哥伦布传1492

Alex Gendler: History vs. Christopher Columbus

Many people in the United States and Latin America have grown up celebrating the anniversary of Christopher Columbus's voyage, but was he an intrepid explorer who brought two worlds together or a ruthless exploiter who brought colonialism and slavery? And did he even discover America at all? It's time to put Columbus on the stand in History vs. Christopher Columbus. "Order, order in the court. Wait, am I even supposed to be at work today?" <i>Cough</i> "Yes, your Honor. From 1792, Columbus Day was celebrated in many parts of the United States on October 12th, the actual anniversary date. But although it was declared an official holiday in 1934, individual states aren't required to observe it. Only 23 states close public services, and more states are moving away from it completely." <i>Cough</i> "What a pity. In the 70s, we even moved it to the second Monday in October so people could get a nice three-day weekend, but I guess you folks just hate celebrations." "Uh, what are we celebrating again?" "Come on, Your Honor, we all learned it in school. Christopher Columbus convinced the King of Spain to send him on a mission to find a better trade route to India, not by going East over land but sailing West around the globe. Everyone said it was crazy because they still thought the world was flat, but he knew better. And when in 1492 he sailed the ocean blue, he found something better than India: a whole new continent." "What rubbish. First of all, educated people knew the world was round since Aristotle. Secondly, Columbus didn't discover anything. There were already people living here for millennia. And he wasn't even the first European to visit. The Norse had settled Newfoundland almost 500 years before." "You don't say, so how come we're not all wearing those cow helmets?" "Actually, they didn't really wear those either." <i>Cough</i> "Who cares what some Vikings did way back when? Those settlements didn't last, but Columbus's did. And the news he brought back to Europe spread far and wide, inspiring all the explorers and settlers who came after. Without him, none of us would be here today." "And because of him, millions of Native Americans aren't here today. Do you know what Columbus did in the colonies he founded? He took the very first natives he met prisoner and wrote in his journal about how easily he could conquer and enslave all of them." "Oh, come on. Everyone was fighting each other back then. Didn't the natives even tell Columbus about other tribes raiding and taking captives?" "Yes, but tribal warfare was sporadic and limited. It certainly didn't wipe out 90% of the population." "Hmm. Why is celebrating this Columbus so important to you, anyway?" "Your Honor, Columbus's voyage was an inspiration to struggling people all across Europe, symbolizing freedom and new beginnings. And his discovery gave our grandparents and great-grandparents the chance to come here and build better lives for their children. Don't we deserve a hero to remind everyone that our country was build on the struggles of immigrants?" "And what about the struggles of Native Americans who were nearly wiped out and forced into reservations and whose descendants still suffer from poverty and discrimination? How can you make a hero out of a man who caused so much suffering?" "That's history. You can't judge a guy in the 15th century by modern standards. People back then even thought spreading Christianity and civilization across the world was a moral duty." "Actually, he was pretty bad, even by old standards. While governing Hispaniola, he tortured and mutilated natives who didn't bring him enough gold and sold girls as young as nine into sexual slavery, and he was brutal even to the other colonists he ruled, to the point that he was removed from power and thrown in jail. When the missionary, Bartolomé de las Casas, visited the island, he wrote, 'From 1494 to 1508, over 3,000,000 people had perished from war, slavery and the mines. Who in future generations will believe this?'" "Well, I'm not sure I believe those numbers." "Say, aren't there other ways the holiday is celebrated?" "In some Latin American countries, they celebrate the same date under different names, such as Día de la Raza. In these places, it's more a celebration of the native and mixed cultures that survived through the colonial period. Some places in the U.S. have also renamed the holiday, as Native American Day or Indigenous People's Day and changed the celebrations accordingly." "So, why not just change the name if it's such a problem?" "Because it's tradition. Ordinary people need their heroes and their founding myths. Can't we just keep celebrating the way we've been doing for a century, without having to delve into all this serious research? It's not like anyone is actually celebrating genocide." "Traditions change, and the way we choose to keep them alive says a lot about our values." "Well, it looks like giving tired judges a day off isn't one of those values, anyway." Traditions and holidays are important to all cultures, but a hero in one era may become a villain in the next as our historical knowledge expands and our values evolve. And deciding what these traditions should mean today is a major part of putting history on trial.

影片上映时间为1992年，刚好是哥伦布航行美洲500周年，完全可看作是纪念献礼片。 1492年，不仅对于西班牙，更对于整个世界，都是极为不平凡和重要的年份。 就像影片进行到23分钟处显示的“伊斯兰弯月被基督十字所取代”的那样，这一年年初，即1月2日，摩尔人占据的最后一个城市格拉纳达陷落。至此，发生在伊利比亚半岛上长达7个世纪的基督徒对摩尔人的“再征服运动”结束。随后，西班牙建立了统一王权，并因新大陆的财富成为近代历史上第一个崛起的大国。 同样是这一年的8月份，哥伦布率领三条船只向西展开未知命运的航行。 片头三分钟红底黑线绘成的图画，雄浑磅礴大气的配乐直击观众心底深处。就像有评论指出的，影片配乐是一大亮点。 “500年前，西班牙是一个迷信和敬畏神的国家，统治者和残忍的宗教裁判所惩罚敢于梦想的人。但是，有一个人向这个发起挑战，穿越未知的海域去寻找黄金和荣耀，为了使上帝更加光芒四射。”“人类发展中的每一次进步都有反对的异议者，那些先驱们，必须坚忍不拔地追求，而不管这些干扰。” 影片中，航行途中竟然做到了船员零损失，断无可能。对发现陆地这场戏处理很好，先是哥伦布拍死吸血的蚊子，然后是看到围绕船灯飞虫，清晨时分，海上升起大雾，散去后，是满是绿色植被掩映下的陆地岛屿。这一幕，在2005版《金刚》中骷髅岛的出现以及《亚维隆迷雾》中的的。哥伦布第一个跳下船只，迈向新大陆土地的脚步稳健有力，堪比：阿姆斯特朗踏足月球。哥伦布命令众人对对面的土著示好的场景类似《玛丽·布莱恩特》中英国移民初次踏足澳洲大陆时。 临近结尾： 哥伦布从狱中出来觐见女王，哥伦布承认“现实超出了预料”。女王允许其再进行一次航海，随后说：“那个新世界，是一场灾难。”（女王是站在己方立场而言，事实是对于印第安人是一场灾难：《西印度毁灭述略》、《征服新西班牙信史》。）哥伦布反问：“但旧的世界，是一个功绩(achievement)？” 在把发现新大陆的荣誉授予亚美里哥维斯普奇后，哥伦布站在人群里，丝毫不起眼。这时，两个贵族的对话颇有意思。“真是一场悲剧，一生的浪费。”“浪费？如果你我的名字能被后世记住的话，也仅仅是因为他。” 《亚当斯一家的价值观》中，小时候的克里斯蒂娜里奇饰演的女儿在夏令营的一次有关感恩节的舞台演出中说了一番话，大意是：如果印第安人预见了后来发生之事，就不会信任新移民，会烧毁他们的村庄，等等。看此片不禁有同感。假如：印第安人一开始就让哥伦布一行人有去无回，新大陆的发现究竟会晚上多少年？又不禁慨叹：假如郑和的航行是以寻找金银财富、开疆拓土为目的就好了。 推荐《玛丽·布莱恩特》，同样是有关海上冒险，女主人公凭借一条只能载五个大人两个小孩的小船沿着澳洲海岸线从现在的墨尔本一直漂到东帝汶。

作为电影不完美的地方有些多，但仍然是部好电影。

感触比较深的是当哥伦布被告知对岸的大陆已经被发现且距离西印度群岛只有大概一周的航程时那突然失落又不知所措表情。太可惜了。

哥伦布对贵族那句话挺好，贵族看到的文明都是哥伦布这样的梦想家实干家做的而不是只知财富和挣权的大贵族。那个大贵族本来是支持哥伦布的，但因为带来的黄金不够多和被拒绝安插自己人而变得反对和诬陷哥伦布。根据电影那个诽谤哥伦布的神官应该也是这个大贵族安排的。

这也很意思开始的时候贵族支持哥伦布，大学反对哥伦布。但哥伦布取得巨大成果后出于利益大贵族反对哥伦布，而大学又说自己始终支持探索大洋对岸的大陆。

哥伦布想尽量做个好人真难啊。贵族责怪他对原住民不够强硬，神父责怪他对异j徒太好，原住民离开他认为他不够善不够真诚，兄弟认为他束缚自己个人的追求，王室着急让他拿到更多的金子。话说也就两场国宴的钱能有那么大的成果已经很不错了贵族们真扣。

印象深的还有几句话，

电影前部时大学与贵族的对话，大意是认为哥伦布这种'自由的思想是有害的，他要是真有翅膀还不得说天堂是假的。

尾部哥伦布叫住大贵族，大意是你看到的文明都是我这样追求梦想的梦想家做的而不是你这样弄权的贵族。

（上帝）他会仅仅等你去证明给大家看？他自己选择以木匠儿子的身份现身于世界。

或许希望只存在于旅途之中

天堂和地狱都可以在人间，我们总是带着他不管走到哪。

我不该容忍他的无理。但为什么容忍？因为他并不怕我。

生活充满想象力，超出你的梦想。

虽然不太想让这篇文章变成台词摘抄，但这些话的确很好。

他们拿走了所有的东西。不是所有的。你以为我在乎？

对了，还有一点，如此精典的音乐竟然是出自本电影。给配乐点赞。

最后不解，为啥不展现哥伦布死不松口说自己发现的事新大陆，坚持认为自己发现的是印度这件事啊，多有名的一件事。