General Instructions
- Choose one of the questions below to answer in depth.
- Spend at least 10 minutes brainstorming your answer to the question; don't be satisfied with the first answer(s) that come(s) to mind, but continue to think more deeply about the problem for the entire 10 minute period. Write your answer in a text-editing or word processing program - don't write it directly in the comment box!
- The, spend another 10 minutes editing your answer - challenge yourself about your answer, ask yourself why you think the way you do, and develop your answer more completely.
- Finally, copy and paste your answer in the comment box, below.
- A good answer will be at least half a page long as you're writing it in your processing program.
- Answers are due by Friday at midnight.
- Respond to one of your colleagues. You can (respectfully) challenge the person's reasoning, expand on what someone else has said, use a colleague’s idea as a jumping off point to develop something else, or ask a colleague (in detail, and showing why and how you’re confused or unsure of their reasoning) to expand on what they’ve said. But be sure you’re demonstrating serious engagement with the ideas. Your response to a colleague is due by Sunday at midnight.
Questions
Choose one of the questions below to work on.
- Mendoza's views of what constitutes the good life undergo sweeping changes in the film; how do his views change, and what do you think it says about how to live a good life?
- Do you think all, or only some, or none of the people in the film exhibited courage? Why do you think so? Everyone in this Mission certainly meant to be courageous - how would you describe each person's view of courage?
- Gabriel's view of courage is based on his religious commitments; could you make an argument for that view of courage, without depending on a particular understanding of the divine?
Guarani
Medicine man - Sigifredo
Chief (king) - Asuncion
Lieutenant - Alejandrino
Young boy - Bercelio (the main little kid)
Preists
Jeremy Irons was Father Gabriel
Robert DeNiro was Rodrigo
The Cardinal's name is Altimarano
Officials
Hontar - Portuguese governor
Cabeza - Spanish governor
Officials
Hontar - Portuguese governor
Cabeza - Spanish governor
John S
ReplyDeleteOf all the charcters in this film I felt that the Guarani, Father Gabriel and his fellow priests, and Rodrigo showed the most courage. The Guarani were introduced to a completely different lifestyle and eventually came to accept and trust the Jesuit religion along Father Gabriel. Upon first encounter with Gabriel, they seemed to be cautious and confused, over time they built the Mission and came to accept it as their home. When the church came and ordered them to leave, they were ready and willing to defend ther home and what they felt was just according to their new religious beliefs. They stood their ground against a foreign enemy and fought together against weapons much stronger than theirs. Father Gabriel and his priests also displayed courage with traveling above the falls and introducing their ideas to a group of people who they had never seen or heard of before. In the film, they came to develop a relationship with the tribe and were ready to stand up to the word of the church and defend their rights to stay in the mission. Gabriel also displayed courage when he stood up to Rodrigo and called him a coward, he stood behind his beliefs and his faith in God and was able to confront a ruthless mercenary and eventully convert him to the Jesuit religion. Gabriel along with Rodrigo were courageous enough to speak against the spanish and tried to expose the fact they did in fact have slaves in their territory. Above all I feel that Rodrigo showed the most courage, he went from a mercenary and slave holder to a Jesuit priest who was ready to fight with and defend the same people whom he was trying to sell into slavery. After killing his brother, he decided to change his life and choose his own penance. His change in lifestyle was the ultimate display of courage, risking and giving his life was the ultimate sacrifice.
David B.
DeleteI agree with your analysis of the qualities of courage that the two characters exhibited (Mendoza and Gabriel) However I believe that Gabriel is like Euthyphro in a way where he goes back into conventional thinking when ordered by the cardinal.
I know they have an oath to obedience, but it was Mendoza that chose to renounce his oath of obedience because he knew that it was morally wrong to (what I wanna call) evict the Guarani people from the missions just to satisfy the slave owners and trades. He decided to leave the Jesuits and fight to defend the Guarani with two other priests it seems. Gabriel was (morally) unable defy the cardinal for fear of excommunication from the church itself, which to me, is a lack of courage. Mendoza was willing to sacrifice it all for the Guarani.
John S
DeleteDavid, what you say about Gabriel is true I didnt think about it that way. But maybe by giving Mendoza his crucifix was his way of suppporting the fight and not dying with "blood on his hands" as he said to Mendoza. In one of the closing scenes of the movie Gabriel his hosting a prayer or ceremony in the midst of all the fighting and actually gets shot while doing it. In my opinion I think that was his way of giving suppprt withiut going against his own beliefs. I feel that the core of Gabriel is religion and Mendozas core is a fighter. I think the both used their beliefs and skills to help defend what they believed to be right. Which I think are both exhibitions of courage, just in different ways.
People always wanna absolve themselves of sins they've committed. That's just part of human nature.
DeleteThey realize they've done something wrong, and try to do what they can to "repent" for it. One of the foundations of Christianity/Catholicism is not to hurt or bring harm to your fellow man. Gabriel did keep that until the end, but I feel like he wished he could've done more, he was just being held back by his loyalty to the cardinal and the pope. Mendoza went through different "phases" but ultimately reverted back to his roots as a fighter, but this time with the right convictions, which he probably felt was enough to make his atonement complete.
oops... forgot to put my name on it --- David B
DeleteOluwatomi A.
DeleteI agree with your statement. However do you not think that the governors and the Portuguese showed courage as well. As merciless as their actions may seem they were stilling acting under the uncertainty of complete victory over the missions. They also knew that conflict would arise at some point in which they still made advancements. Also in their eyes they believed what they were doing was ethical under. Overall i am just saying that it takes courage to go into lands unknown and try and conquer them.
Veronica P.
DeleteI very much agree with you on your statements about the Guarani. For them to just trust complete starangers like that could have been very dangerous and risky, but they did and that showed a lot of courage. They were physically inferior to the Europeans--they were outnumbered and had weaker weapons. However it was the Guarani who first said that they will fight! They didn't surrender right away just because the Europeans said so. They took pride in their tribe and wanted to fight for what they really deserved. I really admired this part. It just showed how united and courageous of a tribe the Guarani were.
Francisco A
ReplyDeleteQ-1: At first, Rodrigo Mendoza was a Spanish slave trader who made a living off of capturing local Native Americans within South America and selling them off to Spanish/Portuguese slave owners. Here, Mendoza believed that making a profit off of others misery toward being put into slavery was an easy job, as he seemed to enjoy taking others from their homeland and placing them into a situation where they were to be victims of hard labor, brutal abuse, and subjective insults. However, after having lost the one he loved to his brother, then having killed his brother in a duel, did Rodrigo end up inside a prison cell, where he began to have second thoughts of his life choices, only to meet Father Gabriel. His encounter to Gabriel allowed him to see another side of life through the eyes of religion, so he eventually agreed to go with Father Gabriel to the mission atop that waterfall, where forced himself to work his way up the falls, carrying a net of armor, to the mission itself. There he met up with the missionaries, who were accompanied by the Guarani and at first seemed to want have killed Mendoza only to spare his life in the end. With that, Mendoza helped both the missionaries and the Guarani to building Mission, and it was then did Mendoza finally see what Father Gabriel met earlier in the prison cell. Mendoza soon began to interact wit the Guarani, particularly the women and children, and learned what it met to be part of a community, family or not. The Guarani accepted Mendoza into their community and treated him like family, caring for him, providing him with some food, water, and entertainment, and even just wanting to spend time with him. Mendoza realized that just by being with those you don not know but are able to forgive and accept showed him that this is what being a good person is all about: willing to be there for others and learning to love those who can love you back in the same way. This shows that living a good life all about loves others, caring for them and interacting for them. Mendoza surely shows this toward the end of the movie, when chooses to fight and die right by his Guarani comrades to defend the mission, both his and his fellow Guarani’s home.
Fransisco, I agree with your statement of the Guarani taking Mendoza in and forgiving him for what he had done in the past. Their faith in God was immense and forgiving him was the best they could have done. Mendoza then after stood right by their side when the Governor went to the falls and burned down their missions. He did the right thing by staying their and fighting with them to show they were not backing down and they no longer wanted to be enslaved. He out of all made a made such a huge turn in life, and it was for the better.
Delete-Lorena P
Angad S.
ReplyDeleteI do absolutely think that every single person present at any mission in the jungles of Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil exhibited courage because back then missions were still new ideas. None of the priests were native to the land or area, so they had to be courageous to even want to come to a foreign land and spread the word of their god to people who barley understood their language let alone their religious beliefs. I think that the soldiers, mercenaries, Cardinal and foreign governors were courageous because they were also coming to a new land and enforcing law or carrying out direct orders against a group of Guaranese people which they knew nothing about. They didn’t speak their language, didn’t know about their fighting or styles of war and knew nothing about their character. For example, none of the soldiers knew whether the Guaranese were a peaceful tribe or dangerous and deadly people. The Indian people were only known as animals. The cardinal knew that he was being sent to close down the missions and still accepted the orders. He knew that the people of these missions would not be happy about it but still had the courage to come shut down shop. I think that the local tribe’s people of the Guaranese were also extremely courageous because they had to let go of their old beliefs and culture that were passed down to them from their elders and accept and learn a new language, a new way of life, a new religion or faith, everything was different for them because before invasion, they knew nothing about the Spanish or Portuguese traditions or culture. They made a radical change and that takes some balls. The most courageous character in the movie I believe is Rodrigo: played beautifully by Robert De Niro. I chose him because he was a mercenary and slave traitor to begin with and that must take a lot of courage, but also because he had the will and the want to help the Guaranese. He helped them fight against the soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese. He turned his back on everything he knew, including his own culture to help another just because it was the right thing to do and that to me is the ultimate exhibition of courage.
Jessica F.
DeleteI do agree with you that most of the people in this film were courageous. However I feel that two men were not courageous in any way. The two men were the Governor from Spain and the Governor from Portugal. I feel like they at no point in the film they were courageous, the only thing they were interested in was money. They looked at the Guarani people as inferior to them. They felt that because they were Governors and because they were Spanish and Portuguese they were better than the Guarani people. I also thought that they were unfair to the Guarani people because they did not allow them to have equal rights as human beings. It was also showed in the film that both of the Governors wanted the missions to be shut down so that they could turn the Guarani people into their slaves, or sell them to other people.
Angad S.
DeleteThanks for replying Jessica, but im afraid i can not agree with you at all. You are saying that the governors were not courageous but i think that it would take a whole world of courage to go somewhere new that you know nothing about. To go to a new jungle is like going to a whole new world. They packed up and accepted orders to go close down the missions knowing that all the people including the Jesuits would not like it. They had the courage to go against everyone's will and hopes. I think that you mean that you think the governors are not nice people instead of not having courage.
Angad S.
ReplyDeleteI do absolutely think that every single person present at any mission in the jungles of Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil exhibited courage because back then missions were still new ideas. None of the priests were native to the land or area, so they had to be courageous to even want to come to a foreign land and spread the word of their god to people who barley understood their language let alone their religious beliefs. I think that the soldiers, mercenaries, Cardinal and foreign governors were courageous because they were also coming to a new land and enforcing law or carrying out direct orders against a group of Guaranese people which they knew nothing about. They didn’t speak their language, didn’t know about their fighting or styles of war and knew nothing about their character. For example, none of the soldiers knew whether the Guaranese were a peaceful tribe or dangerous and deadly people. The Indian people were only known as animals. The cardinal knew that he was being sent to close down the missions and still accepted the orders. He knew that the people of these missions would not be happy about it but still had the courage to come shut down shop. I think that the local tribe’s people of the Guaranese were also extremely courageous because they had to let go of their old beliefs and culture that were passed down to them from their elders and accept and learn a new language, a new way of life, a new religion or faith, everything was different for them because before invasion, they knew nothing about the Spanish or Portuguese traditions or culture. They made a radical change and that takes some balls. The most courageous character in the movie I believe is Rodrigo: played beautifully by Robert De Niro. I chose him because he was a mercenary and slave traitor to begin with and that must take a lot of courage, but also because he had the will and the want to help the Guaranese. He helped them fight against the soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese. He turned his back on evgerything he knew, including his own culture to help another just because it was the right thing to do and that to me is the ultimate exhibition of courage.
Siriphone R.
ReplyDeleteQUESTION2-I believe everyone (Guarani, Jesuits, governor, and soldiers) exhibited courage by doing some of the small things that they did. The Guarani’s soldiers, women and children were very courageous. Something as small as sitting down and praying as the war continues around them was courageous enough. The Guarani were out numbered and lack resources compared to their opponents but still, they were going to fight for their homes. If that is not courage then I do not know what to call that. Father Gabriel and the other priest stood beside what they thought were right and were going to fight for it. Both the Guarani and the Jesuits even died fighting for what they believed in. Father Gabriel was also very courageous. When things were falling apart, he was the one who kept his head straight and fought until he could no longer fight. He walked towards the enemies with nothing in his hands but a cross and he continued to walk as they fired at him. Though many of these characters displayed courageous acts, Rodrigo was most courageous in my eyes. He went from being a slave trader, to a prisoner, and finally to a Jesuit. I knew he was going to be a strong character from the moment he carried all of that weight. He carried it as they hiked and climbed to the top of the waterfall. When father John cut his weight off he went right back to the bottom get it and climbed back up with it. He apologized to his opponent even though he knew he was right. He was definitely a strong character. Even though I did not like the soldiers and the governors that much, I also think they displayed some courageous acts. They went into their opponent’s playground and fought. They fought like they knew the jungle as if it were the back of their hands.
I agree that the Guarani people, the Jesuits, Mendoza, and Father Gabriel (in his own right) displayed courageous acts. However, I don't agree that the Spanish and Portuguese governors and soldiers displayed any form of courageous act. During the attack on the missionary/church, it was evident that some of the soldiers didn't want to kill anyone (one even said he didn't want to do it at all), but they went ahead and fired anyway. So, in that sense, they weren't courageous at all to back down and say this was wrong. In regards to the governors, all we'd seen from them is their greed. The Guarani people, as far as I could tell from the film, were living quietly in the missionaries, assimilating to their colonists' religious ways. However, despite all that, the Portuguese and Spanish only had the desire to get rid of the Jesuit presence in the area (and in the process) to have complete advantage of the native peoples and their land. And so, this is why I disagree with your last statement.
DeleteCassandra D.
Nayeli MC
ReplyDeleteI think only some of the people in the film exhibited courage, specifically the Guarani people, Father Gabriel, and Rodrigo. I think the Guarani people exhibited courage because they deserted their life long traditions and culture to adopt the “Christian” religion. I think leaving the traditions and religion of all of one’s past ancestors is very difficult to do. It is especially difficult when a random stranger comes to one’s home and says all ones beliefs and traditions are not the right way. The Guarani trusted Father Gabriel and forsaken their ways, and in the end, they were treated like disposables. Although, some of the Guarani stood up against the Portuguese, the other Guarani people tried to leave the burning missions in peace while holding the cross. I think Father Gabriel was courageous because he truly tried to stick to his beliefs to the very end. It takes great courage to stick to ones beliefs and help other in the way like with Rodrigo. I think Rodrigo was courageous because he forgave himself for killing his own, and at the end he fought to save the lives of his spiritual brothers, the Guarani. I think the Guarani’s view on courage was the ability of trusting strangers because although the Spanish and Portuguese were physically different, the Guarani accepted them and tried to compromise with them as human beings. I think Father Gabriel’s view on courage was completely centered on the Christian belief that God is love. Father Gabriel tried to work out issues in the most loving way and refused to treat his enemies with hate. I believe Rodrigo’s view on courage was forgiving oneself no matter how horrible of a crime one has committed. It takes great courage to forgive oneself when one feels that nothing can “fix” oneself.
Marina F.
DeleteIn respond to your answer i would like to respectfully disagree with how you view who is courages and who is not. i agree with the people that you mentioned of course but i think you might be thinking about who was doing the right thing in the film and now who was courageous. All of the people you mentioned have been the most courageous that later benefited themselves and the people around them yes, but still the eney side was just as courageous to come to the missions and try to enslave all of the Indians even though they knew they were converting into Christianity. isnt that courage? to go against something wheather it is because you want to or not? the Fact that one actually is doing something that was going to have a great impact on whatever outcome they desired is courage. let us not mix what is pious to what makes somebody courages. it can be in good intentions or bad it is still courage. although we would have to say it would the bad guys in the film be the most courages? They are as cold blodded as to kill someone.
Carla P.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of the film Rodrigo Mendoza was a slave trader, which meant that he would go to foreign areas and capture native people to sell them in his village. While Mendoza was content with his job choice, his fiancé was sneaking around with his brother. Later in the film Mendoza kills his brother, and is charged for the murder of the Spanish governor, all these events cause him to go into a deep depression, in which he meets Father Gabriel. Father Gabriel tells him that in order to get over the depression he will have to understand what he means by the answer to his troubles is a community. That’s when Father Gabriel shows Mendoza the Mission, where he is attempting to convert the religion of the native people to keep them from becoming slaves. There Mendoza understands the meaning of life and what it means to be in a community, he gets treated as if he were family to these people. Mendoza made a huge transition in his life; he was first a slave trader than he became a Jesuit. He really understood what the meaning of life was, and changed his whole perspective on how he was living. Mendoza showed that in order to live a good life you need to find love, care, and passion, which is what he found towards the end of the film. Mendoza finally found peace, he found a place where he belonged, and understood what living a good life meant.
Amiri M.
DeleteI completely agree with you Carla, Mendoza really did change his ways for the better. Sadly it took the murder of his own brother to realize his faults`, but it showed he had a heart and a conscience when he became depressed and resentful for his actions. When Father Gabriel visited him and made him aware of what he should do, he took it head on. Finding clarity and seeing the ways of a good life as a Jesuit. I would say standing his ground with his new family, not letting the Portuguese take over their mission without a fight and having to draw blood knowing it was against his religion. Was something he didn't have to think twice about. Even on his worst day Mendoza always stuck up for himself and what he believed in, a characteristic that is important to live a good life.
Gerald M.
ReplyDeleteI think not all of the people in this film exhibited courage. Courage is our ability that intimidate and frighten someone. Father Gabriel, Rodrigo Mendoza and the Guarani indians specifically exhibited courage in their own ways. Father Gabriel showed courage by being faithful and commited to his belief until the very end. He provided refuge for the Guarani, taught them music as their noble and more importantly he brought to account the mercy of God. Mendoza showed courage by his ironic transition of his views and beliefs in life. At the beginning of the film, he was a slave trader, then he possessively killed his brother and then he became part of the Jesuit. Mendoza found peace, faith and forgiveness through the Jesuit mission. Because of the Treaty of Madrid the Portuguese colonials wanted to enslave the Guarani. Under this new power, towards the end of the movie, the Spanish and Portuguese forcely attacked the mission and the Guarani. The Guarani illustrated courage by embracing the mission, the Christianity, and their solidarity as a group.These became their strength to fight for what they own, what they believe, and on what they have. These people viewed courage as a way to express that as a minority group we can fight for what we own, what we believe and what we love. Through love, their faith and beliefs remains and continious even during the savage attack of the Spanish and Portuguese.
Sandra g
DeleteI completely agree with you Gerald that the Guarani, Rodrigo Mendoza and father Gabriel all expressed and exhibited courage in their own ways. I like that you say that these people viewed courage as a way to express that as a minority group. Because even though they were a minority group, their will of power for fighting for what they own stood up over all of the other obstacles they had. As you say that their faith, love and beliefs remained continuous through the savage attack. I believe that in the eyes of father Gabriel this was his best intention to fight his opponent with love. However, with Rodrigo Mendoza even though he fought with faith and for what he believed. Rodrigo had a different type of thinking. Because, he portrayed faith for what he believed in and even if it meant Fighting with violence. This was his way of showing love towards the community and the Guarani.
Marina F.
ReplyDeleteIn the film, from beginning to end we see many different versions of courage. we must remember that courage does not fall only into the category of people who have good iontentions. on the contrary, those who do the most scandelous actions are really the bravest of them all. is it power that leads people to this great amount of courage or is it the money? Money leads to power, money also leads to reassurance. weapons and official figures can be the perfect recipe for power. since we are talking about the bravest of them all, we can now discover that those in the missions, the indians and the missionaries are the ones with no weapons, no official figures execpt the father and religion, are also as brave as the ones who seem to have it all for the win but yet continue to fight. This is why father Gabriel and the Guarani are the most courageous in my opinion because these people had faith in what they were doing. by working together, the Guarani people and the missionaries built a bond unlike any other in that time. i also believe the Indians were very brave because they abandoned their traditions and culture to convert into Christianity. the one hero from the enemy side would be Rodrigo Mendoza, this man eventually switched sides with a change of heart and a huge realization of what was right.
Nayeli MC
DeleteI overlooked the issue of power and money which are major enemies of courage, yet you said there are different types of courage. I do not quite understand that, but I can see that depending on what side a person stands on, the courageous and the coward can intertwine. I guess that like Euthyphro, and considering the era the film was based on, the definition of courage is very different from what we call courage today. For example, the Guarani standing up to the enemies in a peaceful way may seem courageous, but cowardly to the enemies. Yet, the enemies fighting defenseless people may seem cowardly, but in that era expansion and slavery was acceptable.
Lucia C.
DeleteI would have to disagree with you. Courage isn’t just for those who know are doing good, but also to those who believe their doing good, even though everyone else knows they aren’t. Yes, I agree with you for the people you mentioned are brave. But even the people with the weapons are brave. Their brave enough to go to a strange place they never been in. To risk their lives for believing in something they known their entire lives. It’s not their fault they can’t see what’s in front of their face. Everyone is this movie has shown courage one way or another.
Q 1: Rodrigo Mendoza’s views of what a good life consists of changes dramatically in this film because he started out as a Spanish slave trader who made a living from capturing the Guarani within South America. He would then sell them to the Spanish and Portuguese slave owners. Mendoza made a living by putting others in misery and forcing them to become “civilized” and be enslaved to the wealthy. According to Mendoza living a good life was having control over other people and having all these riches and weaponry. Mendoza lost what he loved most to his brother, Felipe, whom he killed after he found out they were lovers. He was sent to prison and was able to think about his actions and his life choices. Upon meeting Father Gabriel, Rodrigo was given a second chance. Father Gabriel took Rodrigo with him to the place where the mission of San Carlos was to be established. On the journey to the top of the waterfall, where the mission was to be located, Rodrigo was forced to carry with him a bag full of armor and swords as a form of penance. At the arrival at the top of the waterfall Rodrigo was set free from carrying the bag and it was a form of a new beginning where everything from his past life was being left behind. From this point forth Rodrigo got a view of life from a more spiritual perspective because he, himself became a monk. Mendoza helped the missionaries and Father Gabriel build the missions and to give the Guarani a new life. Mendoza started to interact more with the Guarani, specifically the women and children. He was accepted into their community and he soon realized what it felt to be accepted and to be a part of a community and a family. This gave Mendoza a different view of a good life because now a good life for him was being with those who you love and care about you and doing all that is necessary to protect and support them. Rodrigo gave up his own life for the Guarani and the mission because that was where he felt that he belonged and needed to be and it was his home as well as the Guarani’s. All of this shows that to live a good life one needs to be with those who one loves and cares for and to enjoy their company and that the materialistic items are not something of big importance.
ReplyDeleteJanet S.
DeleteForgot to put my name.
I absolutely agreed with you Janet. But do you also believe that his growth also had to do with a moral standard of how to treat others? A ethically way of living I suppose, in which no matter where you go or whom you may come in contact with, treat them with respect. For the simple reason of ethical principle.
DeleteLetonya D.
Michelle Padilla Lopez
ReplyDeleteQuestion #2:
I believe that most Guarami people in the film were courageous for a number of reasons. I think that Rodrigo was courageous in the sense that he had to carry a net full of armor up the waterfall, the fact that he was a slave trader, a prisoner, then became a Jesuit, and also had to apologize to the Spanish even if he was right. I believe that Asuncion, the chief of the Guarami, had courage to stand up to fight because they were not going to leave their home. They put a lot of work and effort into the missions so they can just take it away without even being considerate of the Guarami. I felt that Father Gabriel was courageous because he helped the Guarami with the missions, stood up for them as well, and walked during the war with a cross in his hand while the opponents were armed and shooting at them. The Spanish and the Portuguese did not know anything about the Guarami and their culture. They only saw the citizens as “animals.” The Guarami citizens were courageous in the way that they fought back, walked empty handed, sang, and prayed during war. I wouldn’t have guts to just stand there while people are shooting and trying to kill me. That is how I think that most of the Guarami were courageous.
John S
DeleteI completely agree with you. Mendoza, Gabriel, and the Gurani all come from different cultures, lifestyles, and beliefs, but they were able to come together through religion and became one family. The way they all came together to fight against a much stronger army for what they believed in is truly couragous. There was no way they were going to survive the guns and the number of soldiers they were fighting against, but they were willing to die for what they loved.
Angad Singh
DeleteI totally agree with the statement you made about the people of the Gurani tribe being courageous. I think that hey showed ample courage by accepting the Jesuit people into their jungle. They had no idea of whom these people were or what they were there to do but still tolerated the newcomers. They even adopted their religion, way of life and culture, if that's not courageous then I don't know what is. I still believe that Rodrigo was the most courageous person in the movie but i think that the Gurani tribes people are definatley get second place.
Captain Mendoza does make a change in the film, from being a mercenary, slave trader, and really a murderer. This was the way in which he made a living for himself, and while working/hunting he did run into a missionary Priest known as Father Gabriel, whom would eventually become a friend and colleague. After Mendoza found his fiancée in bed with his brother Felipe, Mendoza ends up killing Felipe in a duel. This action is the turning point for Mendoza, in which he became depressed about all that had taken place with his brother. Mendoza is somehow acquitted and Father Gabriel comes to his aid when Mendoza is suffering from severe depression. He seemed to truly regret his action of killing his brother, in which he forced himself to undergo the process of penance for his action. Father Gabriel took Captain Mendoza back with him to the very people he used to hunt, the Guarani people. Somehow the village displayed acceptance and embraced Captain Mendoza, even though he had killed people there before. Mendoza obviously is changing in his of life, in which he is no longer a mercenary or a slave trader. He seems to be maturing and is developing a more holistic approach to life, and he is also expanding the way he views life. He becomes concerns for others and not just himself and displays this when he is surrounded by the Guarani people. He treats them as he would treat himself. Mendoza was a conquistador and wanted to change the landscape to reflect himself, but as time went on he learned that it took more energy to recreate the landscape than to just embrace it and enrich it. I think the way of living a good life means living in an ethical manner, and having moral standards in the way you treat others, which is will be the same way you would want to be treated.
ReplyDeleteLetonya D.
Dave K.
ReplyDeleteGabriel’s courage was based on knowing the difference between right and wrong and it doesn’t take an understanding of the divine to know the difference. Most of us learn that in kindergarten. He was there to protect the Guarani. While it is true that the Jesuits sent him there to indoctrinate the Guarani into their “cult” and “save” them, he truly cared for their well-being and understood the threat that the Portuguese government caused and their desire to make the Guarani into slaves.
When the child was singing for Your Eminence and the governors, his greatest act of courage was to stand up to them and by doing so; he was standing against the countries of Spain and Portugal and not just against the governors. At one point he even proposed that Spain and Portugal could divide the area below the falls and the Guarani could occupy the area above the falls. As expected, they didn’t like that idea. Even with the threat of the Jesuit order being kicked out of Western Europe if they didn’t comply, he stood strong for the people and what was right.
Near the end of the film, a child told Gabriel that they didn’t want to return to the forest because the devil lived there. Gabriel assured the child that he would stay with them. Some may argue that the final scene when Gabriel was shot was an act of courage but I say it was an act of suicide and he took some of the people he was trying to protect with him (Jonestown, Guyana anyone?). Being willing to fight for what you think is right is courageous but lining them up to pray and then walking with them into the flying bullets was a bad plan.
Maria I.
DeleteI do agree with your argument in the sense that we do learn whats right and wrong at a young age from what we are taught. But at the same time we believe the difference of what is right from wrong by what we believe is a higher authority. At times we might not have a religious believe but yet we follow the divine law. For most the divine is seen as the highest authority of human kind. Our religious belief might differentiate how we see things in the sense of right and wrong but we all in a way follow a divine law and use it as a path on how we chose to interpret things. I think that although Father Gabriel's actions to walk the Guarani people in a prayer while there was chaos going on might not have been what a lot of people would it acceptable or suitable, but because of he's believe of the divine he found it as the right thing to do. He's belief on the divine law was not to fight. Even though he ended up dying he died representing god praying and putting he's live in gods hands. As a priest he is here to represent god and spread gods word and beliefs.
Maria I
ReplyDeleteQuestion #2
I strongly believe everyone showed courage in the film. Starting with Father Gabriel, he was brave enough to go up to the Guarani forest after he had seen what had happen to the previous jesuit. He's believe for god gave him the courrage to go to the Guarani forest alone to try and help the indians. In the beginning Rodrigo was a slave trader who murdered he's brother. Than he was taken in by Father Gabriel and they climb up to the Guarani forest, where Rodrigo had previously went hunting for slaves. Rodrigo showed courage by going up to the forest where he would hunt for slaves and killed and took innocent people. The Guarani people also exhibit courage by taking Rodrigo in without considering he's past. Towards the end when the officials came in to see if the missions would be closed Rodrigo once again showed he was a braved changed man after having to apologize for stating a fact about the slave trading. I also believe that the officials from the Vatican showed no courage, after they seen what the missions were doing and how they were helping build communities. To them it didn't matter they had already made their decision to close them down before they even visit them. The most significant scene was when the Vatican officials sat down with the Guarani people to tell them they had to leave and when the chief of the Guarani said he also was a king and that he was not going to leave he's land and he's people. That one scene showed the most courage to me.
Michelle Padilla
DeleteI agree with you. I felt that Father Gabriel, Rodrigo, the king of the Guarani showed courage in their own ways. I agree with you on how Rodrigo showed courage because he was a slave trader, prisoner, and then became a Jesuit. I believe that shows a lot coming from him. I think it was courageous of him climbing up the fall with the net as well. The king showed courage also because he did not want to leave something he called home. The fact that he said they were gonna fight was really courageous and in my opinion I thought their opponents would've thrown out their decision of wiping the missions when the king said that. Father Gabriel also shows courage when he stands up for what he believes in and when he walks during the "war" holding up a cross. I still can't believe their opponents didn't see how much of a home this was to the Guarami people.
Janet S.
DeleteI agree with you Maria. Yes the Guarani were the most courageous overall because they let strangers into their lives. Father Gabriel was also courageous because he went into the area where the mission was to be built after seeing what happened to the previous priest. I don’t agree with you saying that the Vatican officials did not show any courage because Altimarano was a Jesuit himself and for him to go back and shutdown the missions. I think that took a lot in him as well. The soldiers I believe showed courage too because they didn’t want to fight but they had to on behalf of the Spanish and Portuguese governors. I also agree with you that the last scene showed the most courage from a lot of the characters but didn’t the first scene of the Guarani trusting Father Gabriel show a lot of courage as well? If you really think about it if it wasn’t for the Jesuits showing up the Guarani would have never been told to leave their home?
Jessica F
ReplyDeleteIn the beginning of the film Mendoza is a very selfish man. He only cares about himself and no one else. Mendoza shows how selfish he is by killing his own brother. The reason he killed his brother was because his brother fell in love with the woman Mendoza loved and Mendoza could not allow his brother to be in a relationship with a woman that was once his. Since Mendoza could not have her and be happy with her then neither could his brother. Mendoza was also a very selfish man in the beginning of the film because he used to hunt the Guarani people and sell them as slaves to the Spanish or Portuguese. Mendoza would go all the way up the falls and set up traps to capture the Guarani people. Once he had captured them he would take them to the Plaza and sell them to who ever offered him money for them, he did not care what happened to them after they were sold. He saw the Guarani people as products which he could make money off of and not as humans. Mendoza's views on the Guarani people did not change until he lived with them in the falls. Once he lived among them he saw how they lived life and began to see them as humans instead of products. While Mendoza was living with the Guarani people he started caring about the Guarani people and deiced he wanted to change his life and become a Jesuit. He also helped the other Jesuit and the Guarani people build the mission of San Carlos so that the Guarani people could live there and not be made slaves. Mendoza even helped the Guarani people fight against the soldiers who wanted to take them out of the mission of San Carlos. Mendoza teaches the Guarani men how to fight and how to set up traps for the soldiers. He even helps the Guarani men steel weapons from the soldiers so that they could have a better chance of winning against the soldiers. Mendoza fights along side of the Guarani men until the end. He decides to help the Guarani people because he feels that is the right thing to do. He along many Guarani, and Jesuits die in the battle against the soldiers. Mendoza went from being selfish to being caring and loving. He began by selling the Guarani people as slaves and ended by fighting along side of the Guarani people to try to defend them and help them. Mendoza shows us that in order to live a good life one must always care about others and not only about ourselves. He also showed us that money should not be our only motive in life and that we should always do what is right. He also shows us that to live a good life we must always try to help those in need.
I totally agree with your argument about Rodrigo Mendza. He once a slave trader, then he became a Jesuit and helped the Guarani to fight the combined troops of Portuguese and Spanish army for forcing them out to leave the mission. I believe that Mendoza exhibited courage using his strength to help the Guarani build a defense weapons for the enemies. He also illustrated courage by showing faith and commitment to the Guarani indians. In my opinion, every people make mistake and deserve forgiveness. Mendoza treasure the acceptance, love and trust the Guarani have shown him. In return, he helped the Guarani fight for their liberty and civil rights they deserve.
DeleteGerald M
Jessica F
DeleteI do agree with you that Mendoza did show his courage by helping the Guarani people build weapons to fight the soldiers. He also showed courage by helping the Guarani people build the mission so that they could live in a sanctuary, without the fear of being turned into slaves. I also agree with you that Mendoza did show his commitment to the Guarani people because he stayed with them until the end and fought against the soldiers to try to help the Guarani people. He did this because he felt it was the right thing to do and that he had to stand by what he believed in. I also agree with you that all people make mistakes and deserve forgiveness. This is why I think it was the right thing to do when the Jesuits allowed Mendoza to become a Jesuit as well. They saw that he had made a mistake and decided to forgive him because they felt he was truly sorry.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteSavanah F.
ReplyDelete#1: As we see through the movie, Rodrigo’s views of a good life change. At first he views the life of a mercenary to be the image of a rich life which he benefits from greatly. It’s not until Rodrigo kills his brother do we see any change. His remorse turns into repentance as he joins the Jesuits on the journey to the mission, all the while lugging his once valuable possessions en route. These items, once thought of as important necessities to Rodrigo symbolize the power they held over him that filled him with greed and led him to kill his brother (since finding out his woman, who he also happened to see as a “possession”, loves his younger brother instead of himself). Upon finally reaching the mission, we see one of the Guarani cut him free of his possessions, releasing him from repentance. This is when his views change. The Guarani people become his spiritual brothers and help him realize that “the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others”. He becomes a Jesuit and devotes his life to helping further the purpose of the mission; giving himself undividedly to both the church and his new brethren. He realized the simplicity with which the Guarani people lived was just enough to lead a good life and that having faith in a supreme being can not only fill someone with hope and courage, but provide purpose and meaning to someone’s life which is worth fighting for. I think this implies that life isn’t about possessions, but about working with your fellow man for a greater good. That, when you seek a life of fulfillment through lavish belongings, you’re filled with an empty promise of a rich life; however when you seek a life of fulfillment through championing others, your life is then full of wealth.
Miguel P.
ReplyDeleteQuestion 3. To answer this question you have to define courage. Courage, to me, is like walking against the flow of a crowd. People will bump you and shove you out of the way but you get up and still walk against the flow because you want to go that way. You chose the path you walk based on what you value as ideals and you show courage when people try to sweep you up off your own path onto theirs. Courage can also be breaking free from the flow of the crowd if you decide you no longer wish to go with them. That can be even harder than just walking against the crowd. Gabriel clearly shows courage in the the movie and he is courageous in upholding his religious commitments even when his life is clearly in danger. His religious commitments are the values he seeks to uphold with his courage. Those religious commitments a set of moral principles that he must abide by according to his religion. To go back to the question, whether or not a view of courage such as this can be spoken for without an understanding of the divine. The answer is yes. If you boil all religions down to their very core you will find that every single one is rooting in a particular set of moral principles that were commanded or given to the people by a God, gods, or some other form of higher being. For Christianity and I believe Judaism, it is The Ten Commandments and while I personally cannot remember the other sets of principles in the other religions I know that it is almost entirely true for every religion. Religions believe that the morals they uphold are the ones that their higher beings told them to uphold and they are courageous when they do that, however, there are people in the world that uphold the same moral values as religions without actually having a religion. People came up with these principles by themselves and courageously uphold them in the face of the world. Without a religion, people can come up with the same moral values that Gabriel did and show courage when they uphold them.
Sandra- Question #2
ReplyDeleteThe portuguese wanted the mission aborted and to take their territory away so that they could put the indians into slavery. The Guarani showed courage by standing their grounds and fighting until the end for their mission.
Both father Gabriel and Mendoza showed strong loyalty to the Guarani in their own ways. Fist, Mendoza shows courage when he confronts the Spaniard as a liar in front of the cardinal regarding the Jesuit order. Then father Gabriel beings a loving person asks Mendoza to apologize to the cardinal. But, what showed the most courage from both Mendoza and father Gabriel was that they stayed strong and true to themselves until the end by sacrificing their life's for the Guarani. Mendoza, wanted to protect the christian community even if it meant being at war with the world because all he wanted to be was a strong protector for his tribe. On the other hand, father Gabriel being a loyal, devoted person to his religious faith is what made his fight with courage until the end with love and kindness.
Siriphone R.
DeleteSandra, I agree with you completely. You pretty much summed almost everything up in one paragraph. However, you should go into a little more details when you discussed why you thought the Guarani people were courageous. Why did you think so? I just want to hear what your opinion about them because you seem to have everything else on point. I chose this question as well but I thought they were courageous because they accepted another person’s belief and believed in it as well. I also thought they were courageous because they stood their ground when everything fell apart and fought back. I know there are more reasons why the Guarani people were courageous but I just could not find a way to put it in words.
David B.
ReplyDeleteQuestion 1
Mendoza's views of what constitutes the good life undergo sweeping changes in the film; how do his views change, and what do you think it says about how to live a good life?
At first, Mendoza was the ruthless slave trader that sought financial gain by capturing the Guarani and selling them into slavery. After all, the world at that time was all about colonizing and exploiting the natives. Mendoza had it all, money, prestige, and power. He thought that he could be complete with what he’s got. Then, because he was rejected by his lover, who goes for his brother instead, kills him in what he calls a duel. He gets thrown in prison, and essentially shuts himself off to the world, as stated by one of the priests, “he wants to die”. Father Gabriel tries to reach him by giving him an option to leave the prison and atone for his sins. From here, Mendoza goes to seek penance and seek forgiveness of those that he hurt. He does this by carrying a sack that is weighted with various objects (kinda like Atlas carrying the weight of the world). He meets the Guarani, and “bonds” with them. During his stay with the Guarani, Mendoza realizes that he can join the Jesuits in order to atone further for his crimes against the Guarani people.
Mendoza takes on Catholicism and casts out the need for material wealth and begins a spiritual transformation and becomes a priest/monk of the Jesuit order. Mendoza believes that the way to living a good life is to embrace religion. Whether or not Mendoza was religious prior to this is unknown, but I’d put my money on him not being religious, as he was a materialistic man to start with. When the cardinal comes to view the missions, Mendoza (as the priest) challenges Hontar and Cabeza when it comes to the savagery of the slave trade, and reveals that he himself was a slave trader. He points out that the methods of the Spanish and Portuguese wrong and inhuman and are in collusion with each other in the slave trade. On a plantation, he shows the cardinal the wounds inflicted on a Guarani native that was done by his own hands.
Mendoza’s path to repentance takes a twist when the cardinal orders the mission to be shut down and wants to leave the Jesuit order, along with a couple of other priests. Mendoza believes that the path to righteousness is to defend the people he once captured for gain, so he renounces his oath of obedience because he saw the flaws in religion and continues to seek atonement in his own way.
Dave K.
DeleteHey David. You touched on a point that I feel just about everyone is overlooking. Yes Mendoza turned himself around and became a Jesuit priest but I think he was showing his real personality when he asked Gabriel to let him out of the priesthood to fight the soldiers. He may have done this because he “saw the flaws in religion” or just because he believed that it would help the Guarani. Either way he and several priests snuck into camp in the cover of darkness and killed and robbed the soldiers. I do believe that his was his idea of atonement in that “slave trader” sort of way. I guess the real point is that is it any more acceptable to kill people in the name of protecting the Guarani than it is to take slaves for the trade? Was he justified in the raid of the soldiers’ camp?
Dave K,
DeleteI believe so. He (Mendoza) was already set on defending Guarani to the very end because he probably felt that the horrors of what he had done to the Guarani would be repeated once the missions were dismantled. The church offered the Guarani no protection, so by renouncing his oath of obedience to the church, he felt that he was free from the shackles of religion and able to apply the skills he had learned as a mercenary to help the Guarani survive.
Dave B.
Lorena P
ReplyDeleteMendoza started off as a selfish man. He would invade homelands in this case the Guarani and either kill or kidnap people to enslave them for money. Mendoza was in love with a women and when he finds out she is in love with his brother he decides to kill him. With a guilty conscious he seeks redemption and gets help from Father Gabriel. When he encountered with father Gabriel, father Gabriel decides he wants to show him the mission which is to convert the Indians to Christianity. They then go on this journey to the falls and Mendoza carrying a heavy net full of armor as penance he finally gets to the top. When the Guarani see the Jesuits they meet them and when they see Mendoza, one decides to go over and he cuts the net off from his shoulder and throws it down the falls. Soon after it was like the weight was lifted off of his shoulders and it was a new beginning for him. The Guarani took him in as one of their own and he decides he wants to become a Jesuit. He started bonding with the Guarani and learned treat others like he would like to be treated. He viewed life with such a different perspective and not only thinking about himself but of others as well. Together they were building such a beautiful mission and their faith for god was immense and nothing was going to change that, not even the Governor.
Theron R.
DeleteYou're right, the change in Mendoza came from facing the injustice he
served his little brother. Mendoza acted in anger, but dearly loved
his brother and was crushed by his death. The love he had for his
brother pushed him into self punishment and then to self forgiveness.
Both he and the Guarani sensed this change in him and the mending
began. He began to accept and love the Guarani as they began to accept
and love him. It was Mendoza's selfless love for his little brother
that led to this mighty selfless love for others, particularly the
Guarani. This selflessness then steered him toward a life of service
to others by putting on the cloth of the monastic life.
Cassandra D.
ReplyDeleteQuestion #1:
Rodrigo Mendoza was introduced in the beginning of the film as a ruthless mercenary and slave trader who seemed to be content with the profits he receives from both the Portuguese and Spanish colonists. And this is what seems to constitute as a good life for him along with returning home to his brother and his fiancee. However, having discovered about the affair between the two and given his violent character, Rodrigo ends up killing his brother. It is this event that precipitates a drastic change in his views of what constitutes as a good life. He spirals into a state of depression, exclaiming that there is no longer a life for him to which Father Gabriel dares him to do penance. On this journey to repentance, he bonds with the natives and begins to have faith. There is a scene in which we see a change in Rodrigo’s attitude and thus, a change in his view of life; it is when he quotes, “But now abideth faith, hope, love...these three. But the greatest of these is love.” From a ruthless man he becomes a loving (in a way) or charitable or compassionate person. He has now understood the maltreatment that the natives have undergone and will undergo with the new shift in political alliances. And so, he fights for their cause against the demolition of the Jesuit presence in the area and the missionaries that is home to the natives. Ironically, according to Father Gabriel, violence is not a part of God’s teaching; however it is Rodrigo’s new found “love” that he wants to protect that he takes up arms. Perhaps, what this implies is that to live a good life you must fight for what is right and for those who you love, or at least that is the case with Rodrigo.
Kiran K.
ReplyDeleteQuestion #2
I think every single person in the film exhibited courage because the movie was all about taking our city back and fighting for it. In the mission, there wasn’t a single character that didn’t fight to get their property back. Taking something back that you own from someone else is never easy, a person always has to work hard to get it. They show the same thing in the movie that you have to do a lot of sacrifices to get something you own. A lot of people who were in forest fought for their place and most of them even got killed. This movie shows a lot of courageous that people did to get their land back. In my opinion, they shouldn’t courage much because wanting and getting the land they own isn’t to fight for. This movie shows that how the Native Americans protected themselves in the beginning from people who came from other lands. They had the courage to fight for their rights. The movie even shows that they are friendly because as the Mendoza came to that place where Native Americans were living, he got helped from them a lot. This shows that they have sympathy for people who are their enemies and who were living in those Native American’s land. Every single Native American went through a lot of struggles because in every moment they thought that someone might come and took them away to sell them as slaves, but still their braveness never brought them down and they still had hope that one day they will have their own land. The most courageous man in the movie was Gabriel because he wasn’t a Native American but he still fought with European to help those Native American to get their land back even though he was a European by himself. And in the fighting he died which showed that his braveness did something that other couldn’t, he fought with European to get Native American their land back.
Madhuri D
DeleteI completely agree with your response and what you wrote down all made sense to me. No one would want to others to take their native land and rule over it. I like how you gave examples from movie clip to show how natives were brave enough to save their land. In addition to that father Gabriel was one of the main character of the movie how he helped native Indian to get their land back which shows that there is still humanity alive in people. who else would help unknown people and fight to give their land back. Also i like how you mention about Mendoza transformation although he was a slave trader at the end he showed his braveness to help Native Indian to get their land back. At the end I would like to say your opinion towards the movie is similar as mines.
Giovanni Prado
ReplyDeleteQ1
In the beginning of the film, it seemed like Rodrigo Mendoza’s thoughts on what was a good life was how much wealth you had and having women. This came crashing down on him when his brother got with who he thought was his, and the realization of this crushed him. After killing his own brother and being in jail for about 6 months it seemed like he had no hopes of living he just wanted it all to end. After going to the mission and the trial of walking there with the weight of his own past sins on his shoulders his whole view had changed. After making it to the mission a Guarani pills a knife on him and is ready to kill him he accepts his fate, but instead of killing him he removes the weight from his back or rather helps him abolish his former sins. This changes his views on what leads to a good life. This whole trial to get there and then confrontation to people he had enslaved shows him the true love of god. This shows him that to lead a good life you must accept the love of god and love others as god loves you. It also teaches him that you have to have forgiveness in your heart. If these people that he enslaved and killed could easily forgive him and show him love, then why should it be any different to anyone else who would do you harm.
Jaewoo K
ReplyDelete3. Gabriel’s view of courage is based on his religious commitments. Since his god said on the bible that believers must guide other people to the god’s way, he puts his own life in danger to get into the community of Guarani. He climbs a waterfall without any safety equipment. With just a single mistake, he would lose his life by falling down to the ground. There were many chances to lose his balance, but he never gave up climbing up and made it to the top of the mountain. He was incredibly brave believing his god will save him and will let him to fulfill his duty as a father. At the end of the movie, He believes he should not use any violence method to achieve his goal even though that is the only way to fulfill. Standing against the invading army, he and his believers keep praying to god and never give up their marching. Their enemies fired their rifles and cannons, however, no one of members of the mission stopped as if they were not afraid of the death. Of course, I think they all knew that their god might not protect themselves from the enemy, but they did not stop believing and continued to march. The result was tragic, but Gabriel’s bravery touched my heart big time. He showed us the real courage is not just to face against danger, also to believe our way until the last moment. Gabriel, himself, believed his own way-the God’s way- in front of the fear of death.
Miguel P.
DeleteI definitely agree with you that Gabriel’s show of bravery tugs at the heart strings of almost everyone who watches this movie. The people that walked unarmed into a firestorm of violence show the most courage of anyone throughout the movie. It’s one thing to stand up for yourself and fight back with your own violence, however it is a completely different thing to stand up for yourself and do nothing to the people who wish to put you down. In this instance, is it really courage to stoop down to the level of your enemy and use primitive methods of achieving your own ambitions such as violence and greed, or is courage taking the harder road. The road that fewer travel, the one that has moral pillars as its guide rather than selfishness?
Nhu Tran
ReplyDeleteQuestion #1
The film is very successful on portraying Mendoza’s view of his conception about what constitutes the good life. With Rodrigo, considering how to live a good life after he come to live with Guarani people and become a Jesuit has made a new chapter for his courageous life, who love people and dare to fight for the living of Guarani in the Mission. At the beginning of the film, he is a slave-trader. He usually goes hunting, trapping and kidnapping people to enslave and sell them to Spanish Governor. His conception of living a good life at first is being powerful, wealthy, invincible and undefeated by anyone. He thinks that he is the happiest person in the world because he has everything include his brother-Felipe- who is very close to him, and his lover. One day, he finds out that his fiance falls in love with his brother and sees them naked and kissing on the bed. He kills his own brother after they have a fight. He doesn’t have to go to the jail because of Cabeza pardon but he is hopeless, humble and depressed. He becomes a murder and he thinks that he loose everything: hope, love and happiness. Then, Father Gabriel comes to help him to make a penance and change his life by convince him making a journey to the Guarani’s territory. While climbing to the Mission, Mendoza punishes himself by dragging a heavy duty of bunch of metal sword and armour. When they arrive to the Mission, Guarani people recognize him who used to kidnap their people to enslave them. He thinks that they would kill him for his sins. Mendoza cries so hard and the Guarani people feel his remorse, accept his penance and let him live in their place. Also, they show their love with him. Mendoza’s view of living a good life has change since he starts to live with them. He realizes that his life can be recovered again by love, forgiveness of Guarani’s people and he can be happy to live in peace. He discovers that living a good life is open his heart to love people, love for nature, the carefulness from people around him, and loves for the God and dare to fight for what he believes in. He realizes that happiness can be original, simple and pure. He used to live in wealthy with all money and power, but then, he still can’t live a good life in happiness and nobody would love him even his own brother and his fiance who he loves the most. He plays with kids in the river. He enjoys the foods. He even cooks which he had never done before. He laughs when people around him laugh. He enjoys the time with them when they go hunting the boar. but not destroying others lives by enslave them and live like an evil with his sins. Simple things in life can make him happy even though he doesn’t have enough money or power as same as before. He then becomes a Jesuit, he fights for the Guarani people, who he loves and who love him. He dies for them because he wants to protect them from the attack of colonist who want natives leave the Mission and come back to the jungle. I think happiness, peacefulness and love is the most important things in the world through the film. As same as Father Gabriel says “God is love”. People can be happy and live a good life when they loved and giving love for people.
Jacob T
ReplyDeleteQuestion 2
When analyzing the major characters of the film, I came to the denouement that all but one group of people really portrayed the essences of courage and the meaning of fearlessness. The Guarani people, natives to the South American lands, were challenged for their homelands and threatened by the people they thought they could trust. Not only were the Guarani people courageous for fighting a war they essentially had no intent of winning, it was the way they trusted us and accepted new beliefs into their life that really expressed true audacity. For the Guarani people to invite them into the community, along with accepting their Christian beliefs and the creation of these beautiful missions on their land; it takes a great deal of courage to convert an entire lifestyle so adequately adapted to. From living in the jungle as a village, to living in the missions as a community, it was their land to begin with, and as their “friends” tried to kick them out, they stood their ground and fought back . As seen in the film when the Guarani chief, Asuncion, says,” I am a king too, and we will fight.” And so they did, men and children native to the lands, fighting a war to protect their honor. But in reality to the European colonies, it was conflict of who has the more land, and how many Guarani can we capture as slaves. For the Guarani to fight a battle against a technologically advanced army with guns and swords, that to me displays pure fearlessness. Some may say Father Gabriel and Rodrigo were just as equally as courageous as the Guarani but in reality, I feel as if they are the core reason of the endangerment of the Guarani people. Are they not the founders of these missions? Did they not convert these people in Jesuits? Yes, they gave the Guarani a sense of hope and something to have faith in, but they would later come to find out that faith can’t physically protect you from the hands of evil caused by greed. It just makes me wonder, how much longer could the Guarani or other native American tribes prosper in history if they were left in the jungle on their homeland, untouched, and uncontaminated with the greed, lies, and violence of the white man.
none but one group*
DeleteI totally agree with you that Guarani people are courageous to stand up and fight back to the colonist even they don’t have good army as same as the colonist. They scarify to protect their people and homeland although they know that they could not win this battle. However, there are Jesuits, Mendoza and Father Gabriel who also help them to believe in God, try to convince them about religious and fight back to the colonist with them. Father Gabriel, at first, he knows that the Guarani people could kill him, when he comes to the Mission, but he still climbs so hard to come up to the top of the Falls. He knows that they would kill him, but he still sitting down and plays his instrument to attract Guarani people and accept him to live with them. He also help Guarani people convince the colonist that the natives people also have their plan and they have been working hard to build that place and they should deserve to stay in their plan and not be treated like animals by enslave them. Mendoza, who is used to be a slave trader, he makes a big mistake and is humble, but he dares to make a change for his life and believe in religious. He also encourage when he climb the mountain with a bundle of metal sword, even though it is extremely heavy. Although he knows that he could die when he meet the Guarani people, but he still go there. I believe he also is courageous to against his religious, against Father Gabriel mission to help the Guarani people go to steal colonist guns and prepare for the battle. He takes his sword again to fight back the colonist for Guarani living and he is killed. Also, other Jesuits who dare to scarify their life for fighting with the Guarani peoples. I strongly believe that this is extremely courageous people. Don’t you think they scarify theirs lives just because they used to lie to the Guarani people, so then they just help them because they make a mistake and they should do their penance for them? I don’t think if a person who could lie can volunteer to go fighting in the army to help others even they know that they could die. If they lie and try to make the Guarani leave their plan as same as colonist do, they could walk away without any thought and carefulness for the Guarani. However, they are just a few people who couldn’t do anything against the colonist in political, but the only thing they could do is to help the colonist understand how hard the Guarani has done in their plan, so they could let the natives people live in the Mission. They have no power to against these colonists. They try their best already.
DeleteNhu Tran
DeleteI totally agree with you that Guarani people are courageous to stand up and fight back to the colonist even they don’t have good army as same as the colonist. They scarify to protect their people and homeland although they know that they could not win this battle. However, there are Jesuits, Mendoza and Father Gabriel who also help them to believe in God, try to convince them about religious and fight back to the colonist with them. Father Gabriel, at first, he knows that the Guarani people could kill him, when he comes to the Mission, but he still climbs so hard to come up to the top of the Falls. He knows that they would kill him, but he still sitting down and plays his instrument to attract Guarani people and accept him to live with them. He also help Guarani people convince the colonist that the natives people also have their plan and they have been working hard to build that place and they should deserve to stay in their plan and not be treated like animals by enslave them. Mendoza, who is used to be a slave trader, he makes a big mistake and is humble, but he dares to make a change for his life and believe in religious. He also encourage when he climb the mountain with a bundle of metal sword, even though it is extremely heavy. Although he knows that he could die when he meet the Guarani people, but he still go there. I believe he also is courageous to against his religious, against Father Gabriel mission to help the Guarani people go to steal colonist guns and prepare for the battle. He takes his sword again to fight back the colonist for Guarani living and he is killed. Also, other Jesuits who dare to scarify their life for fighting with the Guarani peoples. I strongly believe that this is extremely courageous people. Don’t you think they scarify theirs lives just because they used to lie to the Guarani people, so then they just help them because they make a mistake and they should do their penance for them? I don’t think if a person who could lie can volunteer to go fighting in the army to help others even they know that they could die. If they lie and try to make the Guarani leave their plan as same as colonist do, they could walk away without any thought and carefulness for the Guarani. However, they are just a few people who couldn’t do anything against the colonist in political, but the only thing they could do is to help the colonist understand how hard the Guarani has done in their plan, so they could let the natives people live in the Mission. They have no power to against these colonists. They try their best already.
Troy W. #1
ReplyDeleteMendoza’s first views of a good life constituted no morals, selfish acts and gain with no respect for others’ than himself, living a life of trapping and kidnapping the Guarani for profit and slavery. His self centeredness swayed him to killing his own brother for sleeping with his lover. After going to jail and having a second chance to experience what life is really about, recognizing through the humiliation he felt from the priest and Guarani people forgiving and excepting him for what he did and what he is, opened his eyes to a new beginning. He finally got to feel what it is to be accepted without a price behind it, forgiveness, and hard work putting back in a community so it could stay close knit. Realizing what family is and how strong a culture can be with no money. Willing to sacrifice his life and fight what really constitutes living a good life!
Evelin P.
DeleteI agree with you the captain had to go through some hardships in order to find out who he really is inside we can see how he grows throughout the movie. He is first seen as arrogant and cold hearted since he had no mercy in killing his brother or the guarani but the him killing his brother led him to a new path in life a new beginning. What he thought was a good life changed dramatically when he did his work at the mission, before he thought good life was having money and slaves and enjoying the commodities of the rich but as soon as he saw the life the guarani lived it all change he saw that with so little people can be truly happy he learned to he humble with people and look out for the ones that care for you he found out what a good life is by living with the guarani
Stephanie G.
DeleteSometimes it does take going through tragic events for one to have a sudden realization and change for the better just like what happened to Rodrigo. I agree that Rodrigo was able to see things in a different light after experiencing living with the Guarani and learning what it's like to do things for others instead of doing things that just benefit him. He was also able to learn what kind of person he really wants to be by spending time with the priests and the Guarani.
Stephanie G.
ReplyDeleteQ #2
I believe that just about everyone in the movie showed some form of courage. I say this because whether it was the "good" guys or the "bad" guys, they all had to have formed some sort of courage to say and do everything they did or said in the movie. Of course we might have not agreed with some of the actions that took place like raiding the mission and pretty much killing everyone off, but in a sense doesn't it take courage to do those actions? Yes, it could be something we consider wrong, but it took courage for that one person to say "hey this is what I believe and I'm going to follow through with what I think is the right thing to do."
In the case of the priests, I think it was courageous of Rodrigo to take a stand against the officials' orders and fight back in his own way even though it went against Father Gabriel's beliefs and teachings but sometimes it's necessary to do what you think is right.
The Guarani and Father Gabriel amazed me the most because even though they were being kicked out of the mission and all hope for them seemed to be lost, they still believed in everything Father Gabriel taught them about religion and faith and they stuck to their faith until the end and to me, that is very courageous.
This is a good point you're making, I agree to some extent that the majority of people in the film did exhibit courage to some degree. However, do you recall in the movie when the two governments went up into the jungle to raid the mission and basically kill anyone who stood in their way? Right before they fired off the cannons, the group of soldiers heard the Guarani people singing from inside the mission and one soldier stepped up and said, "None of us want to do this", speaking for the whole group. Their commanding officer instead tells them to continue to fight, disregarding the voice of his soldiers. Would you say that these soldier's actions were still led with courage? Or do you think that they were just carrying out orders like good soldiers?
DeleteSavanah F.
Jacob T
DeleteAlthough I have different aspects of this specific topic, I do agree with both of you guys. Stephanie you said something that really attracted my attention to respond to this precise comment, you said " that just about every one showed some FORM of courage. I want to focus on the word form, now as much as I want to disagree with you that a genocide of the Guarani people expressed a sense of courage, I simply can not. In fact, the official definition of courage, is "the ability to do something, that frightens someone." And the massacre of sons, daughters, mothers, and grandmothers was without no doubt, frightening. If we looked at it like we are looking at Euthyphro when really trying to get a solid definition of piety, in this case courage; we could categorize the evil and the greed courage from the heroic and honorable. Yes, the cardinal, along with the Portugal and Spanish governors convey courage, but the form of courage was motivated by greed and power. I also agree with you and the extraordinary courage and fearlessness of the Guarani people. How they fought in a war they essentially had no intent in winning, back-stabbed by the people they thought they could trust, and treated like animals but died with pride and honor, now that is courage, courage that is honorable and chivalrous. Howeve, I do disagree how you interpret the "form" of Father Gabriel's courage. To me, I believe his courage was expressed through his dedication to his religion and the devotion to the missions. You mention it was how he taught the Guarani about religion and faith that made him courageous. But in reality it was the religion that led to the massacre of the Guarani, and in the end, faith does not deflect a bullet or mend a stab wound. Like I said, if the Guarani were never converted and left be in the jungle, I wonder how many more generations could have survived.
Theron R.
ReplyDelete3. I feel Father Gabriel's view of courage and right action is fueled by an understanding that we are all part of the same whole, that to harm one part harms the whole, and it is therefore not needed to have a religious view to back such an understanding. His non-violent approach as a reverence toward all people's right to live is just as courageous, and some would argue more upstanding, as the Mendoza's decision to take up arms against their oppressors. A belief of the divine is not necessary to understand that we should not be violent toward one another. Gabriel's word's to Mendoza that "God is love" and thus his commitment to peace is a manifestation of that love is, in truth, just a manifestation of compassion. That kind of compassion and respect for life is understood and exercised by people of many different creeds and philosophies both theistic and non-theistic.
Jaewoo Kim
DeleteGreat point, Theron. I really like your idea that father Gabriel thought all of us as a whole. Since he believed so strongly, he decided not to fight and kill anybody even though they were his enemies. I am sure that he knew he will die in the battle eventually, but he did not stop believing and praying until his last moment as Jesus did on his death. I do respect father Gabriel and all the people who showed us real love with giving up their own lives. However, if I was in the same situation with father Gabriel, I would choose to fight with my enemy. The reason? Because I have my people behind of my back. If it was only me standing there, I would not hurt others for my own belief. But in our movie, there were many people behind of Gabriel sharing the same belief of love, the god. It is not just giving up my life; it is killing everyone around me, all my family and friends. Can I kill everyone for a decision to insist my way? It is indeed a tough question to answer. I wonder how you would do if you were standing in the scene with father Gabriel.
Everyone in the film showed courage becuase they stood for why they believed in even if it meanr dying everyone sees courage differntly even if its courage to stand up for something that is inhumane for example the governos of Spain and Portugal they had to show courage to fight for what they believed in even though that meant killing many others but the most courageous of all where the guarani who let strangers into their home and gave them the right to build missions there they knew they could end up losing but by giving them the chance shows how courageous they are especially at the end when they decide to fight against the army who was trying to take down their missions they built and turn them into slaves till the end the guarani did not give up on their faith and this is seen when they are running from the chaos a guarani picks up the statue and carries it with him another character that showed courage was the commander who turned into a priest he above all of his beliefs decided to go against the rules and help the guarani fight because he thought it was wrong for them to take away what they had built for themselves what he did showed alot of courage
ReplyDeleteEvelin P.
DeleteQuestion#2
Absolutely! I feel that each person had to show courage in some form or another. It was the courage to have faith in God and stand up for what you believe is right while people are shooting at you. To close the missions when you see how important it is to the people living there and shoot down anyone how tries to stand in your way takes courage too.
DeleteJ. Hornesby
Madhuri D
ReplyDeleteQuestions #1
In the beginning of the movie Mendoza is slave trade who makes money by kidnapping natives and selling them. Mendoza's fiance was in love with his brother Felipe and they both were deeply in love. Mendoza couldn't stand that and he killed his brother whom he dearly loved. Mendoza was depressed and is sent to prison and one day father
Gabriel visits Mendoza and tries to take out him from the crowd. The father takes him Mendoza with him to South America for the mission that promotes natives and Europeans to live together. During the mission Mendoza was completely changed he learned Natives Indians language and he tried to adjust in their society without violence and he followed father Gabriel’s teaching. At the end Mendoza fought with Europeans for Natives which shows that his life was completely transformed from what he was to what he did. Unfortunately, at the ends he dies but he fulfilled his duty towards Natives.
Kiran K.
DeleteI totally agree with you that Mendoza who was a slave trader, who used to treat Native American as slaves, had become one of those. He changed so much as he reached by the Father Gabriel to the place where Native American were living. in my opinion Mendoza didn't do the right thing he killed his brother for that he should be going to jail for sure. If his brother Felipe did something that was inappropriate to Mendoza then he should have gave punishment to his brother instead of killing him. But i like how he turned out to be a very different person and he got used to living with those Native Americans who at first seemed to be Mendoza's enemy but not anymore when Gabriel told them not to do anything with Mendoza. His courage of fighting with Europeans was the best part because he belonged to those Europeans once.
Lucia C.
ReplyDeleteMendoza’s views change drastically. In the beginning of the movie Mendoza didn’t care for no one else other than himself, his woman and his brother. The good life for him at the time was that indeed. After his woman left him for his brother he took a turn for a worse. He was in rage when it happened, but after it did his view changed. His brother was killed by his hand and he hated him self. There was no good life. After Gabriel came and let him realize there’s always going to be forgiveness, Mendoza changed his views again and now he was at the right path in his life. He was determined to help in the name of God. The people he once never cared for and traded for money, were now the people he was willing to kill for. The good life then was to help others and be honest, not just to them, but to him self.
Oluwatomi A.
ReplyDeleteI Think that all the men, children, & women that were involved in the mission exhibited some sort of courage. Nevertheless i do not think that any of the characters had fundamentally different sense of courage. To Father Gabriel, Rodrigo, and the Guarani people, courage meant to stand up for what you believe to be right and true. They all believed that it was wrong that the mission was going to be destroyed and the Guarani people would have to relocate. As a result, they resisted in some form. However They did have different ways of going about it. Rodrigo felt that an act of courage was to fight back with force in order to resist the mandate of Spain. On the other hand Father Gabriel felt that violence was not an act of courage but rather a peaceful march to show their resolve.
Troy w.
DeleteI agree, I think they all had a sense of courage. Whether it was for the right or wrong reasons, they all stood strong for what they stood for. Not putting up with nothing that stood in their way toward advancing and becoming stronger as a whole.
Giovanni Prado
ReplyDeleteGerarld, I would like to agree with you on who was courageous, but not the way you had previously defined courage and help you get a better definition on it. Courage is the power to hang onto your beliefs and defend them regardless of the persecution you get for your choices. You see all of the people you had listed did fight for their beliefs even when they were about to be kicked out of the mission they stayed and fought because they had made it their home.
question 1
ReplyDeleteJ. Hornesby
Rodrigo Mendoza the slave trader comes acrosssas a heartless man capturing the Guarani people and selling them as slaves when he returned home. Mendoza's wife reveals to him that she has been having an affair with his brother. Mendoza find them together and before he could make sense of the whole thing he was fighting with his brother which ended with his brother's death, Mendoza being charged with murder and becomes depressed, and meeting Father Gabriel. Mendoza followed him to the top of the falls and into the Guarani village where he changed his views of the people and learns to live as they do. He develop a deeper appreciation of community and love. I feel him being accepted as a member of their community put love back in his heart and helping build a mission was the perfect way to give back to the community and show his gratitude to the people, it also gave him a new meaning to life and he decided to become a Jesuit, yet again changing his view of living the good life. Once the officials decided to close to Mission Mendoza decides to fight for the people and teach them to use the military tactics and weapons. He soon would come to battle with father Gabriel's advise not to fight with the official and his want to protect the Guarani people. I think when Bercelio returned his sword to him it motivated him to fight back, as if it was the answer from God he had been waiting for and again his views change from love and let God to love and fight with God in your heart. I think it shows that living a good life is to live righteously.
Veronica P.
ReplyDeleteMendoza is first presented as very tough man who seems to be in control. The way he went into the jungle and captured those Guarani people like nothing showed his controlling, powerful side. However later in the movie, when he loses the love of his life we see that this tough man has a sensitive side. He took it out in a very aggressive way but it was because he lost someone that meant a lot to him (I’m not implying that what he did was okay). I feel like him killing his brother was his turning point. That made him realize that there is more to life that the riches and power. He turned to the missions and the priest’s help to help him turn his life around. As the movie went on, we saw more of his sensitive side. He grew care for the Guarani, and truly wanted to save them from becoming enslaved. This specific aspect shows a lot because in the beginning of the film he was the one who was enslaving the Guarani, and in the end he was fighting to save them! However at one point he did get aggressive in front of the officials. Obviously one man can’t change 100% in little time but again we see that he does want to change because he apologized to the officials for what he said even if he did not want to. He knew the officials were wrong, and he was only trying to get his point across. The officials refused to listen, so he raised his voice. A priest asked him to apologize and he did even if what he was saying was right. In general, Mendoza was the man who we least expected to be the changing man. What was more important was that no one forced him to change, he wanted to because he realized what he did was wrong. He wanted to gain God’s love back. In order to do so, he fought for other people—other people who at one point he saw inferior to him, but in the end only saw them as equal.