Tuesday 24 August 2010

Comparing "Questions Of Conquest" And "Freedom and Democracy"

In reading both of these pieces, I can sense similarities in both the way that they write, and some obscure similarities in the points they are making.
In Questions, the author is trying to make a point about how Europeans come and destroyed millenia of South American culture. One example of this is in the quote, '...fastidiously catechized in the Indian villages by the extirpators of idolatries like Father Arriaga, to justify the devastations of idols, amulets, ornaments, handicrafts and tombs.' This quote is sentiment is echoed in F&D, where the author talks about the effect that emotions have on the human mind. The authour talks about how the restricitive environment of school effects the students mind, and eventually causes him to become the docile member of society that society wants them to be.

The styles of writing are very similar, as both write in the first person, and use very expression and high-level English to get across their points.

1 comment:

  1. I agree with in the ways that you said the two pieces were similar. When I read them, it seemed to me like they were both by the same author because they both chose very argumentative and controversial topics and did research on them to state an opinion, almost in an essay like form.

    I also agree with how you talked about the points each piece was making, such as how in "Question of Conquest", relates to "Freedom and Democracy", in a manner concerning the way which we are raised and grown up. This is shown how the Incas were rendered useless after they're leader had been captured and held prisoner. Without the one who had raised and brought them up in their culture, the Incas were clueless as to what to do, and therefore, slaughtered by the Spaniards.

    This relates to the other piece because it explains in more depth how freedom, our free will, is restrained by democracy, or the way we are raised, such as going to school. Our personal instincts are converted, and we are left thinking by the outside factors that have taught us the way the have, forgetting our natural instinct and evolving, for better or worse.

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