1. Over five centuries ago, European explorer Christopher Columbus fortuitously discovered America. His stories of a prospering land inhabited by people who harmonized with their environment attracted explorers from all over Europe, hoping for the same fame and glory as they’re predecessor. Their quests for trade and territory required the adventurers to make contact with the inhabitants of the new world. However, “such contrasting world views would be hard to reconcile”.
In the beginning, the Natives were friendly towards the Europeans. A mutual respect for one another and curiosity for the other’s way of life allowed the two cultures to live in temporary harmony. However their relationship began to fall apart as the Europeans began to abuse their privileges. In time, the Native peoples were made victims of te
In any case, using the term prehistory and relating it to the fact that America’s history began with its discovery by Europeans, is false. The reason why we use this term even nowadays is because Europeans have written most of the books about the Americas, and we tend to get only one perspective. The Europeans took no notice, or simply did not care, about the feelings of the original inhabitants of this new land. As they began to settle in the New World, the Native peoples were forced to retreat to new areas that were unfamiliar to them. Disagreement arose between the Europeans over which territories belonged to which country, and their claims to “right of discovery” resolved many of these issues. However these claims took no notice of the natives that were originally there.