Analysis Of The Spanish Misconceptions About The American Indians

The Spanish appeared to have a number of misconceptions about the American Indians. One major misconception they had was that the Spanish thought that they were superior in a sense compared to the American Indians. Another key misconception they had was that they thought the American Indians were vicious brutes that did not have the mental capability to think logically, and because they were savages they assumed the Amerindians are incapable of being hospitable and displaying empathy; they were afraid that the Indians would dispose of the Spanish by using them as sacrifices to their idols.
One major misconception the Spanish had about the American Indians was that they assumed they themselves were a lot superior to them. But this view appears to change throughout Cabeza De Vaca’s account as he is
He portrays the Indians at the beginning of his account in a negative manner by stating “meeting sometimes Indians who fished and were poor and wretched people” (p. 10). It can be said that maybe part of the change is that De Vaca himself becomes a ‘poor and wretched’ person. In later parts of his account he describes the Indians in a better light as he meets different groups of Indians who provide him with food despite him being an outsider. “At sunset the Indians, thinking we had not left, came to bring us food” (p. 15). His view continues to change when he realizes that the dominant ones of the island are the Amerindians because at first his party captures Indians, but later on he himself is enslaved by the Indians and is at their mercy. He states that “We […] captured four Indians” (p. 2) and “I had to remain with those same Indians […], and as they made me work so much and treated me so badly I determined to flee and go”