They should be good servants and intelligent, for I observed that they quickly took in what was said to them, and I believe that they would easily be made Christians, as it appeared to me that they had no religion
This statement shows Columbus’s justification for colonization by portraying Indigenous people as fit for servitude and conversion, brushing aside their existing beliefs and autonomy.
They neither carry nor know anything of arms, for I showed them swords, and they took them by the blade and cut themselves through ignorance.
Columbus interprets unfamiliarity with European weapons as ignorance, showing Indigenous people as naive and reinforcing his perception of their vulnerability.
gave to some of them red caps, and glass beads to put round their necks, and many other things of little value, which gave them great pleasure, and made them so much our friends that it was a marvel to see.
This sentence reveals Columbus’s belief that Indigenous people could be easily won over with inexpensive objects, reflecting a Eurocentric assumption that material gifts could quickly secure loyalty and control.