Review (PDF)

Brevisima Relacion De La Destruccion De Las Indias (COLECCION LETRAS HISPANICAS) (Spanish Edition)

La Brevisima relacion ha sido la obra mas difundida de este autor y tambien la mas polemica. Se ha usado unas veces como testimonio irrecusable de la barbarie de los conquistadores hacia los indios y otras veces para desvirtuar la corona espanola y su empresa colonizadora. Por encima de esto, esta obra es un testimonio de la injusticia, una angustiada protesta humanitaria.

Series: Letras Hispanicas (Book 158)

Paperback: 186 pages

Publisher: Catedra; 14th edition (January 1, 2006)

Language: Spanish

ISBN-10: 8437603412

ISBN-13: 978-8437603414

Product Dimensions: 4.4 x 0.3 x 7.1 inches

Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

Best Sellers Rank: #203,360 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #183 in Books > Libros en español > Historia #305 in Books > Libros en español > No-Ficción > Educación #377 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Foreign Languages > Spanish

No matter how much one reads about the excesses of the Spanish Conquista of the new world, nothing comes close to the actual, eye-witness account of Fray Bartolomeu de Las Casas. In his sometimes numbing appeal to the king of Spain, Las Casas produced a shocking catalog of the psychopathology which characterized the behavior of the cutthroats that led the exploitation of the Americas -- and the extinction and near extinction of the populations in the Caribbean, Central and South America. Whether one believes in the inevitability of the conflict arising from the clash of two, dissimilar cultures, it's very difficult not to be appalled by the callous lack of empathy on display in these pages; particularly heartbreaking is the treatment meted out to the Taino, Siboney and Carib populations of the Caribbean (Las Casas understandably overlooks the complicity of the Catholic church), which were rendered extinct. I opted to read the untranslated Spanish original (even though the syntax can be cumbersome), but the English translation is excellent and nothing is lost of the outrage. Mercifully, the tome is small, a longer, more detailed account from such a compelling source would be a moral burden.

This is an intense book as it relates the crimes committed by the Spanish conquistadors to the indigenous tribes throughout Las Indias, at least from Las Casas' point of view. Very simple style of writing and very graphic. You will almost feel the pain of the natives. Just make sure to keep an open mind as you read. These accounts were never supported by many others in the author's time. With all the graphical descriptions is easy to forget about this. But overall is a good read and shows Las Casas' great writing style.

Mainly the text is a summary of the historical events that took place in the Americas during it's early colonization by Spain, focusing entirely upon the inhuman tactics used by the conquers to subdue the native population and practically annihilate it. There are some first person accounts made by the author himself and an inclusion of a few letters written in first person by others, other than that and the various occasions on which the author addresses the Spanish king (he being the intended recipient of the writings), it is written in third person.

This book was written by a Catholic priest who was the great defender of the native Americans when the white Europeans were brutally oppressing the native peoples. It is a good read, but you have to understand Spanish.

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