UD Takes on Christopher Columbus and His Contributions
Christopher Columbus, the self-taught explorer who introduced the New World to the Old, is a foundational figure of the world today—and one of the most controversial. While his role in world history is clear, how we should respond is not, so the question remains: what do we think about Christopher Columbus?
The University of Dallas had the honor of hosting Mr. Robert Royal, award-winning author and editor-in-chief of The Catholic Thing magazine, on Oct. 12 to discuss the mysteries surrounding the man who sailed the ocean blue. In light of the talk, several members of the UD community offered their insights on Columbus.
“I still don’t know too much about him in that way, but I do remember controversy back then, whenever I was in junior high” Emersen Linn, a freshman art major, said.
She wondered why Columbus is so often associated with the institution of slavery compared to other slaveholding American figures.
Furthermore, she compared his historical representation in America to the puritan settlers on the Mayflower, even speculating as to the role of Columbus’ Catholic faith in his public perception.
About the public reception of Columbus, Linn said, “I think the reason he gets so much hate is because his discovery of the Americas just started a chain reaction of so many things, good and bad. People tend to focus on really bad things that happened such as us taking over Native Americans’ land and putting them into slavery.”
Turning to how the public should consider Columbus and his impact, she said: “I think it’s more important to see the broader view of history rather than bringing it all back to him; I mean there were many other ships and many other people who came to the Americas.”
Vincent Pavese, a senior business major and the Grand Knight of the university’s Knights of Columbus chapter, shared his own description of Columbus. He said: “I think it’s admirable what he hoped to accomplish, but I understand the controversy that some people have about Christopher Columbus.”
When asked about his view of the public perception of Columbus, Pavese said, “I think just a lot of people… have to understand that the time was different, and have to understand that we as a society have developed and understand more about what human rights are, and understand what needed to be done in order to pursue certain freedoms.”
Pavese concluded about Columbus by saying: “I think that people need to better look at history and better look at the reasons for why Christopher Columbus did what he did. With that, I think [Columbus] understood that there would be a negative perception of him, and still being able to take that and carry out his mission is definitely admirable.”
Andrew Sanders, a senior drama and politics double major, brought the more critical aspects of Columbus’ legacy to light, and said, “Well, aside from the genocide of the Taino people, he also instituted the encomienda system that became the basis of the transatlantic slave trade; so those are both pretty bad things, but even people at the time would agree that that was pretty bad.”
Sanders also noted that contemporaries of Columbus, such as Franciscan friars and even Queen Isabella of Spain, heavily criticized his actions in the Caribbean.”
When asked about how Columbus should be regarded by history, Sanders said: “Ideally, I think we can acknowledge that Christopher Columbus did something of historical significance by coming to America, while also acknowledging that he did something of historical significance by being one of the most despicable human beings in history.”
Sanders went on to say, “I don’t have any problem with teaching that Christopher Columbus set out to discover an Eastern passage to India and instead found the Americas… I do have a problem with trying to whitewash history and make him out to be some kind of saint.”
What is clear about Columbus is that, like any man, he is difficult to fully describe. His actions, and their consequences, have ushered in the modern age in which we live, but also the deaths of not only millions of peoples, but their cultures and societies as well.
I myself consider Columbus to be a man with high ideals and good intent, yet lacking in many crucial virtues such as discernment, temperance, leadership skill and prowess in governance. Difficult though it may be, we must attempt to appraise Columbus, for our answer determines our understanding of today and our hopes for tomorrow.
Tagline: David Dainko is an undeclared freshman. He is the deputy grand knight of the university’s Knights of Columbus chapter, and an actor in the fall MainStage production.