Guns, Germs and Steel

This paper looks into the movie â€Å"guns, germs and steel†. This movie is based on Jared Diamond’s book that sought to explain inequality in the world cultures. In the beginning of the movie, focus is on Francisco Pizarro. Pizarro was a team leader of a Spaniard mercenary group in search of treasure. He had a band of not more than 168 men. The movie then brings scenes contrasting developments in Spain as contrasted with developments in the Incas kingdom over time.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Guns, Germs and Steel specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In the movie, Jared uses the conquest of the Spaniards over the Incas to illustrate how geography contributed in a big way to the development of some cultures such that they became superior over others. The film contrasts the lives of the Incas and that of the Spaniards. While the Spanish lived in an expanse bordering other competitive cultures, the In cas lived in a valley that did not allow them to interact with other people. By the 1500s, the Spaniards were already advanced farmers who had tapped into animal power to increase their productivity (National Geographic, 2010). Much progress in the European region had resulted from interaction with other regions such as the Middle East and Africa. It is in the Middle East that farming or agricultural practice developed and later spread to North Africa before being adopted by the Europeans. As explained in the movie, over the years, improvement in farming gave some cultures a head start over others. The animals that were domesticated provided more than just meat. The farmers got wool, manure but most importantly animal power that helped them move farming to a higher level. In contrast with the Incas, the Spaniards adopted animals that their geography supported or helped them access. For example, they were able to use horses to facilitate movement. Overtime they learnt the art of hors emanship; using horses in a powerful way to control their farms but also as a means flight or pursuit during war fare. The Incas due to their limited access to other exposed cultures largely depended on hand power. The animals they had domesticated were small and could not be used to provide power that could improve productivity. As the film proceeds, it is indicated that the news of Spaniard exploits reached the Incas even before they could reach the empire (National Geographic, 2010). The Incas heard stories of people who were more or less gods. No Incas man had been able to ride an animal before.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Therefore, to see men riding on animals was like seeing a god. The emperor having heard of the Spaniards exploits tricked them into entering his palace in the hope of trapping them thus defeating them. However, with the use of horses and marked horseman ship, Pizarro was able to capture the emperor and kill thousands of Incas soldiers. Before the entry of Pizarro’s men into the palace, the film focuses on development of swords from steel among the Spaniards (National Geographic, 2010). According to Diamond, the Spaniards developed superior weapons because they lived in a competitive environment where survival relied on weaponry supremacy. The better weaponry a society developed the better it was at fending off the enemy. Much ancient wars between Spaniards and neighbors were in or around water bodies. That also affected the way swords that were developed appeared; or the qualities that blacksmiths developed into swords. With combined swordsmanship and horsemanship, the Spaniards were able to defeat the Incas easily. In an open field, with the Incas running the horsemen easily attacked and crushed the Inca soldiers. The Incas fought with their spears and bows but the supremacy of horses and swords led to their breaking ranks and trying to scamper for safety. The Incas had regarded their leader like a god but with his capture, the Spaniards were feared and revered. Although Pizarro captured the Incas King, they did not kill him. They saved him based on belief that Christians could only kill in the heat of a war. Any chance of regrouping, by the Incas, was rendered untenable due to germs and infections that came with the Spaniards. The Spaniards came with Small pox which affected the Inca men and spread among them like fire (National Geographic, 2010). According to Diamond, the Spaniards were more immune to smallpox because they had been exposed to many more germs than the Incas. The domestic animals they had reared for over 10000 years enabled them to get exposed to germs and infections that made them more resistant. Later the Spaniards used the Incas king to force his people to subject to their demands. I liked this movie a lot because it provides evidence to a more realistic explanation as to why inequ ality exists in the world. Although not conclusive, geographical features played an important role in determining how people developed. Although the movie focuses on Pizarro’s conquest over the Incas, the same story can be discerned of European conquest over Africa and other parts of the world.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Guns, Germs and Steel specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Jared’s theory of old world and new world perfectly captures differences in level of civilization among different cultures of the world. The intrusion of the foreigners from the old world affected the ways of living in the new world. Through colonization, cultures were dismantled and European dominance established. By use of guns, any resistance was easily quashed. Reference National Geographic, 2010, Guns, Germs and Steel. Web. This essay on Guns, Germs and Steel was written and submitted by user Johnathan I. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

One of the most difficult words to translate... - Krystian Aparta Essa

One of the most difficult words to translate... - Krystian Aparta Essa Which is the hardest word to translate in this sentence? "Know" is easy to translate. "Pep rally" doesn't have a direct analog in a lot of languages and cultures, but can be approximated. But the hardest word there is actually one of the smallest: "you." As simple as it seems, it's often impossible to accurately translate "you" without knowing a lot more about the situation where it's being said. To start with, how familiar are you with the person you're talking to? Many cultures have different levels of formality. A close friend, someone much older or much younger, a stranger, a boss. These all may be slightly different "you's." In many languages, the pronoun reflects these differences through what's known as the T-V distinction. In French, for example, you would say "tu" when talking to your friend at school, but "vous" when addressing your teacher. Even English once had something similar. Remember the old-timey "thou?" Ironically, it was actually the informal pronoun for people you're close with, while "you" was the formal and polite version. That distinction was lost when the English decided to just be polite all the time. But the difficulty in translating "you" doesn't end there. In languages like Hausa or Korana, the "you" form depends on the listener's gender. In many more, it depends on whether they are one or many, such as with German "Du" or "ihr." Even in English, some dialects use words like "y'all" or "youse" the same way. Some plural forms, like the French "vous" and Russian "" are also used for a single person to show that the addressee is that much more important, much like the royal "we." And a few languages even have a specific form for addressing exactly two people, like Slovenian "vidva." If that wasn't complicated enough, formality, number, and gender can all come into play at the same time. In Spanish, "tu" is unisex informal singular, "usted" is unisex formal singular, "vosotros" is masculine informal plural, "vosotras" is feminine informal plural, and "ustedes" is the unisex formal plural. Phew! After all that, it may come as a relief that some languages often leave out the second person pronoun. In languages like Romanian and Portuguese, the pronoun can be dropped from sentences because it's clearly implied by the way the verbs are conjugated. And in languages like Korean, Thai, and Chinese, pronouns can be dropped without any grammatical hints. Speakers often would rather have the listener guess the pronoun from context than use the wrong one and risk being seen as rude. So if you're ever working as a translator and come across this sentence without any context: "You and you, no, not you, you, your job is to translate 'you' for yourselves" ... Well, good luck. And to the volunteer community who will be translating this video into multiple languages: Sorry about that!