USA-Chapter-2

Chapter2AmericanHistory1.TheNativeAmericans&ColonialPeriod2.TheAmericanRevolution&WestwardMovement3.TheCivilWar&IndustrialRevolution4.TheTwoWorldWars&AmericaToday1.NativeAmericans1.1TheLifeofNativeAmericansbeforetheGreatDiscoveryTheearliestinhabitantsoftheAmericanlandweretheNativeAmericanswhoconsistedofmanydifferenttribes.TheyarecollectivelycalledNativeAmericansorsometimes,AmericanIndians.ScientistsbelieveNativeAmericanscamefromAsiaatatimebetweenfortyandfiftythousandyearsago.Atthattime,AsiaandNorthAmericawereconnectedbyabroadlandbridge.AmericanIndianTribesDistributionNativeAmericans1.2DiscoveryoftheNewWorldChristopherColumbus,wasgenerallybelievedtothefirsttodiscovertheNewWorldin1492whenhesailedwestfromPortugaltofindaseatraderoutetoIndia.BelievinghehadreachedIndia,ColumbuscalledthenativepeopleIndians.That’swhyNativeAmericansarealsocalledAmericanIndians.Columbus,withtheaidofSpanishqueen,madefourtripsacrosstheAtlantic,discoveredtheAmericancontinentandstartedtheSpanishcolonization,whichwasfollowedbygeneralEuropeancolonizationofthe“NewWorld”.HowdidAmericagetitsname?AnotherimportantfigureinthediscoveryoftheNewWorldwasAmerigoVespucci.Hedescribedthenewcontinentinhisletterswhichwerequicklypublishedandwidelyspread.SomanypeoplebelievedAmerigohadfirstdiscoveredthenewcontinentandnameditafterhim–America,theLatinformofhisChristianname.ActuallymanypeopleinotherAmericancountriesdisliketheterm“America”torepresentonlytheU.S.,theythinkthey,too,isanAmerican,theircountriesarealsopartofAmerica.ZhengHefirstdiscoveredAmerica?In2002,aBritishhistorian,GavinMenziesputforwardpublishedhisbook1421:TheYearChinaDiscoveredtheWorldinwhichMenziesarguesthatZhengHefirstdiscoveredNorthAmerica,about70yearsearlierthanColumbusdid.Menziestriestosupporthisargumentwithnumerouspiecesofevidence,includingarcheologicalfindingsofChinesearticlesinNorthAmericabelievedtoberemainsofZheng’sfleetsuchasChineseceramics([sə‘ræmɪks]制陶术)andjade.Theancientworldmap,madein1763,wasbelievedtobea‘replica(复制品)ofamapdated1418whenZhengHemadehisrenownedvoyages.SixChinesecharactersintheupperright-handcornerofthemapsaythisisa“generalchartoftheintegratedworld”.Inthelowerleft-handcornerisanotethatsaysthechartwasdrawnbyMoYiTong,imitatingaworldchartmadein1418whichshowedthebarbarianspayingtributetotheMingemperor,ZhuDi.CompareColumbus’svoyagesandZhengHe’svoyages.Whyistheresomuchdifferenceintheirresultsandinfluences?TheWestbeganitsriseaftertheGreatDiscoverywhileChinasincethencloseditsdoortotheoutsideworldandbegantofall.ChinawasforcedtoopenitsdoorafteritsdefeatsintheOpiumWars.Whatcanwelearnfromtheexperience?Topicsfordiscussion2.ColonizationintheNewWorldManyEuropeancountriesestablishedcoloniesinNorthAmericafromthe16thcenturytothe18thcentury.ThemajorcolonieswereheldbySpain,theNetherlands,FranceandBritain.2.1Spanishcolonies(NewSpain)Intheearly16thcentury,SpainexploredandconqueredmostofSouthAmerica(exceptBrazil),CentralAmerica,andthesouthernpartofNorthAmericafromFloridatoCalifornia.NewSpainincludedthesouthoftoday’sU.S.,Mexico,centralandabouthalfofSouthAmerica.Therefore,itwasseveraltimeslargerthantheSpaininEurope.TheSpanishcamefor3-Gs:Gold(togetrich),God(tospreadCatholicism)andGlory(toservetheking).TheSpanishexploitedtheIndiansmercilessly,enslavingthemingoldandsilvermineswheremanydiedorbecamedisabled.TheSpanishshippedthegoldandsilverbacktoSpain.TheSpanishrulecontinuedforcenturies.Today,strongSpanishculturalinfluencescanbestillseeninthoseareas.ThegreatwealthfromAmericancoloniespouredinSpainandattractedotherEuropeanpowers.TheDutch,French,andtheEnglishfollowed,exploredandestablishedcoloniesindifferentpartsofNorthAmerica.KaleidoscopeSpanishiswidelyusedinsouthoftheU.S.byHispanics(西班牙裔).ActuallytheUShasthesecondlargestnumberofSpanishspeakers,justbehindMexico.StrongSpanishcultureisstillseeminlanguage,food,customs,architecture,andinreligion(RomanCatholicChurch)inthesouthU.S.SpanishfoodSpanish-styleclothesSpanishfortressSpanish-styleChurch2.2DutchColony(NewNetherland)NewNetherlandwasestablishedatthemouthoftheHudsonRiverin1624,andexpandedittoConnecticutandtheDelawareRiverValley.CapitalofNewNetherlandwasNewAmsterdam,roughlytoday’sNewYork.Today’sWallStreetwasatfirstindeedawallbuiltbytheDutchtodefendagainsttheIndians.TheDutchsetuptheWestIndiaCompany,conductedveryprofitablefurtradewithlocaltribes.TheEnglishwerejealous,foughtseveralwarswiththeDutch,defeatedthemin1675andtookoverthecolony.NewNetherlandwasrenamedNewYorkinhonorofitsowner,thethendukeofYork,theking’sbrotherandheirtotheEnglishthrone.2.3Frenchcolonies(NewFrance)In1604,FrancesetupsmallcoloniesandstrengthenedtheFrenchsettlement.ThecolonialareawascalledNewFrance.NewFranceincludedtheMississippiriverarea,theGreatLakeregion,andpartoftoday’sCanada(St.LaurenceRiverarea).Inthe1680s,theFrenchexploredthevastterritorywateredbytheMississippiandtheMissouriRiversandthenbuiltfortsandmissionsthroughtheGreatLakesregionandtheMississippiRivervalleytostrengthentheFrenchrule.In1690,theFrenchcontrolledvastinteriorofNorthAmericaandbythemid-18thcentury,NewFrancehadconnect