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In many countries
在很多國家
or assorted principalities,
或者聯合的封地中
a principality is a land ruled by a Prince,
封地是指王子，貴族管理的土地
the population was growing faster
人口增長的速度
than the ability to support the population.
超過了土地的供給力
Western European countries
西歐國家
also coveted new markets for their goods
也希望為自己的商品找到市場
along with wealthy trading partners.
和富有的貿易伙伴
As we learned in segment 2B
我們在第二節中得知
these markets and new lands
這些市場和土地
could not be found in the East
無法在東方獲得
where the Turks and the Russians did play
因為那里是土耳其人和俄羅斯人統治的范圍
so the Western Europeans literally had to
所以西歐人確實需要
discover these new lands.
去發現這些新土地
Much as earlier civilizations
就像之前的文明
had done before them
已經做的
and much as later nations
和之后的國家
would do after them.
要做的一樣
They also hoped to gain
他們也希望能夠獲得
the spiritual glory of
將基督教帶到新世界的
bringing Christianity to the New World.
精神榮耀
2; the old school view 2
傳統的教育
when I was in high school
我上高中的時候
history text books still claimed that
歷史書上還說
Christopher Columbus discovered America
克里斯托弗哥倫布在1492年
in 1492AD.
發現了美洲
This in turn implied a strong us and them distinction
這里面強烈暗含了我們和他們之間的區別
between the good Europeans
好的歐洲人
who are bringing civilization and religion
為這些壞印第安人
to those bad Indians,
帶來了文明和宗教
and the bad Indians
而這些壞印第安人
who massacred and scalped
屠殺了善良友好的歐洲人
the nice friendly Europeans.
還剝了他們的頭骨
Since the Europeans
因為歐洲人
thought of the Indians as savages
把印第安人看成是野蠻人
they considered themselves entitled
他們認為自己有權
to claim and rule whatever lands they could grab.
獲得并統治自己可以得到的土地
The technical term for this assumption is
這種設想的專業術語是
claiming Terra Nullius or nobodies land.
獲得無主土地
It was all for the Indians own good
這完全是對印第安人好
or so we were indirectly led to believe
或者我們在60 70年代是
back in the 1960's and 70's.
這樣被誤導的
For his role in bringing
因為他將
the so called New World to European attention
這樣的新大陸帶到了歐洲人面前
the nice guy Christopher Columbus
這個好人，克里斯托弗哥倫布
has statues erected and cities
被樹立了很多雕像，很多城市
and even an entire country named in his honor,
甚至整個國家以他的名字命名
not to mention Universities and university towns,
更不要提那些大學和大學城了
but the continents themselves were named after that
不過大陸本身是以后來的探險家
rank late comer Amerigo Vespucci.
阿梅里戈韋斯普奇命名的
3: you discovered what? 3
我們從中發現了什么?
back when I was a pup
當我還是個孩子的時候
we heard a lot less about the peoples
我們很少聽到
who were actually living in the Americas
真正住在美洲的人的情況
when Columbus reached the Indies in 1492.
在哥倫布1492年到達這里時
The Maya, Inca and Aztec cultures
瑪雅，印加和阿茲特克文化
were fascinating
都很了不起
but they were South American empires
但是他們都是南美的國度
and they did not really directly
他們也沒有直接
impact American history,
影響美國歷史
or so it was told.
或者歷史上是這樣說
The original inhabitants of North America,
北美的原住民
the Indians, left behind no major written records
印第安人，沒有留下主要的記錄
and so supposedly couldn't have left their mark
所以可能也沒有在美國歷史上
on American history either.
留下自己的痕跡
This historical view became corrected somewhat
在我上大學的時候
when I entered college.
這一歷史觀在一定程度上得以修正
I once heard an Indian Professor tell a class;
我曾經聽一位印第安教授說
we didn't need Columbus to discover us,
我們不需要哥倫布發現我們
we already knew we were there.
我們知道自己在那兒
It became very popular to
后來去除
de-mythologize quote unquote
克里斯托弗哥倫布的神話
'Christopher Columbus and point out his crimes'.
指出他的罪行，很流行
Some of these crimes were authentic,
其中的一些罪行是真實的
he did kill Native Americans,
他確實殺害了印第安人
he did trade in slaves,
他確實販賣了奴隸
some of these crimes are perceived,
有一些是推測的
the genocide of American Indians
美洲印第安人的滅絕
and the institution of slavery did occur
奴隸制的建立確實存在
but cannot be traced
但這些不能聯系到
to Christopher Columbus.
哥倫布身上
Even though a great deal of
盡管西歐所帶來的
the Western European legacy
很多后果
involves slaughter and oppression of
包括屠殺和壓迫
Native Americans
印第安人
it is hard to argue that
我們很難說
the world today is not a better place
由于美洲殖民
for the colonization of the Americas
世界變得不夠好
and Christopher Columbus
哥倫布在其中
played a big role in that
扮演了很重要的角色
no matter what he did or didn't discover.
不管他有沒有發現新大陸
