Week 4 Discussion

5.     The Portuguese Colonizer

a.     What is the origin of the source?

                                               i.     Gabriel Soares de Souza, a planter of Bahia, Brazil

                                             ii.     Portuguese explorer

b.     What is the purpose of the source?

                                               i.     Provides account of colonial Brazil, in this case specifically about Duarte Coelho

1.     Coelho was a Portuguese nobleman, military leader, and colonial administrator of colony in Brazil

                                             ii.     De Souza seems to have a great amount of respect for Coelho and pride in Coelho’s work

c.     How is Coelho characterized?

                                               i.     Heroic, courageous, successful, and bring. In sum, de Souza seems to think Coelho a great asset to the Portuguese empire and his description of Coelho draws some similarities to that of the bandeirante.

d.     What are the characteristics of the bandeirante?

                                               i.     Heroic quality and determination to achieve their goals

                                             ii.     Territorial expansion

e.     What is the value of this source?

                                               i.     It provides a firsthand account of how expeditions were undertaken and the rewards of such an expedition without mentioning at whose expense, which provides a good idea of what the Portuguese valued most from expeditions (making money).

f.      What are the limitations of this source?

                                               i.     Clearly has interests that only pertain to Portugal and has an overwhelming emphasis on Coelho’s successes and favor of the captaincy of Pernambuco.

6.     The Slave Hunters

a.     Perspective from a Jesuit missionary

                                               i.     From previous lecture: Jesuit missionaries did not agree with illegal slavery. They were not against slavery, however.

b.     What phrases and terminology hints at this idea from the source?

                                               i.     “It is common knowledge in the backlands that only the Indians in the churches where the Fathers reside enjoy liberty and all the rest are captives”

c.     What kind of light does this put the Jesuit missionaries under? How are they portrayed compared to the Portuguese?

d.     How does this primary source dehumanize the bandeirantes?

7.     Aimore: Word of Terror

a.     First paragraph: What is the writer’s tone towards the Aimore? What could be the reason for this tone?

b.     How successful is de Souza at using fear as a means of persuasion?