There are several ideas and concepts in the assigned readings that can be used to draw connections between the two resources. The readings that will be analyzed in this essay are chapters from Lies my teacher told me by James Loewen and Harvest of Empire by Juan Gonzales. While there are some ideas supported by both of these sources, there are also certain discrepancies between their representations of history and historical facts.
One of the major ideas discussed is the way European settlers treated the people who lived on the lands they discovered. Thus, Loewen discussed European Christianity and the fact that Europeans destroyed the people they encountered in the new lands. Under the pretense of converting Indians to Christianity, “the Spaniards then free to do whatever they wanted with the people they had just discovered” (Loewen 54).
From the example of the Requirement the author provides, it can be seen that the Spaniards demonstrated cruel and violent behaviors towards the members of the tribes they encountered. Juan Gonzales also presents facts to support this statement. He quotes another historian by writing that “the American land was more like a widow than a virgin. Europeans did not find a wilderness here; rather, however involuntarily, they made one” (Gonzales 24). Therefore, it can be argued that this idea is supported by both authors.
Another concept discussed by both Loewen and Gonzales is the idea about the roots of domination of Europe and the West in the modern world. Gonzales writes that “U.S. economic and political domination over Latin America has always been—and continues to be—the underlying reason for the massive Latino presence there” (Gonzales 13).
Developing on this thought, he claims that many of the actions taken by the U.S. remind those of an empire. It seems, however, that Loewen is much more specific in describing the causes of the Western domination over the rest of the world and the countries it had colonized. As one of the causes, he discusses European advances in military technology: “Europe’s incessant wars gave rise to this arms race, which also ushered in refinements in archery, drill, and siege warfare” (Loewen 33). Along with military superiority, Loewen mentions other causes, while Gonzales seems to give a much more vague explanation of the roots of European domination,
Finally, a major aspect discussed by both authors is the way historical knowledge is presented in modern textbooks. Loewen spends a significant amount of time addressing this issue, claiming that textbooks “do a poor job of describing the changes in Europe that led to the Age of Exploration” (32). In his opinion, most history books provide vague, almost circular, pronouncements on many events in the American history. Gonzales, in turn, supports this view by stating that “American public schools have failed miserably in this regard”, teaching is “little about the machinations that accompanied the nation’s territorial expansion” (13). Contrary to Loewen, however, Gonzales does not provide many specific examples of textbooks that misrepresent history.
It can be concluded that both books present interesting and insightful ideas and concepts. While some ideas are supported by both authors, there are differences in their vies as well. Both Loewen and Gonzales present criticism of modern American textbooks, but Loewen seems to be more specific in providing examples of misrepresented facts and knowledge. At the same time, Gonzales puts a more significant emphasis on discussing European and American domination in relation to the Latino population.
Works Cited
Gonzalez, Juan. Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America. Penguin, 2011.
Loewen, James. Lies my teacher told me: Everything your American history textbook got wrong. The New Press, 2008.