On February 15, 1493 Christopher Columbus wrote a letter to Luis de Santangel. In the letter Columbus described what he had found on his journey, by this you can gather what he thought of America. My thoughts of America are in some ways agreeable with Columbus and in other ways are not. To me America is a place of opportunity, a place where we have freedom and a place of beauty.
When Columbus came to America I believe that he came here looking for gold and a form of wealth. I believe that America is a place that gives everyone equal opportunity to accomplish as much as they would like. In the days of Christopher Columbus every person had to be for themselves, so he acted like everything was about him. In the letter he said, “I sent two men inland to learn if there were a king or great cities. They traveled three days’ journey and found infinity of small hamlets and people without number, but nothing of importance.” He felt the need to send other people to go on a journey rather than go see for himself. And then he quotes that there were people there but none of importance. In America at this day in time we try to make people feel important but sometimes this is hard because there are stereotypes and classes that people go by and I feel that is the wrong thing to do. Columbus was trying to make everything all about him and not giving everyone equal opportunity. In America now we have numerous opportunities that many countries do not have. For example; we have great schools to attend, the government has money set aside for the less fortunate and unemployed, even though that America is losing some of its jobs to overseas countries we have more job opportunities that a lot of other places. I feel that Christopher Columbus wanted to be of importance but did not want to do any of the work or let other people have better opportunities.
To me America is a symbol of an idea, an idea that people can come together under a common goal to achieve a state where everyone can live free of fear and tyranny and can prosper for generations. By reading Christopher Columbus’s letter I have the impression that he did not believe the same thing. He said;” And there I found very many islands filled with people innumerable, and of them all I have taken possession for the highnesses, by proclamation made and with the royal standard unfurled, and no opposition was offered to me.” The people in those days had to be obedient to their leaders or there would be consequences to follow. Even though that rule implies to us today it is much different. We have the freedom to speak our minds and the freedom to make our own religious choices and they did not. We have freedom of equality in men and women. In those days women were nothing they did housework and that was all they could do. That is much different in this day and time, women are allowed to do just as much as men. Christopher Columbus did not know the meaning of freedom because he had slaves to do things for him.
There are many things in Columbus’s letter that I do not agree with but there is also one major thing that I can agree with him about. And that is the beauty of America. He wrote to Luis de Santangel saying;”All are most beautiful, of a thousand shapes, and all are accessible and filled with trees of a thousand kinds and tall, and they seem to touch the sky. And I am told that they never lose their foliage, as I can understand, for I saw them as green and lovely as they are in Spain in May, and some of them flowering, some bearing fruit, and some in another stage, according to their nature.” This is so true in so many ways. I can see where America would have been more beautiful in that day because there were no buildings and no pollution like there is today. But there are so many places you can go and see the beauty. In America I see beauty not just in scenery but in animals and people. I see beauty in the red, white and blue of our flag; on the feathers of a bald eagle; and on the face of a young child. There are so many ways you can see beauty in your everyday life and I wonder to this day if Christopher Columbus every figured this out.
In the letter written by Christopher Columbus I feel that Columbus was very selfish and did not know how to treat other people because he was too worried about himself. I feel that this is not a way that a true American should act. Americans should be proud to know that they live in a place of opportunity, freedom and a place that is beautiful.
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