1 - From the start of the text, there are a few occasions where Don Luis's ability to interpret is questioned. Why does Don Luis intentionally interpret in ways that seem to side through the "perspective and emotions" of the natives? Do you think this was one of the signs of him betraying the priests?
2 - The priests writings indicate that "three of Don Luis's followers miraculously fall down dead after attempting to open a chest belonging to the slain Jesuits" (p.39) Do you believe this to be true, or just a story the priests proposed to ensure a fear of god, or rather a miracle, in order to shed some hopeful light on the massacre from a religious standpoint?
2. Brickhouse points out that when “three of Don Luis’ followers miraculously fall down dead after attempting to open a chest belonging to the slain Jesuits,” the tale is given closure. Symbolically, it could mean that even though the Jesuits have been slain, the power of G-d is portrayed as a means of retribution. Most likely, this fictional account is a way for the priests to instill the fear of G-d in the natives.
ReplyDelete1. Brickhouse notes that Don Luis was the only bilingual Spanish-Algonquin translator (22). If Luis was really on the side of the conquistadors, then it would be advantageous for him to establish good ties with the natives in Chesapeake Bay. The way in which the Chesapeake Powhatans describe Don Luis, Brickhouse suggests, greatly resembles descriptions used toward Spanish explorers like Hernan Cortes - a "general ripeness for conversion" (22).
ReplyDeleteConsidering that while this piece was written so was the most famous version of the bible to date, just 500-600 miles from Spain it makes sense that contemporary recorders included some deathly theatrics to enrich points.
ReplyDeleteI've never read the bible, but that attitude would probably mimic that of the priests; if the bible is vicious and punishing, that was likely the priests goal, membership-oriented and magical, then they probably wanted to establish their power and advantages.
It certainly got my attention and 500 years back it I'm sure it prompted serious responses.
"Faith questions" are always difficult to answer because there is no definite answer , which is what allows arguments to be thought provoking and questionable due to the difference between facts and faith. If the three men miraculously dropped dead after attempting to open a chest belonging to the slain men is true or not will never be certain , but the fact that the priest claims it is enough to create that 50/50 chance. I think the priest (like any other priest) is not attempting to create a fear of God but simply trying to create a moral lesson from a tragedy.
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ReplyDelete1) Don Luis does not betray the priest because there are no other translations, which leads to the fact that he is only relying on these letters of what occured in Ajacan. On page 36 of the reader, Brickhouse states, "Despite their "most obedient" interpreter, then, the Jesuits ae losing confidence in their understanding of the Native point of view and the meaning of their interactions." This is saying that although people were questioning Don Luis losing condifence, they mostly lost faith which was why the question may have been asked about the betrayal of the priest, especially since the first verison of what happened between Don Luis and the Spanish fathers was recorded by the priest himself.
ReplyDelete1) Don Luis completely submerged himself into the lifestyle of the Jesuit missionaries. He traveled with them to Europe and other settlements. He followed their religion and language closely as he spent many years with them. I do believe that at first Don Luis was interested in embracing the Jesuit life style. With this said, it is probably unlikely that Don Luis intentionally mislead the Jesuits during translation. Don Luis along with the other Jesuits traveled to other tribe settlements in various areas. This included Mexico and Florida. It could have been that during these missions he began to realize that the Jesuits had their own agendas. The agenda is likely to have disregarded some of the needs of the tribes people, not to mention the other negatives that dealing with Europeans had on tribes. This could have included their lost of certain tribe members, as there was an exchange in people,and the contraction of diseases they were not immune to. Realizing everything his people had lostin the past and fearing for the future of his tribe ,Don Luis resorted to doing away with the jesuits.
ReplyDeleteIn reference to the faith question , it is difficult to say for sure if such events happened.Throughout history there have been many tall tales told to teach a lesson or recollections of miracles that may have actually occurred. In this case , I do not think the men actually passed out or were struck down by a higher power .Perhaps this was included in the story to suggest or imply that disturbing goods that belonged to victims of a violent death was uncalled for and unethical.Also that we should not take what is not ours which also should be said for killing others.All in all , this question all depends on if you believe in miracles and/or karma.
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