Culture Clash in the New World

There is little known about the American continent before the coming of the Europeans. According to the history, American land was discovered by the European explorers led by the likes of the Christopher Columbus (Merrell & Mancall, 2006). However, it is worth noting that the Western Hemisphere existed even many years before the coming of the Europeans. The Central and South America were quite civilized by the time the Europeans landed in the American land. However, the Native Americans who occupied the Atlantic Coast were less organized and moved from one place to another in search of wild animals, fruits, and roots for food. It is the arrival of the Europeans in the American land that gave birth to the New World. According to the Europeans who moved to America in the 15th Century, the place was not inhabited, and it was a new world to them (Lösch & Zapf, 2004).

The French and the English people from England were among the major groups that settled in the New World where they displaced the Native Americans sending them far north. This was around 1492 and 1600. The coming of the Europeans in the New World resulted in a lot of friction between the Native Americans and the visitors due to the vast difference between the Native American culture and the European culture. Additionally, the European culture was diverse, because settlers from France and Great Britain portrayed different cultures. The clashes were a result of differences in religions, cultures, and ideas of the Native Americans and the settlers from the Europe (Merrell & Mancall, 2006).

Before the introduction of the French and English cultures in the New World, the Native Americans lived simple lives in small groups as it is with the current pastoral communities in most of the undeveloped parts of Africa. The Native Americans lived in the East Coat of the current United States and North America. They constituted of several clans and groups and spoke different languages. Some groups among the Native American were farmers, others were hunters and gatherers. Some of the Native American groups lived peacefully while others lived to fight among themselves. Some of the common tribes were the Mohawks, the Cherokee, the Senecas, and the Seminole (Merrell & Mancall, 2006). The cultures of these groups were there many years before the coming of the Europeans. Each group among the Native Americans had its own religion and had a strong belief in what they worshipped. Some of the groups had a common religion. The Indians among the Native American had well-developed systems of trade (Merrell & Mancall, 2006).

One European group that moved to the New World was the French. Unlike the Native Americans who were culturally divided into groups, the French settlers belonged to one group and had one language and culture. The French people started to arrive in the New World over 50 years after America was discovered by Christopher Columbus from Spain. The French people were culturally traders; they moved to America to look for goods to sell to manufacturers back at home. They started by settling in Canada where they concentrated on the fur trade. The French people were well-organized and more civilized than the Native Americans. The French people worked and related well with the the indigenous population (Siemerling, 2012).

The French people were Christians and valued their religion very much. In fact, they came with their church leaders and even tried to convert the Native Americans. They spoke one language and related well with other settlers from Europe during the early days of settlement before the competition led to severe rivalry among settlers. The French people did not fight amongst themselves and treated each other like family. They had a well-established form of clothing, communication, transport, and firearms that were stronger than the crude weapons used by the Native Americans. There was a well-developed form of writing among the French settlers in the New World. More so, the French settlers had a formal way of treating illnesses amongst themselves. After some time, the French people developed social conflicts with the Native Americans and other settlers from Europe after the competition for resources such as land became unbearable (Lösch & Zapf, 2004).

The English people from Great Britain also moved to the New World to look for greener pastures. The English people just like their French friends came to America to look for trade products and spread Christianity among the Native Americans. They also had one language and one culture. They never fought amongst themselves and worked together to take anything available in the New World. The English settlers in the New World were mainly fishermen and had come to look for new fishing grounds (Siemerling, 2012). They were also sailors and were looking for the shortest route to Asia and India. In terms of religion, the English settlers were split between catholic and protestant denominations; they tried to look for more converts amongst the Native Americans. The English people settled in America and grabbed land from the locals and started farming (Siemerling, 2012).

Generally, there was a major similarity between the culture of the settlers from France and those from England. Both groups were civilized unlike the Native Americans. Both the English people and the French settlers were trade-oriented and valued material goods. The only cultural difference between the French and English settlers was the language barrier and unhealthy competition in trade and power (Lösch & Zapf, 2004). In terms of culture, the Native America felt that settlers were strangers who meant no good for them. On the other hand, the English and French settlers viewed the Native Americans as evil people who were not worth associating with human beings.

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