1492 conquest of paradise analysis

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History 1302

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Synopsis

Ridley Scott, director of Alien, has teleported from the land of stomach-exploding aliens

to that of the New World. 1492: Conquest of Paradise telescopes Christopher Columbus's

(Gerard Depardieu) four journeys to the New World into two. After seven long years of looking

for people to fund his expedition, Columbus persuades Queen Isabel (Sigourney Weaver) to

grant him the necessary money and privileges to embark on his journey. Led by conflicting

passions of "god, gold, and glory" to explore a new route to China, Columbus stumbles upon

some islands off the coast of North America. He imagines the new land around him as an earthly

paradise that Spain….

Your synopsis needs to be between 200 to 300 words. The above passage is 100 words

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Scene Analysis

1492: Conquest of Misconception

0:03:05 Columbus and Fernando Sitting Together

Christopher Columbus is considered to be the patriarchal hero of America. He is thought

this for one reason: Columbus "found" America. He found it, he named it, and we are all here

because of him. In the eyes of America, he is a legend. He is a myth whose fiction diverges from

the facts. Five hundred years after his discovery, we pay "homage" to him in a film based on his

voyage. In 1492: Conquest of Paradise the audience supposedly sees an accurate portrayal of

Columbus. But in a story filled with misconceptions, the movie version makes no distinction

between fact and myth.

From the moment the film begins, there is automatically a misconception. In the

prologue, even before the introduction of the characters, the audience is prompted to see

Columbus as hero, an icon, a man to be remembered for many generations. The prologue

describes a ruthless Spanish Inquisition "that persecuted men for daring to dream. One man

challenged this power." Yes, Columbus did challenge the power. But it is very unlikely that he

was the sole man who challenged Spanish authority. No doubt there were other men, not as

famous, who never received the recognition Columbus did. This heroification of Columbus is a

complete construction on the part of writer Roselyne Bosch and Director Ridley Scott.

Your scene analysis needs to be about 1000words

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Historical Context

Writing a historical account of Christopher Columbus is akin to riding a bike in through

the woods with a flashlight – the path is before you, yet it is not clear. Each new stretch of the

path is different than path you travelled before and teases you with the end of the path until

another stretch appears and takes you in a new direction. The aim of this account is to address

the available information on Columbus and get as close to the truth after all the myths are

dispelled…

Your historical context essay must be at least one page.

Print Resources (you need to provide 5) Axtell, James. "The Moral Dimensions of 1492." Historian 56.1 (1993): 17-28.

A comprehensive look at the accusations of genocide (see his "Moral Dimensions" chapter in Beyond 1492): how is it defined, what evidence is used, what evidence is not used, why is the word used, why we judge the past, what types of moral responsibility are involved.

Online Resources (you need to provide 5) The Arguments of Sepulveda http://www.pbs.org/opb/conquistadors/namerica/adventure2/b5.htm

A summary of the arguments by Juan Ines de Sepulveda justifying war against the Native Americans. Gives you a clear idea of how inferior the Native Americans were considered.

Video/Audio Resources (you need to provide 5) Columbus clip from The Canary Effect http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wm0EvTk8o4

Part of a documentary featuring Prof Troy Johnson and controversial Native American activist Ward Churchill (making his connection of Columbus to Himmler and initiating genocide).

See Also (this is where you list other sources you are not annotating) Cacciutto, Franklin C. "Columbus In Chains: The Image of Columbus in Literature." Diss. St. John's University, New York, 1991. Churchill, Ward. A Little Matter of Genocide. San Francisco: City Lights, 1997.

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Crosby, Alfred W. The Columbian Exchange: Biological and Cultural Consequences of 1492. Westport: Greenwood Pub. Co., 1972.

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Issue Essay Catchy Title

Why would a person in 1992 make a historical film about Christopher Columbus'

discovery that completely ignores the then current debates that question whether or not it

precipitated genocide? Director Ridley Scott set out to produce the be-all-end-all depiction of

Columbus, yet he blatantly neglected to address the most heated issue: Native American

genocide. In Scott's film, the native voice is unheard, their identity is muted, and their culture is

disregarded. The quincentennial celebration of Columbus's voyage triggered a proliferation of

literary criticisms addressing the controversy over the traditional Columbus myth.1 1492:

Conquest of Paradise, however, is silent…

Your issue paper must be a minimum of three pages.

1 Richard Alleva, "Good bye, Columbus: Ridley Scott's '1492.'" Commonweal 20 November 1992, 20.

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Works Cited

Alleva, Richard. "Good bye, Columbus: Ridley Scott's '1492.'" Commonweal 20 November 1992: 20-21.

The Arguments of Sepulveda

http://www.pbs.org/opb/conquistadors/namerica/adventure2/b5.htm Axtell, James. "The Moral Dimensions of 1492." Historian 56.1 (1993): 17-28. Axtell, James. Beyond 1492: Encounters in Colonial North America. New York: Oxford UP,

1992. Etc…(list all of the sources you used to write your synopsis, scene analysis, historical essay, and issue essay)