The Real History Of The Americas Before Columbus 1491, Complete Series Timel
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2.8K Views PremiumDec 12, 2022
The Real History Of The Americas Before Columbus 1491
The Americas Before Columbus
Until recently, western historians and anthropologists believed that American Indians and the land they lived on and interacted with had no real history prior to 1492, almost as if the indigenous peoples of the Americas floated along waiting for Europeans to arrive before they could actually exist and have a history “worthy” of being recorded. This supposition left Indians without agency, a state of existence that social scientists define as people who are not actors in their own right, but who are instead passive recipients of whatever happens to them or comes their way.
The idea that Native Americans lacked agency took hold of the popular imagination and has informed peoples’ memory and suppositions about indigenous peoples ever since. From textbooks to Hollywood movies, Natives have been cast as either blood-thirsty barbarians or noble savages—caricatures that never explained or explored the real nature or diversity of indigenous life in the Americas. This all-good or all-bad image locked Natives into a static position, reinforcing the sense that they did not truly exist as a force for change prior to European contact. Since history is defined by change, Natives were left as a people without a history.
Much of this attitude about American Indians formed because western historians advanced the idea that history was created and dominated by great leaders of European descent, especially since European nations seemed to be overwhelming non-white societies everywhere. History became identified with the activities of nation-states, particularly between the 18th and 20th centuries, leaving no room for exploring the past in terms of other models, like culture, art, or religion. But the collapse of European colonies and two world wars in the 20th century made historians take note, realizing that nation-states could be destroyed and that there could be other measures of a .... (Cont.)
The Real History Of The Americas Before Columbus 1491
The Americas Before Columbus
Until recently, western historians and anthropologists believed that American Indians and the land they lived on and interacted with had no real history prior to 1492, almost as if the indigenous peoples of the Americas floated along waiting for Europeans to arrive before they could actually exist and have a history “worthy” of being recorded. This supposition left Indians without agency, a state of existence that social scientists define as people who are not actors in their own right, but who are instead passive recipients of whatever happens to them or comes their way.
The idea that Native Americans lacked agency took hold of the popular imagination and has informed peoples’ memory and suppositions about indigenous peoples ever since. From textbooks to Hollywood movies, Natives have been cast as either blood-thirsty barbarians or noble savages—caricatures that never explained or explored the real nature or diversity of indigenous life in the Americas. This all-good or all-bad image locked Natives into a static position, reinforcing the sense that they did not truly exist as a force for change prior to European contact. Since history is defined by change, Natives were left as a people without a history.
Much of this attitude about American Indians formed because western historians advanced the idea that history was created and dominated by great leaders of European descent, especially since European nations seemed to be overwhelming non-white societies everywhere. History became identified with the activities of nation-states, particularly between the 18th and 20th centuries, leaving no room for exploring the past in terms of other models, like culture, art, or religion. But the collapse of European colonies and two world wars in the 20th century made historians take note, realizing that nation-states could be destroyed and that there could be other measures of a .... (Cont.)
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