Why Is Christopher Columbus Bad

Some people say Christopher Columbus is the man who discovered America and is a hero. Others might say Columbus is a sadistic villain who destroyed the Native American people. There are valid points to each side of the argument for this and are good points. He went to America in 1492, not discovering it. Columbus became well known in America because of this and was made into a holiday. He has his own holiday because of America’s short history. In almost all cultures, they look up to an historical figure, except for America. Columbus had a huge impact in history according to Time who said that Columbus is #20 on the most significant figures. So why wouldn’t Columbus be looked at a hero? I believe, Christopher Columbus is a villainous figure

Christopher Columbus was manipulative. My final piece of evidence, from Document 2 says that "They have no iron. Their spears are made of cane... They would make fine servants... With fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want." This shows the mindset of a conniving man because he exploited the Native Americans in order to get what he wanted which was gold. This was a selfish reason that resulted in the pain of so many Native

When you think of Columbus what comes to mind? A hero? A villain? Most people think he is a hero, but many do not think of the things he did to people such as slavery, beatings, raping, etc. He is most known for discovering America, but he only got to the Bahamas. Columbus was an Italian explorer that sailed the ocean blue in 1492. Columbus Day should not be celebrated because of the awful things that don’t make up for the discoveries that Christopher Columbus did.

School taught us about the infamous Christopher Columbus who was known as the hero who found the Americas in 1492, but is that the truth? Is Columbus really the hero that grade school portrayed him to be? Columbus was not. Columbus was a greedy man who destroyed an entire race of people with genocide just so only he could benefit and become a man of money and power.

    Greediness was the downfall of Columbus, making him a scoundrel. When the Spanish monarchs agreed to sponsoring the voyage, they made a deal with Columbus, in which both parties would benefit. If Columbus obtained gold and spices for the Spanish monarchs, he would obtain ten percent of the profits (“Columbus and the Indians” Zinn 2). In addition, he was egotistical and selfish. These qualities were illuminated when he interacted with his crew, specifically at the end of the voyage to the New World. While on the expedition, Rodrigo, a sailor, saw land and told the rest of the boat,

Even though Columbus did everything that was stated above he wasn’t that bad. He overall really helped the development of the nation that we now know. He is one of the most celebrated explorers and for good reason. Stated by Dr Thomas C Tirado in Christopher Columbus and his legacy “The routes he took to and from the newly found lands are the ones we still use; his choice of the Atlantic Canary Current

All my life, I have been hearing about Christopher Columbus. Since little, first, my family talking about him, then in school learning about him. I really thought he was a hero. The way they teach you about him in grammar school or middle school makes you think he really is a hero. But later on, doing research on him, looking for what he really did, where did he came from etc. I realize that he is not a hero. There are many reasons why people think he is good as well there are many reasons why they think he is bad. Personally I think Columbus is a villain, he did a lot of bad things that most people don’t know a bout. However if they know them, it would make them think a little bit deeper if Columbus is the Hero

Christopher Columbus is a villain in my eyes. This belief rests upon three main points: excerpts from Columbus’ journal and letters from his first arrival, the reality that he and his man alike were gold-thirsty, and the unlawful crimes he committed to satisfy and please the king in order to receive glory. These actions are often overlooked by many because it eventually led to the development of our country, but that should not excuse his actions. Consequently, his actions set an example for future generations, on how to solve problems with the Indians-extinguish them. Below, I will elaborate more fully on these arguments.

In 1492, Italian cartographer and explorer, Christopher Columbus, set off on a mission from Spain in order to find a quicker, alternative route to Asia. With him, Columbus brought eighty-seven men and three ships, the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa María, to sail across the large and vast Atlantic Ocean. Unfortunately for Columbus, a new route to Asia was never discovered by Spain that year because he had arrived in the Caribbean, which was found in North America. Thinking that he had just entered the Indies, he started to call the people of this land, “Indians”. These Indians were actually Native Americans who had lived on these lands for thousands of years prior. Immediately, letters from Columbus to the King and Queen of Spain were sent by boat back to Europe and soon Columbus was seen as the man who helped create a bridge of prosperous trading and riches between Europe and “Asia”.1 While this discovery proved that Columbus was a hero-like figure to Spain, it’s what he did within the new land that actually makes him one of the biggest villains to ever set foot on Earth. But what classifies this explorer as a villain? Columbus captured thousands of natives, many of which were sent back to Spain to live and work as slaves. Along with that, Columbus also forced the Christian religion onto them, spread diseases that killed thousands of lives, and used violence as a means of persuasion and control.2 Corrupted by his pursuit of riches,

Christopher Columbus, explorer for Spain, is he a hero or a villain? Columbus started a new age of exploration when he set sail in 1492. He asked many leaders if he could sail for them, but they said no and that they were happy with the way things were. He sailed west for the Indies, but found America instead. Columbus should not be judged by today’s standards, he is hero and should be treated as one.

First and foremost, Columbus’ experience was of high value to the Spanish monarchy. Despite initially following in the footsteps of his father as a member of the wool weaving industry, Columbus was quick to pick up mapmaking and sailing as studies (Mariners Museum). Columbus was on the sea even as a teen, joining expeditions through the Aegean and Mediterranean seas (Don Quijote). It was difficult to find such an experienced and educated seaman in contemporary Spain. Many of the future influential conquistadors had yet to be born; the oldest was Francisco Pizarro, and even he was only sixteen years of age when Columbus set sail in 1492. With experience being such a valuable commodity, it was difficult for the Spanish monarchy to justify allowing Columbus to simply offer his skills to another country. Columbus’

The full measure of Columbus's failure as a colonizer was not yet apparent when he returned to Castile in 1496. Yet by the end of six or seven years of his governorship, with his own, the monarchs', and the settlers' objectives all still unachieved, and Hispaniola suffering an apparently interminable series of rebellions not only by the Indians but by the colonists too, Columbus was to be superseded and disgraced, and shipped home to Spain in chains.1 Overall, Fernandez-Armesto depicted Columbus as an annoyingly eccentric person incapable of succeeding. Although, he discovered the Americas, he failed to be a leader to his crew and the natives. Instead, he was on the lookout for ways of manipulating the motives for profit.

Throughout history, Christopher Columbus was seen in quite contrary ways. Some would view him as a valiant hero who discovered the New World and vanquished the primitive ways of the savage and barbaric native people. Others would see Columbus in a much different light, describing him as an interloper who spread disease to and enslaved an entire native people. These two statements above describe two vastly different visions of Christopher Columbus. In fact, the hard evidence would support that a bit of both of the above visions are indeed factual. Christopher Columbus was a man with several wonderful achievements, however some of these achievements had several negative repercussions. Columbus's discovery of the New World led to a more diverse society, a new social system, and the exploitation and eventual extermination of the Native peoples.

A world known word that brings fear and hatred for to most people hearts when they hear it is genocide. What Christopher did was ‘purify’ his new found land. Most of the Indians were used for work, killed, or used for ‘entertainment’. As to giving no thought into their emotions or thoughts, he used them to discover new lands and inventions. Forcing them to walk distances hard to imagine so they can relocate them to places that is more suitable for them (doc 8).

Before we can truly label Columbus as a hero or evil, we must first define what is viewed as a hero. Many dictionary definitions exist having the meaning of a hero as one with courageous or noble qualities but seeing as these definitions are extremely objective, the definition of a hero I will be using for the purpose of defining Columbus will be, quoting Joseph Campbell, “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” Christopher Columbus clearly demonstrated giving and self sacrifice in his investments of time and risking his life for his voyages with “commercial expeditions resembling warlike cruises” and at some points in his travels being away from home for 29 months. The rewards that Columbus, along with the rest of Europe, reaped from his efforts include the new access to vast expanses of resourceful land, as well as the eventually successful, even flourishing, colonization of America, not to mention, that Columbus, “[the] founding figure of a new world” laid the framework to modern day globalization as well as played a key role in the creation of one of the most significant, powerful, and impactful nations existing today. The fact that Columbus grew up in poor conditions and being completely self taught in the art of navigation and seafaring only adds to the magnitude of his immense accomplishments.