Central Thesis of People's History of US by Howard Zinn - Book Report/Review Example

The paper "Central Thesis of People's History of US by Howard Zinn" is a wonderful example of a literature review on history. Chapter one is an account of the discovery of Christopher Columbus of America specifically the area that was occupied by the Arawak people (who are Indians that lived in South America). The main theme is that of morality because it provides an in-depth analysis of how Christopher Columbus mistreated and mishandled the Arawak in order to find the gold, which he believes is present in that land but which turns out to be almost non-existent (Zinn 10). 

Despite not finding the gold from the places they dig, he still forces them to continue digging and many even die but he seemed to care less. There is also mention of other morality issues about other conquerors and their conquests. The second chapter is about how slaves were brought into America from Africa and their relentless work in the fields of their owners. Just like the first chapter, the slaves who are black people are discussed extensively of how they were overworking in the plantations without any mercy from their owners (Pickett and Pickett 17).
Morality issue is discussed in detail by the author providing examples of how it was non-existent from the owners towards their slaves forgetting that they were also people just the way Columbus forgot the Arawak he overworked were people as well (Pickett and Pickett 36).
Discuss why the author chose the title of the chapter:
The first chapter “Columbus, the Indians, and Human Progress” is mainly about the escapades of Columbus and the Arawak and also other people in history who conquered other lands. The second chapter “Drawing the Color Line” is basically about slaves: how they were brought and how they were overworked by their owners.  Read More