Palimpsest: Same Script With A New Native, A New Place, And New Hero

Is a civilization worth of its title without the exposure to European’s civilization? Have the individuals of America become the new vessels for these European’s beliefs?

By exploring the European mentality of them been a form of guidance to other races, especially in the Americas and by observing how this mentality remains vivid centuries later as seen in pieces of writings, this paper will analyze Hernan Cortes “Second Letter to the Spanish Crown” and Mary Rowlandson “A Narrative of the Captivity” and discuss why this is important to grasp a deeply understanding of the readings.

Through the writings left behind by conquistadores or individuals that came across highly advanced civilizations, the intellectual of those natives were exposed to the world. This is clearly the case of Hernan Cortez. An individual that gave himself the title of a major conquistador. Yet, given praised born from encountered of one of the most outstanding cities, Tenochtitlan. The inhabitants built a city that was much more evolved than any other. Their architecture, culture, market and trade, and the government proved that these natives didn’t need to be in contact with Europeans to be self-sufficient. However, how could those superiors to this race of savages, allow them to live in this filthy; it is their duty to correct them and to demonstrate how to be civilized. To see how the royalty, governed by the Almighty, needs them to be. As Hernan Cortez described, “I would better know the things they should believe… make them understand…for they would do as I said was the best”. For they should do as Europeans say because they are the ones guiding everyone to be as proper are they meant to be. After the destruction of the Aztec Empire, the Spaniards asked the natives to recall all the information of the administration they once had. According to these recordings, the Aztecs and their allies modified their system of government as their expansion increased. Before when they once only had to worries about one region, after conquering other tribes, there was a need for a settled management. For that conquered land the Aztec elaborated a “society with hereditary nobility, owning land, and occupying the leading position.”

The evolution or simply the structure of how fully developed Tenochtitlan could have been was destroyed the minute Cortes discovered it. He has been part of the superior race took as his duty to reconstruct a city whose foundation had no correlation to one of the Europeans. It was despicable for he to see their beliefs and systems and to discovered how different, but quite similar, they were to his. Yet, Cortes couldn’t allow for the Aztec to continue living in this erroneous lifestyle. Despite both civilizations, the natives and Europeans, shared similar foundations of the government of beliefs, a native civilization would always be inferior. Not for their lack of fulling the default term of civilization but for being what the Europeans see as barbarian. Because a true civilized individual has European characteristics and he would never be tempted to live as a savage.

Centuries later, a new individual that believed to have a new story with her own natives arose. It goes without saying that it is the same script and same ideas presented before by Cortes and those who came before and after him. In Mary Rowlandson narrative the Puritans are simply the new conquistadores. The new set of individuals sent to this land to guide those that aren’t not properly living to their standards. And the easier way for her to portray this mentality to her audience was to do what others did before her. Utilizing the same methods to gain credibility and to give what her audience needs desperately to be reminded of. But first, to set the order, the Puritans must be the superiors and everyone else a reflection of the rejected parts of them. Gain a label of inferiority because they represent the opposite of what one is; to know what it is, it must be known what it isn’t. The portray of two different beings, one guiding the other through the right path and to accustom the being. When Rowlandson’s child died she mourns its death and tries to bring her child to life, but the natives as inhumane beings remained her that her “master will quickly knock your child in the head.”

The approach from the natives in the state of crisis Rowlandson demonstrated how both beings stand in different sizes of a spectrum. The chosen one and the savage. Although Mary Rowlandson doesn’t state she wants for the natives to acquire her religious beliefs, she wants for those reading her writing to understand how her captivity emphasized how Puritans are individuals that are constantly being tested by God. His need to remain his followers, the chosen ones, of their faith. Everything she went through demonstrated “that the Lord had selected her for a special trial.”

The writing of Rowlandson’s captivity brings back the mentality that many self-labeled superior races believed. As she recalls her story, it is not clear that she wants to exhibit and fulfill the needs of her audience. But as many have done before her, she follows the same draft left by Columbus. She only changes her characters and settling. This shows that no matter how many years would go by, the Europeans’ mentality remains alive and will until the end of time. Identifying the purpose of the writing and what the authors want to get across is fundamental in the understanding of their writing pieces.

Throughout Hernan Cortes “Second Letter to the Spanish Crown” and Mary Rowlandson “A Narrative of the Captivity” stories it was visible how the foundation of Christopher Columbus discoveries affected American literature. Many readings demonstrated that there is hardly any difference between stories. Both Cortes and Rowlandson had their own natives and own place but equally had the same mentality. Although many believe history doesn’t repeat, in fact, it does. The easier way to see how this happens, it is through reading. In fact, history is a repetition of events because they rely on the same mentality and it leads to the same end.

By understanding the readings, it is easy to comprehend what brought history to where it is today. A new beginning that would accumulate and give meaning to new stories. A palimpsest what would constantly be cited and written over for the new “pioneers” to publish they discoveries. A new native, a new place, and new hero would be introduced. But the same mentality of superiority and fulfilling their reason to be alive would never reach an end. For it to end the culture, the stories, the foundation of what’s known as America must also come to end. Due to the rare chance, this would happen, the Europeans and Puritans purpose will never perish nor their urge to keep implanting that they are the chose ones and are above anyone.