I. Introduction
America is one of the historical literatures in English Literature. So that it is important to know the history of America. The objective of this essay is to analyze:
a) Who is Colombus?
b) Who is Louis De Santangel?c) What is the spirit of frontierism?
d) How is the contact of Puritan and Indian?
e) Who is Anne Bradstreet?
f) How does she describe the first contact?
II. The Letter from Colombus to Louis De Santangel Regarding The First Voyage
a) Christoper Colombus Biography
Christopher colombus was born between 22 August and 31 October 1451 in Genoa, Italy.[1] He grow become an explorer, colonizer and navigator. He was a child of Domenico Colombo, a middle-class wool weaver who worked both in Genoa and Savona and who also owned a cheese stand at which young Christoper worked as a helper; and Susanna Fontanarossa. Then Bartolomeo, Giovanni Pellegrino and Giacomo were his brothers. The name of Christopher colombus is the Anglicisation of the Latin Christophorus Colombus. His name in Italian is Cristoforo Colombo and in Spanish it is Cristóbal Colón.[2]
Christopher Colombus obtained most of his early seafaring experience in service of the Portuguese.[3] In the context of emerging western imperialism and economic competition between European kingdoms seeking wealth through the establishment of trade routes and colonies, Columbus' far-fetched proposal to reach the East Indies by sailing westward received the support of the Spanish crown, which saw in it a promise, however remote, of gaining the upper hand over rival powers in the contest for the lucrative spice trade with Asia.[4] He intrigued with the possibility, already, under discussion in many seafaring circles, of reaching Asia by going not east but west. He believes that the Asian continent turned to Spain, which is under directionary of Ferdinand and Isabella. Then Colombus appealed to extended farther eastward than it actually does. He assumed, therefore, that the Atlantic was narrow enough to be crossed on a relatively brief voyage. He failed to win support for his plan in Portugal, so he Queen Isabella for support for his proposed westward voyage.[5] He completed four voyages under the auspices of the Catholic Monarch of Spain.[6]
In August 1492, Columbus was doing the first voyage using three ships; they are The Nina, The Pinta, and The Santa Maria. He sailed west into the Atlantic on what he thought was a straight course of Japan. In fact he arrived in Bahamas. Then when he encountered Cuba, he assumed he had reached China. He returned to Spain bringing several natives as evidence of his achievement.[7]On 24 September 1493 Colombus continued his second voyage. He left Cadiz, to find new territories with 17 ships and about 1,200 men to colonize the region. This was part of new policy not just colonies exploitation, but colonies of settlement and conversion of the natives to Christianity. Then the third voyage on 30 May 1498, Colombus went to the Portuguese island of Porto Santo with six ships from Sanlucar, Spain. In his fourth voyage, Colombus made fourth voyage nominally in search of the Strait of Malacca to the Indian Ocean. Then he sailed to Arzila on the Moroccan coast to rescue Portuguese soldiers whom he had heard were under siege by the Moors. He leaved the world in 20 May 1506.[8]
b) Louis De Santangel Biography
Luis de Santangel (or Luis de Santander) born in Spain on 1437 and died on 1498. He was a baptized Jew and finance minister of Ferdinand II. He introduced the explorer Christopher Columbus and his voyage plans to Queen Isabella I in 1492, and financed most of Christopher Columbus' voyage.[9]
And he is also treasurer of the Kingdom of Aragon, was first published in Barcelona in 1493. Santangel had financed a large part of the voyage and had decisive influence with the King and Queen of Spain.[10]
c) The Spirit of Frontierism
The spirit of frontierism is spirit to exploring the new land or the new world which is not peopled. It can be seen in the Letter of Colombus which writes it full of exaggeration when he describing America. It is the line below:
The Letter of Colombus to Louis De Sant Angel
(At sea, February 15, 1493)
SIR:
AS I know you will be rejoiced at the glorious success that our Lord has given me in my voyage, I write this to tell you how in thirty-three days I sailed to the Indies with the fleet that the illustrious King and Queen, our Sovereigns, gave me, where I discovered a great many islands, inhabited by numberless people; and of all I have taken possession for their Highnesses by proclamation and display of the Royal Standard without opposition[11]. To the first island I discovered I gave the name of San Salvador, in commemoration of His Divine Majesty, who has wonderfully granted all this. The Indians call it Guanaham. The second I named the Island of Santa Maria de Concepcion; the third, Fernandina; the fourth, Isabella; the fifth, Juana; and thus to each one I gave a new name. When I came to Juana, I followed the coast of that isle toward the west, and found it so extensive that I thought it might be the mainland, the province of Cathay; and as I found no towns nor villages on the sea-coast, except a few small settlements, where it was impossible to speak to the people, because they fled at once, I continued the said route, thinking I could not fail to see some great cities or towns; and finding at the end of many leagues that nothing new appeared, and that the coast led northward, contrary to my wish, because the winter had already set in, I decided to make for the south, and as the wind also was against my proceeding, I determined not to wait there longer, and turned back to a certain harbor whence I sent two men to find out whether there was any king or large city. They explored for three days, and found countless small communities and people, without number, but with no kind of government, so they returned.
AS I know you will be rejoiced at the glorious success that our Lord has given me in my voyage, I write this to tell you how in thirty-three days I sailed to the Indies with the fleet that the illustrious King and Queen, our Sovereigns, gave me, where I discovered a great many islands, inhabited by numberless people; and of all I have taken possession for their Highnesses by proclamation and display of the Royal Standard without opposition[11]. To the first island I discovered I gave the name of San Salvador, in commemoration of His Divine Majesty, who has wonderfully granted all this. The Indians call it Guanaham. The second I named the Island of Santa Maria de Concepcion; the third, Fernandina; the fourth, Isabella; the fifth, Juana; and thus to each one I gave a new name. When I came to Juana, I followed the coast of that isle toward the west, and found it so extensive that I thought it might be the mainland, the province of Cathay; and as I found no towns nor villages on the sea-coast, except a few small settlements, where it was impossible to speak to the people, because they fled at once, I continued the said route, thinking I could not fail to see some great cities or towns; and finding at the end of many leagues that nothing new appeared, and that the coast led northward, contrary to my wish, because the winter had already set in, I decided to make for the south, and as the wind also was against my proceeding, I determined not to wait there longer, and turned back to a certain harbor whence I sent two men to find out whether there was any king or large city. They explored for three days, and found countless small communities and people, without number, but with no kind of government, so they returned.
I heard from other Indians I had already taken that this land was an island, and thus followed the eastern coast for one hundred and seven leagues, until I came to the end of it. From that point I saw another isle to the eastward, at eighteen leagues’ distance, to which I gave the name of Hispaniola. I went thither and followed its northern coast to the east, as I had done in Juana, one hundred and seventy-eight leagues eastward, as in Juana. This island, like all the others, is most extensive. It has many ports along the sea-coast excelling any in Christendom—and many fine, large, flowing rivers. The land there is elevated, with many mountains and peaks incomparably higher than in the centre isle. They are most beautiful, of a thousand varied forms, accessible, and full of trees of endless varieties, so high that they seem to touch the sky, and I have been told that they never lose their foliage. I saw them as green and lovely as trees are in Spain in the month of May. Some of them were covered with blossoms, some with fruit, and some in other conditions, according to their kind. The nightingale and other small birds of a thousand kinds were singing in the month of November when I was there. There were palm trees of six or eight varieties, the graceful peculiarities of each one of them being worthy of admiration as are the other trees, fruits and grasses. There are wonderful pine woods, and very extensive ranges of meadow land. There is honey, and there are many kinds of birds, and a great variety of fruits. Inland there are numerous mines of metals and innumerable people. Hispaniola is a marvel. Its hills and mountains, fine plains and open country, are rich and fertile for planting and for pasturage, and for building towns and villages. The seaports there are incredibly fine, as also the magnificent rivers, most of which bear gold. The trees, fruits and grasses differ widely from those in Juana. There are many spices and vast mines of gold and other metals in this island.[12]
The frontierism is good spirit, but the effect is bad. The frontierism becomes slaveness. The white men that feel his culture is higher than Indians. Based on Indian testimony, on 1492 Colombus took ten of Indian natives to display at the court, then two years later he shipped off five hundred west Indian natives as slave.[13]
III. The First Contact and Puritanism
a) Migration of Puritan to America
The passage below is the information about Puritans’ migration to the New England[14]:
1) The first man to come to Virginia was Captain John Smith. The Virginia Company of Plymouth sent him to explore the region north of Virginia, which he named New England in 1606.
2) In September 1620, 73 men and 29 women of Puritans moved to Virginia from Plymouth, England by Mayflower (ship).
3) The first year of the settlement was hard of starving.
4) They were helped by Squanto, the Pawtuxet people (Indian), to adapt to the new world by planting, fishing, etc.
5) Thanksgiving Day was to thank to God and was inspired by their successful harvest.
6) More settlers arrived.
b) Anne Bradstreet
The passage below is a little information of Anne’s life.[15]
1) Anne was born in England in 1612 .At the age of 16, Anne was married to Simon Bradstreet, a 25 year old assistant in the Massachusetts Bay Company and the son of a Puritan minister, who had been in the care of the Dudleys since the death of his father.Moved to Boston, America (The New World) in 1630 with her husband and family.
2) She was one of the few published female writers at the time. She published two volumes of poetry: First volume contained highly intellectual and abstract subjects. Her brother-in-law stole her manuscript and published it without her consent. Second volume was published after several years in the New World. The subjects in this volume include her family, their home, and their faith.
3) Like the other members of the Puritan faith, Anne Bradstreet believed she should lead a life guided by the principles of Grace, Plainness, and Divine Mission.
4) Many of her poems deal with domestic life and religious life
5) Anne Bradstreet's poetry was mostly based on her life experience, and her love for her husband and family. One of the most interesting aspects of her work is the context in which she wrote; an atmosphere where the search for knowledge was frowned upon as being against God's will, and where women were relegated to traditional roles. Yet, we cannot help but feel the love she had for both God, and her husband, and her intense devotion to both, and to her family, despite the fact that she clearly valued knowledge and intellect, and was a free thinker, who could even be considered an early feminist.
6) She passed away on September 16, 1672, in Andover, Massachusetts, at the age 60.
c) Anne Bradstreet’s poem
We trust that the literary works can show the condition of human. It may express not only about the politics such a fairy queen by Edmund Spencer but also the beautiful phenomenon of place like America in the poem of Anne Bradstreet which is named To My Dear and Loving Husband. Here Bradstreet is talking about her love to her husband, Simon working as a governor in New England. In the same time, she represents her feeling to her husband in the letter using a contrastive approach in the reflection of the nature of America or New England. It is reasonable if we compare the letter of Colombus for King Luis and her poem having some marks to say how wonderful her love and there is nothing can replace it. Significantly, in the process of making poem, we believe that the authors get the inspiration from the environment of their life. “I prize thy love more than whole Mines of gold”. In different sentence, it says that the nature of America riches of gold and it is quite clear in the letter of Colombus in the text above.
“My love is such that Rivers cAnneot quench”. From this sentence, she tries to talk to her husband that the huge water which flows in the river could not wet her thirsty if she drinks it no matter how much because only the love of her husband can water it. This perception also brings our mind that New England or America is such nice place which has a good panorama and a fertile land because many rivers grows the plant near the bank or around them.
“My love is such that Rivers cAnneot quench”. From this sentence, she tries to talk to her husband that the huge water which flows in the river could not wet her thirsty if she drinks it no matter how much because only the love of her husband can water it. This perception also brings our mind that New England or America is such nice place which has a good panorama and a fertile land because many rivers grows the plant near the bank or around them.
And other work of Anne Bradstreet is A Dialogue between Old England and New. She claims that,” After dark popery the day did clear; But now the sun in his brightness shall appear. Blest be the nobles of thy noble land”. This quote is taken from the side of what she feels in the new land or after migration from the old England. In this perspective, she wants to share that this land is the Promised Land which brings the people in the peace with the faith of puritan. In contrary, she also claims that the old England is a failed land because they could not manage their arrogant in the faith of people. It is marked in the side of old England, “I mocked the preachers, put it far away; The sermons yet upon record do stand. That cried destruction to my wicked land”. Here, she tries to open the main set of people that the old England is not the blessed land anymore. Moreover, she feels pity to this land because a lot of preachers do not guide the people well instead of leaving them far away.
From those poems of Anne Bradstreet can be seen one thing that Anne prefers the New England to the old England. It is logical if we also consider the age of this poem. It is made in 1642 since the New England is safe from the war between the native of England which fight each other to get this land.
by: M. Hisyam Maliki
[1] http//www.Christopher Columbus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.htm
[2] Ibid
[3] A Survey AMERICAN HISTORY twelfth edition, page 11
[4] http//www.Christopher Columbus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.htm
[5] A Survey AMERICAN HISTORY twelfth edition, page 11
[6] http//www.Christopher Columbus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.htm
[7] A Survey AMERICAN HISTORY twelfth edition, page 11
[8] http//www.Christopher Columbus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.htm
[9] http://de.337.com/pages/152851/Luis+de+Sant%C3%A1ngel#section
[10] http://www.americanjourneys.org/index.asp
[11] The line is show the arrogance of Colombus
[12] The line shows the spirit of frintierismof colombus because he is very happy when found the lands. He describes them full of exaggeration.
[13] American Society and Culture Studies, page 19.
[14] HISTORY OF A FREE NATION page 63-64
[15] www.annebradstreet.com
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