500 Word Essay: Las Casas or Cabaza De Vaca

Las Casas short tale was definitely more memorable to me, than Cabaza De Vaca. Frankly, I found Cabaza De Vaca boring and tedious, and can't recall anything worth noting about it. Las Casas story definitely left more of a lasting impression on my mind and heart. It was heart-wrenching and horrifying all the crimes the Spainards committed against the Indians. Over and over again, Las Casas overemphasizes the inhumanity and cruelty inside them. It blows my mind how they could do such atrocious, brutal things to these innocent people. For 40 long years, they continually terrorized them because of some hidden prejudice and hatred. These Indians or "savages" as so they thought them had never given them a reason to despise them. But still they ruthlessly murdered, tortured, and robbed them of everything they had. It's almost too much to comprehend or take, some of the injustices they subjected them to.


It certainly stirs anger and human compassion within one's soul for the victims of the Spainards rage. The more you hear of their gruesome acts, the more you wish someone would have spoken out and rescued them. Yet they remain in their cursed land, suffering under the powerful hand of these so called "Christian" foreigners. The Spainards should be likened to the modern-day " Nazis", in their merciless ways. Never once did a single one of them extend grace or compassion to the Indians, but continued to cut them down and make things worse. Their hearts were stone-cold, filled with iron and not an ounce of love or sensitivity. They might as well have been born without hearts, with their cold-blooded souls, fists ready to strike at any time.

What makes this story all the sadder is how no one seemed to care or notice what was going on, for 40 years! The priests wrote to the king, informing him of what they had seen and heard. And yet no one dared to travel to the countries and put a stop to it. They sat back on their pompous thrones and didn't repay these barbarous traders. Even the priests motives for sharing these stories was warped and corrupt. They were only upset with the politics, the incapabilities of the leaders in charge. If they were honest, these friars only had ulterior selfish desires. Only faking a consideration for the Indians, their want was for money and popularity with the king. This is why the friars pointed out to him that he was losing hard-earned gold by the Spainards irresponsibility.

Therefore, the entire story is sad and hopeless, repeating new and hideous atrocities of this unimaginable people. Their sins are numerous and untold of, until this work was composed. The Spainards killed babies, children, and pregnant mothers in the most painful ways possible. Their ears resisted the pleas from their victims, their eyes closed to wickedness. Every bone in their body was numb to morale and humanity, torn from God and love. In their heated fury, they deserted him and everything good, beautiful, and pure. They gave themselves over to uncontrollable evil and became ill with a demonic disease.