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第1部分 早期美国文学：殖民时期至1815年
第1章 “新世界”的文学
Questions for Discussion and Writing Assignments
1. Give a brief account of Christopher Columbus, AmerigoVespucci and Martin Waldseemuler so that you can establish one version of the “origin”of America.
Key: ChristopherColumbus was often regarded as the founder of “America”, but it was very controversial becausethat Columbus who “discovered” America in fact thought that he had reached Asia. He was so convinced that he had reached the land ofthe great Khan that in his four voyages between 1492 and 1502, he interpretedeverything he saw according to his pre-established view of what Asia or Asians should look like.
“America” wasnamed after Amerigo Vespucci, an Italianmerchant, explorer and cartographer, who sailedto Brazilin 1501 under the Portuguese flag and he noted: “we arrived at a new land which... we observed to be a continent.” In 1503 his book Mundus Novus (The New World) was printed and was morewidely circulated than anything written by Columbus. Many people think that he was thevery person discovered “America”.
Martin Waldseemuller was a German geographer. He found Vespucci’s work when he was preparing a newedition of the world’s map. It was Waldseemuler who decided that the new landshould be named after its finder: Amerigo. On his 1507 world map, this Germangeographer marked the new territory—what he called the “fourth part” of theworld following Europe, Africa, and Asia—as “America”. Vespucci as an explorer is also controversial in that hefabricated the tale that he had made a 1497 voyage during which he found theSouthern American continent. It is quite possible that he made up the story tobeat Columbusas the first discoverer.
At any rate, it wasVespucci’s writings and Waldseemuller’s map that made Europeans aware of the “fourth part” of theworld. The Europeans then understood that Columbus’sdescription of the New World as a string ofAsian islands was quite misleading. At any rate, to the New World called “America”European settlers came in incessant waves.
2. Give some specific examples forthe argument that the “origin” of America is multicultural.
Key: There were many explorers from different nations came here andexerted their influence on the native people of the new land. For example, people came from England, brought with theirculture, religions, traditions and so on.
3. From the first few pages of this book, do you acquire anew understanding of “discoveries” of America? If so, what is this newunderstanding?
Key: Yes, I acquire a new understanding of “discoveries” of America.Before I read the passage, I thought it was Columbusthat discovered America,and there was nothing worthy of doubting about. But after I read it, I found thatthe fact was not like what I thought. I get new knowledge about the discoveriesof Americawhich enriched my mind.
At the same time, Irealize that histories were past, and everyone has the rights to explain it,perhaps, as he wants to. So, if we want to know histories in the way as itreally was, we should read materials as much as possible.
4. What is the story of the word “Indian”as it is applied to the indigenous people in America?
Key: When Columbus set sail from Spainon August 3, 1492, he was driven by the desire to find a convenient sea passageto the Orient, or, more specifically, a passage to the land of KublaiKhan as Marco Polo had described it in his 13th century travelogues. When hearrived at America, he wasso convinced that he had reached the land of the great Khan that in his fourvoyages between 1492 and 1502, he interpreted everything he saw according tohis pre-established view of what Asia orAsians should look like. He thought that he had reached Asia and the land underhis feet was India.So, the indigenous people in Americawere wrongly called “Indian”.
5. What are the consequences of the Native Americans’ “contact”with European settlers? Why do you think the word “contact” is used by some historians?
Key: Native Americans were greatly influenced and conquered by Europeansettlers, because Europeans at that time were very strong and aggressive, especially England, Span, France and soon. In fact, from Columbus’ friend’s informalaccount of their second voyage to America, we can see how quickly therelationship between the Europeans and the natives deteriorated.
Historians use “contact”mainly because that Native Americans and Europeans could not communicate witheach other in an effective way. At that time, there were so many strikingdifferences between them, economically, religiously, culturally, and politically.
6. What are “origin stories?” Givetwo examples.
Key: Origin stories are those dramatizing tribal interpretations of howthe earth originated or of how people established relationships with plants,animals and the cosmos. “Earth-Diver” and “First Beginning” are two typicaloriginal stories.
7. Give examples to explain “trickster tales” and “historicalnarratives” in Native American literature. Compare the discussion of NativeAmerican literature in this chapter with that in Chapter 26. Discuss thecontinuity.
Key: Trickster tales are humorous tales featuring trickster characters.Trickster figures are people in the form of animals such as Coyote, Raven, BlueJay, Mink, or Rabbit. One might also say that they are half animal and halfhuman. A good Chinese analogy for the “trickster” would be Sun Wukong theMonkey King.
Historical narratives arediverse in kinds. Some of them are tribal records of historical events. Manyother narratives feature legendary figures that move in recognizable historicalsettings. In such tales, the line between an actual event and tribal belief isblurred. Of this vast historical literature, many stories recount Europeancolonization from the perspective of Native Americans. For instance, to theYuchis, a tribe in the Southeast, white people emerged from the sea foam of theAtlantic. The Yuchi tale “Creation of theWhites” reveals so much of the emotions associated with the first encountersbetween the Europeans and the natives.
In the early time, mostNative American stories were orally passed on, these tales then have a performative dimension: they are notonly “told,”they are also “sung”as chants and songs, and dramatized in ritual dances. The main types of theirstories were origin stories, trickster tales and historical narratives. Whilein chapter 26, the Native American literature is in written form and thosewriters have their various themes and styles.
8. What is the Eurocentric thinking in the explorationwritings by Christopher Columbus and Captain John Smith? How is this thinkingspecifically is manifested?
Key: The Eurocentric thinking is that some people think that Europeis the center of the world and it holds the most important position in theworld.
Many Europeans think thatthey are the center of the world, and their culture, values, religion, economy,political system and so on are the best of the whole world. They think thatpeople in other parts of the world should submit to them. So, not long afterthat time, some European countries began to establish colonies around theworld. Even now, there are till many people in Europehold the same idea and try to exert their cultures, values, religious beliefsand so on over people in other parts of the world, especially of somedeveloping countries.
