Entry #2 Ronald Takaki "'The Tempest' in the Wilderness"

Brian Gerker
ETHN 101
Reading Journal Entry #2
8-26-2007

Ronald Takaki “’The Tempest’ in the Wilderness” from “A Different Mirror”

Thesis from “’The Tempest’ in the Wilderness”: “ Indeed, “The Tempest” can be approached as a fascinating tale that served as a masquerade for the creation of a new society in America. Seen in this light, the play invites us to view English expansion not only as imperialism, but also as a defining moment in the making of an English-American identity based on race.”
In “’The Tempest’ in the Wilderness,” Takaki is telling the story of discovering America from the discoverer’s point of view. He states how the Indians, as recorded by many European explorers, were vermin and devils, and needed to be removed from the land or enslaved. Takaki explains how some believed the colonizing of America by Europeans was inevitable. It was stated that God must want things to be in favor of the Europeans because of spreading diseases that killed many Indians. Also the Indians, like the Irish, were believed to be savage beasts that needed to be enslaved or controlled by someone of greater intelligence and power. So from this point of view that Takaki offers, the Europeans thought that they must create another society in the Americas.
One question that can be raised about Takaki’s arguments is, shouldn’t the Indians have been entitled to the American lands and their own freedom, since they were the first inhabitants? They had the rights to the land and it’s resources long before any Europeans came along, so it should have been the Indians be right. Because the Indians did not seem superior to their invaders should not mean that they have to give up their homes and their lives to compensate for the Europeans greediness.
After the reading, I did not act with very much surprise about the European invader’s point of view. I knew that they wanted the Americans for expansion and development before reading this. Also, I did not particularly care for the invader’s views upon discovering America. Destroying the Indians and viewing them as “devils” is completely ludicrous, just for expansion. Just because some people, like the Indians and Irish were at the time, much like minorities, shouldn’t mean that they needed to be conquered or enslaved under someone else’s control.