Analyze the social and economic contributions made by new contacts with Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1492-1750.
Please grade this essay with:
2 Theses
1 Social Change
1 Social Continuity
1 Economic Change
1 Economic Continuity
9 pieces of evidence at a minimum
3 World History in Context
4 Analysis
(My teacher has his own rubric)
Here it is–
Changes and Continuities over Time Essay:
The social and economic transformations that occurred as a result of the new contacts among Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1492 AD to 1750 AD continued to stay the same in the way that there was the supremacy of the white race over all others and these new colonies continuing mercantilism; however there were also changes occurring such as the intermixing of races and new resources being discovered which could be traded.
One social change that occurred as a result of the new contacts among Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1492 to 1750 was the intermixing of people from different races. Each type of combination of races had its own name for what the child would be called, for example the mixing of an African and a European to create a “Mulatto” or a European and an American Indian to create a “Mestizo.” Many of these combinations are known today from the paintings and descriptions of the intermixing of races from Latin America. These new races that had developed were now also able to travel to other parts of the world such as Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Asia allowing the ability for more intermixing among the races. Much of the intermixing of races occurred in Latin America, because most of the people going over were male, conquistadors without a wife or family- so they had coitus with the native women there and the African women that came from Africa through the Middle Passage.
One social continuation that occurred as a result of the new contacts among Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1492 to 1750 was the continuance of white supremacy over all the other races. Throughout this time, whites were held at the top of the social classes in societies. Throughout Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas there was a clear hierarchy with whites at the top and slaves at the bottom. Not only were Whites thought to be supreme to all other races in Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas, but they were also thought to be supreme in Eastern Europe, Russia, and India. Whites were believed to be of a higher status because of their lighter skin color which meant that they did not perform labor in the fields where the sun would make their skin color become darker, but the people that were darker, like the Africans, worked in the sunlight for hours upon hours, giving the perception that workers, one of the lowest classes, were darker from the sun affecting them while they worked.
One economic change that occurred as a result of the new contacts among Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1492 to 1750 was the finding of new resources that were able to be sold. There were several resources that became an important part of the economy and life. Cash crops such as corn, sweet potatoes, squash, and beans were all crops that were indigenous to the Americas, but when the colonies were set up they were able to send the goods back to Europe where they grew rapidly in popularity. These cash crops helped the economy as it was a new source of income that was sold to the people of that country and to other foreign nations such as Eastern Europe, Asia, and the Middle East which they grew dependent on. There was also the sending of animals such as horses and pigs from the Americas to Europe. The discovery of silver was a major contribution to the world economy as it allowed certain countries’ economies to become rich due to the price of silver being so high. These countries could then use this new money to buy more slaves from Africa and send them to the Americas to mine more silver. These countries could also buy other goods from other places such as Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Because of the discovery and mass mining of silver, the economies of Europe and the American colonies were able to have a large economic growth.
One economic continuation that occurred as a result of the new contacts among Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1492 to 150 was the continuance of mercantilism amongst new colonies and their home country. Mercantilism was the process in which all raw goods, like cotton, wool, and iron ore that were found would be sent back to the home country to be turned into products which would then be traded with other countries and places such as other countries in Western Europe, Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Because of mercantilism, the countries of Western Europe were better able to improve their economic growth since the goods remained within their home countries and were then made into products to be sold for a higher price than the goods.
From the new contacts that were set up amongst Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1492 to 1750 allowed the continuation of the whites to be superior to the other races and the use of mercantilism amongst the new colonies and their home countries; however, everything did not continue to stay the same as people began to intermix with other races and the discovery of new resources to be traded gave change between 1492 to 1750 amongst Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas.