is unsettling, to say the least. The poem goes on to suggest that the narrator is part of a circus act or freak show. She appears to live a very demeaning lifestyle, one that involves strangers staring, and her boss inspecting her body. There is a sense of a loss of self-worth and dignity through the end of this reading. The narrator talks about only being able to keep her thoughts and feelings private “since my own genitals are public” (396). The narrator has experienced a loss of self- respect due to the nature of the live she now lives.
370 words