Now that you've had substantial exposure to materials related to the initial colonization of the Americas by European empires, you have some insight into how colonization shaped American history. Reflect on materials you worked with in class (films, readings, etc.) to support your point of view. Remember, the more you interact with one another's ideas, the more unique and interesting this blogspace will be!
So, was the New World superior to the Old World? Sound off A Block!
So, was the New World superior to the Old World? Sound off A Block!
Image: Jamestown Settlment: www.williamsburgprivatetours.com/j_tours.htm
26 comments:
John Harden
A Block
The New World is superior to the Old World in some ways and the Old World is superior to the New World in other ways. Some aspects of the Jamestown colony, especially during its first years make England seem much more civilized then the New World. In regards to the film we watched in class, at one point John Smith returns to Jamestown and runs across the “first Americans”, a group of young boys who are starving and seem everything totally opposite of aristocratic. The conditions in the Old World were much better in terms of health, education and wealth of the people. The New World however was far superior to the Old World in terms of peace, tranquility and human-environment interaction. Before the Europeans came to the Americas, it is known that the people were at peace with the land and the animals that grazed on it. In Europe, an industrialization of sorts was beginning as forests were beginning to become less large in size and the living conditions in terms of pollution and sanitation were horrendous when compared to the American Indians peace with the environment. Yes the Indians were not sanitary in terms of keeping clothed in the wild or bathing on a constant routine, but they were cleaner in a greater aspect. The American Indians had a greater understanding of their surrounding area than the Europeans did with theirs, but the Europeans were far more technologically advanced, thus the Europeans took the New World and made it theirs.
The New World was far more superior than the Old war. During the Old World, the Native Americans were adapted to the natural resources around. They knew how to crop well, make warm clothing, build a well organized community in their own way, believed in spiritual gods and basically knew how to survive with what was around. On the other hand, the British men had learned how to make tools, cook on stoves, make weapons, build strong houses and organized a different type of government. Both Native Americans and British lived in different parts of the world and both weakened in different skills. The Native Americans didn't have what the British had and vice versa. In class, we learned that the British couldn't crop correctly and many starved to death. It was disgusting how many turned to cannibalism. Compared to the Native Americans, they weren't equipped with weapons and ended up losing their battle against the British. In the Old World, these two different lifestyles would have been seperated and both would have lack of skills in different areas. But in the New World, these two lifestyles were brought together and shared. All in all, if the British and the Native Americans hadn't come together, their would be lack of skills in the New World. Thank goodness for the New World because we the people of America wouldn't be living the way we are today.
Kristina Sanzone*
A Block
Since the Old World, as well as the New World were both very interesting, manageable, and livable it is very difficult to simply choose which is superior to the other. Relevant facts bring a brilliant point to both sides. For example, in the Old World the Europeans had not begun to take over yet, so the population of diseased people was quite low. It was not until the Europeans came to the Americas that these foreign diseases spread to the Natives. This was an advantage of the Old World. However, even though there were new diseases floating around in the New World, people were becoming more educated and prosperous off the “new-found” land that Columbus stumbled upon accidentally in 1492. Also, after terribly eliminating and torturing most of the Native American population, there was no one for the British to declare war on so it was also a very serene position to start off this New World. It seems as though the New World, however, does have more advantages over the Old World, which makes the New World superior.
Melissa Laurore
A Block
The Old World was superior to the New World in the fact that the Old World was able to survive with out any help from the English. The Indiains were able to adapt to therir surrondings and live for years without any type of help from the English. The Indians have always been resourcful when it came to finding food and makign weapons to fight and other things they needed to survive. On the other hand , The New World was Superior to The Old World in the way that the New World had alot more advancements when it came to weapons and agriculture. When it came to weapons, the English would dominate compare to the Indiain's weapon. Except the Native Americans had better agricultrual methods than the English. There were times when the English would'nt survive with out the help of the Native Americans. The English came to the New World with the idea in their head that they would find something of value, but never thought that they would be able to make a whole colony. Even though the Old World was more adapted to their surrondings, the New World was able to take what the old world offered and better it. If The Indians and the English had'nt coincided, the world today wouldnt be the same.
I think Kristina and Sam make a really interesting point by suggesting that the cultural diffusion that occurred as result of the Britsh colonization of North America is what enabled BOTH societies to advance. I don't think I would have seen it that way otherwise. In terms of social progress and the development and society as we know it today, this mutual exchange HAD to happen. At the same time, I'm reminded of Zinn's question - are voilence and deciet are necessary to advance civilization? If so, can't all wars and acts of tyranny be justified in the name of progress?
I'm also thinking about life from the perspective of the British colonists. Certainly, life was harder in the New World. The convenicences of markets, police, and service industries were not there to support them. Is anyone going to discuss their experiences on that level?
Janell McBean
A-Block
The New World was superior to the Old World, just as the Old World was superior to the New World. The New World was dependent upon the Old World. Meaning, the Old World was the foundation towards the New World. The Indians or Native Americans, were known to exist in the Old World. They built their own devices for food, support and much more. The European men or the English were known for advanced technologies and newly computer created devices. The Indians and the Europeans were two very different types of people. In the film seen in our Global History class, Captain John Smith and his European men came onto the Indian's territory and once they arrived, they contemplated on what they were going to do with the land. Little did they know that it was the Indian's territory. The Indians did however try and run the Europeans out but with the Europeans having such an advantage because of their knowledge and most imporant, weapons, they were able to still take over. The Europeans knew nothing about nature and wildlife like the Indians. The Indians had been apart of that type society all their lives. The Europeans were so terrible at the life that Indians lived, they did not know how to plant goods, make crops or anything. This went for the Indians also, they had no idea about the life of Europeans either. Although, with the Indians learning and trying to adapt to how the Europeans lived and with the Europeans learning and trying to adapt to how the Indians lived, it brought together the Old World and the New World. Bringing these two worlds together created a difference but yet a huge advantage upon the world we are now living today. This clearly states the point that i came across in the beginning, being that the New World was superior to the Old World, just at the Old World was superior to the New World.
Mariel Elia
A Block
The new world is superior to the old word in many ways. The old world reflects on the new because if we didn’t have the old world, then we would be still living in the past. If Columbus and his voyagers didn't discover America we would still be living like Indians right now. The new world however, will still keep forming and soon this generation will become the old world. If it wasn’t for the Indians we wouldn’t be able to grow crops, make weapons, or even make clothing. The world would probably have many conflicts still between the people from Europe and the people from Germany. In result of the old world, us Americans benefited off the people of the old world. Eating tools such as forks, knifes, or even spoons came from the old world no matter how uncivil they were. The Europeans thought that the Indians lived uncivilized. That might be right but they lived in harmony. Europeans brought back items and showed the Indians. Weapons were always made but not as up to date as the Europeans. More industrial items were used. Instead of the swords being wooden they were steel. The old world has such a big impact on the new world. Everything we use today is based on what was known in the old world.
Astonn De Felice
B Block
The New World is not at all superior to the Old World, if not worse. In the Old World of the Native Americans, the Native Americans new how to make efficient housing, clothing, and food from their environment. They had their own form of government and interacted with other tribes. Although they would not be considered modern for the time, the Natives could have survived independently. When the colonists came, they set up Jamestown and settled in what they referred to as the New World. However, the only change that occurred was the number of inhabitants; as the settlers came to inhabit the Natives territory, tension rose. As the tension rose, massacres started to break out as well as kidnappings, threats, and arson. In truth, the New World couldn’t be superior.
Sam stated in her post, “Thank goodness for the New World because we the people of America wouldn't be living the way we are today”. Although I do agree with this quote, I disagree with the negative outlook Sam had instilled in this quote. We would not be living exactly the way we do today, we would probably still survive.
Neither the New World nor Old World was more superior or vise versa. Both worlds have positive and negative sides to them. While the Old World was what has evolved technology, industrialism, and even mankind. The New World has enabled, especially the United States of America to become united and to enforce that there should be no segregation between colors and whites in the 1970s. Would the United States be the same if generations before us didn’t have to go though all the bloodshed?
Has anyone ever seen Back to the Future, a movie released in 1989? The protagonist, Marty McFly, played by Michael J. Fox, accidentally travels back to 1985, the year his parents met. Marty McFly has no other choice then to bring unite his future parents together before he changes time and destroys his existence. Even with just a simple mix up, a fight and simple kiss changed the future drastically. But the law of karma, what goes around comes around, I believe that whatever has happened in the past, will come back in the future. War is a good example of it, just when you think relations between countries are all patched up, war starts, genocides start, massive amounts of innocent people get killed. The New World has come to show how corrupt, full of hatred, stereotypical and judgmental our world has actually became, which has all come from the Old World.
*Mariel you spelt world wrong :]
& John Harden, great points, I totally agree w/ you brotherrrrrr!
<3 Michela
The new world was superior to the old world in many ways. In the old world the native americans had to survive on their own and live with their sourroundings and natural resources. Also the old world wasent that civilized as the british and werent as experienced as them also. But as a result the native americans had an effect on the new world because without them we wouldnt have the techniques of growing crops and learning to survive on your own. The new world was superior to the old world because as the british arrived they had many tools and more knowledge then the native americans. In effect of the british meeting the native americans, the british were able to learn new techniques such as different tools, weapons, build strong houses and forts and survive on their own. As a result of the british being more superior they took the knowledge and technoques that were given to them and killed and used the native americans for their benefits.
Karmila Saulong
Block A
The New World and the Old World was both superior in their own ways. The Native American tribes seemed more superior to the New World at times only because the Native Americans lived in a simplified like that wasn't based on power. The period known as the Old World was an era where the Native Americans learned to survive using their natural resources as well as their intuition. They were able to produce food for an entire village, use the resources they had to make clothing and shelter, and to create a form of government that proved to be balanced system within their own tribes. The Old World seemed to be superior at times because of the comfortable life that wasn't based on materialism unlike the British. The Jamestown colony was superior over the Old World due to the fact that thier lifestyle seemed more ideal. The British had far more better technology and a government that they believed to be respectable. However, they struggled to survive using the natural resources they had, therefore, many died and the food supply became demanding. As for the Native Americans, they lacked the skills and efficient technology that the British possessed. If the British didn’t trade with the Native Americans, they would have suffered more. Although this cultural diffusion was necessary and was bound to happen, the fact that manipulation was used and that war happened often was redundant.
Emily Marks
A-Block
The New World was most definitely Superior to the Old World because, of the new resources that were available to the British there. Also the overpopulation of Britain was easily helped by the colonists moving to the new World. The America’s had to be a salvation for those who had nothing to look forward to at home; it was a place to make a new life if you needed to. Some portions of the Jamestown colony, especially during its first heave made England seem like a much more promising place to live. With attacks from Indians and always being on guard to make sure you survived I could imagine how many people longed for English soil. The English giving the colonist the little help they could afford I wonder how the colonists that survived got through those first weeks and months. Though after the Indians, and the colonists made peace, the Jamestown colony as well as the other colonies of the New World flourished. With crops doing well, and trade with the Indians being substantially better then when they first arrived the New World settlers and the Old World natives began to divide.
To say that new world was superior to the old world would only be half right. While the new world or America was fresh with natural resources it was nowhere near Englands technology. Which is shown in the movie where the English were wearing amoar and using sowards and guns, while the indians were running around in underwear with axes made from rocks. While in America the indians were to live with less and live in peace. Both worlds had there advantages and disadvantages.
The new world is somewhat superior to the old world. The old world is somewhat superior. In Jamestown they didn’t really have many resources, and they weren’t used to the environment, and the life stay. In one of the videos we seen in class, it show that when John Smith comes back to Jamestown, he sees how people starving and are living in unclean conditions. At this time the old world looked pretty good, but the people weren’t used to not living in forest, and to hunt for there own food. The new world was better then the old world, because it wasn’t over population, and human interaction with the Native Americans. The new world didn’t have gun powder, or any resources to build any kind of weapons and in the new world the only weapons were the one the Native Americans made. The weapon was bows and spars. The old world was much more advanced in technology then the new world. The new world had a lot to offer, they give people the options. I believe that meeting the Native Americans was a big break thought, and that this land we call America, is really there home.
The old world was superior to the New world. The old world had their own routine that they use everyday. Th American Indians knew where and how to grow crops that were needed for food. The Indiains were able to adapt to their surroundings by themselves.
The new world were able to comunicate with the Indians and live with them for a while. The English had know idea about how the Indians lived. The Indians tought them and the began to live like them. The English later betrayed the Indians and destory their life style, so yes the old world was more superior to the new world. I do have to agree with Ace because he stated " As the tension rose, massacres started to break out as well as kidnappings, threats, and arson. In truth, the New World couldn’t be superior". This clearly shows our opinon.
Mac T.
The new world is superior to the old world in ways that both show negative and positive attributes to each. For example: The old world was superior to the New world when they first started creating a whole new civilization at a new colony named Jamestown. This was a huge step in life when they found the new world. As they started to grow, the people of Jamestown faced hunger, illness, and conflict. As they began to relize who the natives were to this land, the Jamestown colony were indifferent to decide how to react to their being. Acting as they did caused the New World to begin. A world with hate for the natives. The new world began smooth, with a growing colony, buildings put up, farms to be created, and the population was beginning to grow at a steady pace! However, the friendship between the Natives and the people of Jamestown was beginning to worsen. As natives began burning crops, and the people of Jamestown began massive killings of the natives. The people of Jamestown were even able to convert some Natives over to their religion. From all of this, in the end, the Natives eventually died out from a major increase in the Jamestown Population. Renaming their new land, Virginia, the colony of Jamestown continued to grow at a steady pace. So, in the end, the New world DID have some major advances in the growth of Jamestown. However, for a price, the people of Jamestown nearly destroyed a whole native tribe of over 5,000.
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Qadeem G.
A Block
Indeed,the New World was superior to the Old World.The cultures of the Indians were different from the British.
The New World wasn't superior to the Old World.The way of the Britishmen were horrific and they were manipulative.Just because the Indians eventually lost doesn't make the British superior.The Indian's world was their world that they knew.The Indians were accostom to their way of civilization.
With the arrival of the Britishmen came new issues that didn't exist are wasn't as lethal as it was when the British weren't there.The Indians' health status was much better.Such diseases as the measles,and small pox didn't arise until the British came.The mentality of the Indians was more nature than those of the British.The New World meaning,the British colony,wasn't a habital world for the Indians.In the early 1620's when the Indians and Britishmen were fighting was a clear warning that oil and fire don't mix.Which means that the Indians were totally different from the Britishmen and them clashing together only keep the fight going.Before the Britishmen came,there wasn't slavery and the Indians were at least more content that prior to the Britishmen being in America(The United States).
I believe that no world is superior to any other,at least not now.Whatever way of life one ives is fit for them and not neccessarily better or fit someone elses.Cultural diffusion is not neccessarily a good theing especially when it's forced.
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Nice job guys! Love how you agree and disagree with one another and support your comments with facts. I also love how some of you referred to the film (Mick and John) to support your opinion. I hope you find this a creative, interesting and interactive way to extend your learning beyond the classroom. Keep up the good work!
Matthew Bowlin
A block
Yes and No because, the old world and the new world is the same. How or why you might ask well this is how, the native way of living was the best way because of all the peace they had within their tribe. So when the "white Man" came, they (the natives) became more selfish in a way that they wouldn't even share the simplest of all things which is food. Yes I know that the "white man" came and took their land, killed their people and burned their crops also with in time make them end up living in a slum area. I know, I know. But it is still wrong what we did and what the natives did. Also in the film the new world john smith had to become like a native in order to get food for the English. With that, I think the chief liked the idea of smith doing what the natives did, but truly hated that he was their acting. But I still feel that the two worlds new and old are the same in many ways (protection, etc.) and also many ways it is truly different (money, etc.). so in conclusion I truly feel no world is superior to any other.
Both the Old World and the New World had advantages over one another. for example the life of the Native Americans showed no sign of organization or government yet they learned to survive by using all of the resources they had around them. This showed that they didnt need fancy gadgets and machinery to survive. the New World, which was more superior, only survived based on the technology advantage in weaponry and political order. the British and all other European countries that came to the old world only accomplished their goals through these weapons. if they were in the position of the Native Americans, the Europeans wouldn't be able to survive either.
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