Sofia Cordova

What is the paradox of freedom in the Age of Exploration? How does it play out in the 17th,
18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st century?

The paradox of freedom in the Age of Exploration is that people were finally roaming and going
to places that had not been traveled to prior (they probably were traveled to prior a new group
just finally went there) but within these “new” spaces they managed to subjugate entire groups of
people and prevent them from exploration. Examples of this include imperialism, colonialism
(this was was a primary factor within the start of the age of exploration), and most notably
slavery. While the age of exploration presented opportunities and further freedom for those who
“discovered” new lands it had dire effects on existing populations. The conquerors of these lands
reaped the benefits for centuries to come. “During the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth
centuries, Africa sold slaves and bought rifles: it traded hands for arms. Then during the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Africa delivered gold, diamonds, copper, ivory, rubber, and
coffee…” (Galeano, 160). This shows that the paradox of the freedom in the age of exploration
and for the following centuries has limited the freedom of discovered countries. They did this
through the capturing, selling, and trading of slaves. In this they eliminated freedom of these
captured people they were forced to work, at times they were forced to bear children, to stay put,
and to leave their families. Acts across the US and various other countries like the fugitive slave
act limited mobility and any chance for these people to explore the world. Eventually slavery did
end and people were able to gain freedom. However, this freedom for these people was only on
paper they were still oppressed. In the US they still had rights revoked and eventually
subjugation went from physical to economic and social. With countries that were explored
having resources extracted, crumbling infrastructure, and governmental problems for years to
come. The paradox of freedom was that while some were able to expand their ability and area for
freedom but took away the freedom economic, physically, etc. of people for generations to come.

Select one “revolutionary” idea and explain its origin and impetus.

While many would argue that encyclopedias have become obsolete I believe that it is one of the
most revolutionary ideas and that it continues to shape our world in the present. There have been
many encyclopedias throughout history (an estimated 2,000 years). Most of them covered
various subjects and were more like compilations of of works. They also weren’t meant for mass
consumption they were meant for the wealthy. These early innovations differ from the current
ittirations and some of the most notable examples. This new path occurred around the 18th
century. Encyclopedias help to inform on various topics like history, definitions, etc.
Encyclopedias are able to pass down a lot of information and knowledge. One of the most
revolutionary examples is L'encyclopedie. L'encyclopedie was a collaborative effort with
twenty-seven volumes (Galeano, 179). In this encyclopedia there were ideas and definitions that
were new to many and further revolutionary ideas (literally as they were ideas of the
enlightenment which called for many revolutions). The ideas presented here have helped to
shape future generations and their knowledge. The pope and king banned the book and many of
the authors were jailed (it was a collaboration so multiple people were jailed). The definitions
would help in shaping the minds of many future political leaders and revolutionaries “Authority:
‘Nature gives no man the right to rule over others.’ Censure ‘Nothing is more dangerous to faith
than having it subject to a human opinion.’ ” (Galeano, 179). These definition helped with
furthering ideas that fueled revolutions and change the ways that people thought (with this
example it is how they thought in regards to religion). This shows some of the historical
importance that encyclopedias have held in the past. Just because physical encyclopedias have
become obsolete it does not mean that the principle has not been adapted to modern times with
the creation of the internet there was the publication of free online encyclopedia (Ex:
Encyclopedia Britannica and Wikipedia) and through the use of search engines like Google.
This websites are visited millions of times per today showing the influence of the encyclopedia
in the modern world. The encyclopedia influenced political movements and the learning of so
many people making it a revolutionary idea.

Choose either contemporary issue in cartography--young nations claiming statehood and their
failure to be recognized internationally or mapping shoreline disappearance--and explain how
this issue impacts international relations.

Young nations claiming statehood but failing to be recognized create issues within both local and
international relations. Even without the failure of being recognized young nations pushing for
statehood cause many conflicts and at times have severe consequences. These consequences can
result in the persecution of the potential citizens and death. However a general consensus of
those that are trying to claim statehood is a feeling of “Independence or death!”. This type of
desire for freedom can lead to many issues within international relations because revolutions are
typically looked down upon at this point in time and if there is the killing or persecution of
groups of people it forces the international community to get involved or at the very least to not
turn a blind eye. This persecution draws more attention to the claims of statehood and
complicates international relations. International relations are challenged by new nations
claiming statehood for many reasons primarily alliances. Alliances are very delicate and
complicated. While they do hold a lot of use as countries are now extremely interdependent but
they also cause a lot of trouble when there are conflicts (just think about how World War 1
could’ve been avoided if alliances did not pull so many countries into a war that was not theirs to
fight). Since international relations are so complicated and there are obviously a lot of feelings
(typically negative) on the part of the nation that is potentially losing territory and citizens it is
very complicated for countries to recognize young nations statehood. Due to relations some
nations may be required to recognize the state because an ally has and is supporting statehood.
Alternatively some people may be obligated to not recognizes statehood of a new nation.
International relations can cause problems to arise from doing the opposite of what your allies
desire. This can include trade issues, political conflicts, and in rare conditions battles can occur.
International relations are complicated and it is very hard for countries to be completely accepted
just look at Pakistan and Israel there are countries that recognize one or the other and it can be
controversial to support one as a country more than the other.

How has Darwinian evolution shaped the 21st century? What is its connection to bioethics? In
your opinion what is the biggest bioethical decision of our time?

Darwinian evolution has shaped the way that students are (typically) taught. With the idea that
“God did not create the world in seven days, nor did He model us in his image and likeness.”
(Galeano 226) and of the traits/genetics we have now have persevered because of survival of the
fittest. This shift in thinking became more accepted in the 20th century resulting in the current
ways of teaching. The teaching primarily shifting away from creationism resulted in the ability
for students to gain interest into this field in order to pursue evolution and find more out about
how humans are created (genetics and such). This increased interest and potential for discovery
lead to a connection with bioethics. Basically bioethics is the morality of life (life has less
meaning about the human experience and more about life in terms of science). This issues of
bioethics and Darwinian ideals is that many time justifications for unethical behavior are at least
partially based on Darwin. Darwinian evolution has been used, at times, to support things such as
eugenics which is incredibly unethical. In my opinion the biggest bioethical issue of our time is
genetic engineering. Genetic engineering is a bioethical dilemma seeing as it is not our right to
determine how someone should be burn or to potentially change already existing genetic
information in order to lengthen lives and only have desired traits (not all traits that people would
choose are considered necessary). This is also unethical particularly within the sex of babies
seeing as the majority of countries are patriarchal with some having an extra emphasis on having
male children. If people genetically modified children it could lead to a decline in one sex which
could lead to later population issues. Also with genetic modification it is possible that those who
would modify children may not actually be a parent but rather a group, organization, etc. For
example the Nazis attempted genetic modification which provides potential for unwanted genetic
changes. This also raises issues within people’s rights to choose their own genetic modifications
and how it wouldn’t be fit to a child. Also gene engineering is relatively new and could lead to
many complications/dangers as not all that much is known about the changing of human genes.
Genetic engineering is just a huge bioethical issue that goes against the order of survival of the
naturally fittest.
Select one of the following colonial empires--Turkish, Japanese, French, Portuguese, or
Dutch--and explain how their legacy of Imperialism still impacts at least one of their former
colonies today.
*I am classifying Belgium as Dutch it seems like that is probably accurate given that half of the
country speaks Dutch but it was hard to definitively confirm that it is considered Dutch.

I will be talking about the legacy of imperialism of The Dutch (Belgium) in what is now The
Democratic Republic of Congo (at the time it was called the Belgian Congo as there was also the
French and the Portuguese Congo). In the late 19th century, with the support of western
countries, King Leopold II began to expand in the Congo. With literature like the White Man’s
Burden this control of this nation and others was accepted by countries outside of the region.
This was seen as a model colony by other European countries but in reality it was far from it or
at least it was bad for the natives. There was the mass murder of many natives. These murders
arose from the greed and imperialism from Belgium. The Congo, even now, is rich in natural
resources (although it is poor in wealth and well being of the people) so in order to cash in on a
rubber boom Leopold began to have the natives work in chains to extract rubber from trees. The
work was challenging and dangerous. There were quotas put in place for villages, if a quota was
not met there would be hostage taken, various killings, and eventually (as the enforcers there
didn’t even want to waste a bullet on these people) “it traded hands for arms” (Galeano, 160)
they actually chopped off people’s hands (not necessarily for arms/weapons and we will come
back to this hands thing later). Eventually a reporter went to the Congo to see this model colony
but saw the harsh realities and exposed it to the world leading to great outrage and the eventual
“exit” of Belgium from the Congo. Conditions improved but not much as their political system
has experienced great turmoil and issues with corruption. Belgium never truly left the Congo
politically and economically. One of the most obvious examples is within the diamond trade
(Belgium has fancy companies that exploit the Congolese and get diamonds to charge a lot for).
The diamond trade has a value of over $16 billion in diamonds pass through every year in the
city of Antwerp, Belgium. Antwerp, Belgium is also referred to as the city of hands (it has many
handless statues and just things without out a hand or just a hand) probably because it was built
and is sustained (through the diamond trade which is supplied through the Congo) on the backs
of the Congolese people, the people who had their hands cut off and so much more taken from
them. The legacy remains in the economy and politics (the instability and corruption.

https://www.historytoday.com/tim-stanley/belgiums-heart-darkness
King Leopold’s Ghost

Select an artist or writer from the 20th century and write a brief profile that includes a list of
masterworks, characteristics of style, and innovations in media (as well as any essential
biographical information).
Diego Rivera is a 20th century Mexican artist most known for his murals. He was born on
December 8, 1886 in ​Guanajuato, Mexico and d​ied on November 24, 1957 in Mexico City,
Mexico. He was married five times, two of these marriages were to another notable Mexican
artist Frida Kahlo. Diego Rivera was a socialist. This was reflected in several of his works. The
most notable work of this was Man at a crossroads which was commissioned and approved by
the Rockefellers but then destroyed after the inclusion of things like Lenin. This was
controversial but one of his masterworks. The original mural was incomplete but eventually
retitled and released by Rivera himself. Other masterpieces include Detroit Industry Murals,
Flower Pickers, The History of Mexico, and many more. Rivera depicts traditional Mexican
styles and traditions through the use of color, farms (an industry that Mexico was heavily
involved in), and the people that were included. This style shaped the future mexican muralist
style and paved the way for public art/murals. He started to have more attention drawn to public
murals and has since shaped how there are murals everywhere just look at RiNo.

Select one Advancement or invention of the Scientific Revolution and trace its evolution to our
contemporary age.

One advancement of the Scientific revolution was the idea and reality that the solar system is
heliocentric. The idea that the sun is the center of the solar system and all planets in this one
revolve around it including earth and that there are annual and daily rotation. The leading theory
at the time that was supported by the church was that the earth was the center and it all just
revolved around us. Nicolaus Copernicus came up with the theory of heliocentrism, he published
a book with these findings on his deathbed (1543). This idea was aided by theorems from arab
scientists three centuries prior (but the theory was his own). Following the release of his book
“The catholic church included his work in the Index of Forbidden Books” (Galeano, 109).
Following that there was still academic discussion about the discoveries of Capricornus. People
like Giordano Bruno researched and found evidence to support the theory. He believed the
theory and eventually executed by the catholic church. Galileo Galilei was eventually executed
from the church for believing this theory and various ideas that went against church doctrine. As
time went on more began to take the information seriously and tested it. They found that his
numbers worked out and his theory has remained relatively the same. There was also further
proof outside of numbers primarily provided from telescopes.

Choose one Latin American nation that had a political revolution in the second half of the 20th
century and explore the United States’ role in the politics of the nation/region.

In the second half of the 20th century (starting in 1979 and ending in 1991) El Salvador
experienced a political revolution. Things to know before the US and the revolution began a
right-wing group called National Conciliation Party (PCN) comes to power after a military coup
and the US is involved in a Cold war with Russia in this war they try to prevent the spread of
communism. There was also a left-wing group called ​Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front
(FMLN). A new president is elected he gets replaced. There are deaths on both sides but the war
has yet to begin. The right-wing has death squads and is in charge of the government. The war
start with Mexico and France recognising the FMLN and the US providing financial support of
about $4 billion dollars (1981). The fights continue and the US still supports the PCN. There
were pleas from El Salvadorians for the US to stop providing money and support. They also
made weapons available. The US also got their allies involved. Eventually peace was agreed to
and there have since been commissions about war crimes. Their government is till messy but the
cold war ended it so we decided it wasn’t really our problem anymore. The FMLN is still a
political party and so does the PCN (it has a different name) so there is still tension there but it is
not in a revolution anymore.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-19402222
https://www.britannica.com/place/El-Salvador/Civil-war

Ask one of your generational antecedents about the most significant historical event of their
lifetime. Capture their story in the style of Galeano.

2,996 people died. Two buildings were lost and countless lives were changed.
The lines of people that fled from the building soon became lines of people waiting to travel.
The buildings that were lost increased to the thousands as the US dropped more destructive
devices from planes.
They killed more civilians of foreign countries than the lives lost on 9/11.
People were forced to flee.
When the war ended it was left in utter disrepair.

In your opinion, what is the most pressing issue of our contemporary age? Where does it stem
from? What long-sustaining impacts/influences can you imagine in its wake?

The most pressing issue of our contemporary age is Climate Change, specifically man-made
climate change. Natural climate change has been a part of earth since its creation. It is a natural
pattern seeing as we have had ice ages and various other climate shifts. We have periods of
extreme heat and cold from the beginning. So overall the original issue arises from nature
however the current issues that we are having with climate change can not be exclusively blamed
on or left to nature. Climate change has accelerated since the industrial revolution. The industrial
revolution created factories and many other things that allowed for greater populations and
production. This greater production resulted in money which lead to more production which lead
to more pollution and various environmental destroyers. The creation of a bigger population has
lead to sustainability issues as we then need to produce more to support more people and have
more people abusing land and using resources. The industrial revolution created a cycle of land
abuse. The abuse of land leads to issues that affect climate like the production of carbon. The
long sustaining impact is that we have accelerated climate change and that eventually, unless an
alternative is presented, is that humans will be ill equipped to handle climate change resulting in
extinction (like the dinosaurs ) or if we messed the earth up enough then the earth as we know it
ends. I do see an impact of innovation before the end though due to attempts to help prevent or
hold off climate change.