hum/130 Indigenous Encounters

Review your classmates’ responses during the Participation for this week.

·         Write a 200+ word response answering the following two questions (submit as a Word document): 

 

1.  Indigenous religions have been deeply affected by their encounters with modern cultures.  What was the most important or interesting negative consequence of this (introduction of disease, loss of land, forced conversion – feel free to use your own)?

 

2.  What was the most important or interesting positive benefit for indigenous cultures resulting from their contact with modern cultures. (suppression of practices such as human sacrifice, access to labor and life saving technology, opportunity for willing conversion, increase in literacy – feel free to come up with your own)?

 

You may use your responses from the two discussion questions this week.  You should also cite at least one source for each question.  Keep in mind that websites are unreliable sources of information compared with those you can find in the Axia Library.  For example, many websites spread the myth that Native Americans were deliberately infected with smallpox by Europeans.  While many Native Americans indeed died of smallpox, there is no evidence that its spread was intentional.  Websites often use statements found on other websites (or from dubious scholarship) as evidence; be aware of this.