Compare and Contrast “1491” and The Future of the Past

History is the record of the rise and fall of civilizations. Throughout history migrating tribes have enter new regions in search of territory in which to conquer either causing the destruction or enslavement of the inhabitants. In similar fashion the Europeans conquered the Western Hemisphere along with the rest of the world. As has been said the winners write the history books and for several hundred years the conquerors have dominated the book market looking at the Indians prior to Columbus as “savages” who needed to be civilized. Recently paradigm shift has begun among archeologist and anthropologists questioning the currently accepted model about the population and development of the Western Hemisphere prior to the arrival of Columbus.

After the arrival of the first Europeans the spread of disease began to destroy the Indian populations of the Western Hemisphere. As the Mann notes, “The Spaniards arrived and the Indians died – in huge numbers.” Smallpox arrived in 1525; caused by a single Spaniard caused the death of half the Inca Empire. This plague was followed in succession by typhoid, bubonic plague, influenza and many more diseases, of which the native peoples had developed no immunity against.

Both the article and the book discuss how man effects his environment. Mann quotes Charles Kay of Utah State that humankind is the “keystone species” everywhere. In Stille this keystone species is played out in Madagascar. Humans have destroyed 80% of the rain forest along with many animal species. Humans are attempting to develop national parks to protect the forest and the remaining species.

In Madagascar man has done similar things to what the Indians may have done; burning out areas for farming or to manage the forests. Unlike the Indians, who seemed to have managed the land with great care and a deliberate plan of action the people of Madagascar have been more inclined toward a scorched earth policy. An example maybe how the Indians created a neo-tropical landscape on part of Amazon River before the Spanish arrival is reminiscent of attempts that are being made to clean up the Ganges River in India by creating a pond system that will filter the human waste from Varanasi. Showing that humans continue to develop the “wilderness” for their own purposes rather than allowing nature to control humans.

Both Mann and Stille focus upon the disagreements that exist within the scientific community about how we view the past and how best to manage the past. In the Western Hemisphere the view of the past is changing from a savage place with unoccupied territory to a place where the people had built a prosperous civilization that was destroyed by disease. Some see it as a clash of Neolithic civilizations that had both started 10,000 years earlier. Similarly in China the past in looked upon as a means to achieve financial gains. In Sicily, tomb raiders steal treasure and sell on the black market. The Western view is the past needs to be revered not be used for personal or national gain. But in order to preserve the past nations, such as Egypt, are depended upon those who would view the past in non-scientific ways. Egypt is depended upon tourism which is driven by those who follow people like Edgar Cayce.

Even as technological advancements have changed our view of the past so have new ideas that challenge the accepted paradigm. In “1491” Mann attempts to present a view that the accepted paradigm is continually being challenged whereas Stille tends to look down upon those who deviate from the accepted model, as with the Chinese view that the past should serve the present. As history shows what was once viewed as “heresy” in one generation becomes the accepted model in the next.

If I can make a book recommendation The Future of the Past by Alexander Stille. Stille is a wonderful writer who deserves to be read by people.