Essay on:

A programme for comparative ethnology

(I)Bartholomé de Las Casas

(by: Anthony Pagdan)

After studying de Las Casas’s essay it is interesting to read Anthony Pagdan’s article, in which he describes not only de Las Casas’s views regarding the ‘Indies’, but although the opinions of his adversaries and the sources for their argumentations.

De Las Casas’s major opponent, Juan Ginés Sepúlveda, also bases his argumentation on Aristotle but he interprets his writings differently. According to Sepúlveda the Spaniards had the right to treat the ‘Indians’ the way they did because they were culturally inferior.

For me, it is really hard to understand their thoughts at that time, since today it seems so obvious that the ‘Indies’ were no barbarians or inferiors, but rather came from a different background and hence had a different culture. But Pagdan’s essay underlines that at that time de Las Casas’s way of thinking was very progressive.  He was one of the first, who realized that that all human beings, even the Spaniards, “had once been barbarians” (p.141). Hence at one point at a time his ancestors were also wild and their lifestyle had probably been similar to the life of the ‘Indies’. De Las Casas discovers that all human beings live a ‘primitive’ life until one person enters the group or rises from the group and establishes a social body and after the social body is established, some kind of religion follows. Based on his Christian background it was obvious that for him Christianity was the only true religion and that other cultures could be saved by converting to Christianity (p. 142).

I just wonder why he did not realize that the ‘Indies’ probably already had some kind of social body, in which each person had a special function and that their rituals, myths and beliefs were just a different type of religion. 

‘The devastation of the Indies: A brief account’

Essay on

            ‘The devastation of the Indies: A brief account’

                                                                                  By: Bartolomé de Las Casas

The Spanish Dominican priest, bishop and writer Bartolome de Las Casas describes in his Essay ‘The devastation of the Indies: A brief account’ how the Spanish Christians treated the ‘Indians’ after the discovery of today’s America. In terms of political correctness I will, in the following paragraphs, refer to ‘Indians’ as Native Americans.

According to de Las Casas the first encounter with the Natives and the Spanish Christians in 1492 was peaceful, because of the kind temper of the Native Americans. But soon the discoverers started to interfere in the peaceful life. They tried to convert them into Christians and the essay points out that they were eager to learn and obey their new Catholic faith. Although the Native American treated the Spanish with respect, the Spanish Christians were lead by their desire for land and gold and started to exploit the Indians. To achieve their goals they attacked, tortured, enslaved and killed the Native Americans, who were by far inferior because they did not use any modern weapons. This was the start of several decades lasting wars fought between Christians and Native Americans. Closing the summary quoting de La Casas:

‘the wars waged by the Indians against the Christians have been justifiable wars and [] all the wars waged by the Christians against the Indians have been unjust wars, more diabolical than any wars ever waged anywhere in the world.’ (p. 13)

Especially considering the time and de Las Casas Christian background as a priest and bishop, his thoughts were very daring stating that the Christians behaved incorrectly. I strongly agree with his views of the Christians fighting unjustified wars. But I do not believe that the Native Americans were eager to become Christians as he points out on page two. As far as I know they have their own gods, myths and beliefs.