Conquest of America

DVD - 2005

After Columbus discovered America came conquest. From all corners of the world, explorers reached the shores of the New World to reap untold riches, seek new routes to the Far East, and gain the most elusive glory of all - a place in history. A sweeping saga of bravery, cruelty and pure folly, these are the stories of adventurers who stopped at nothing to conquer an unknown land and its peoples. Expedition logs, period accounts, and other primary materials help tell the story of America's exploration. Filled with commentary from leading scholars and on-site re-enactments.

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DVD/970/Conquest
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Subjects
Genres
Video recordings for the hearing impaired
Published
New York : A&E Television Network : Distributed by New Video c2005.
Language
English
Corporate Authors
History Channel (Television network), Arts and Entertainment Network
Corporate Authors
History Channel (Television network) (-), Arts and Entertainment Network
Other Authors
Tony Bacon (-), Rocky Collins, Lisa Wolfinger, Jeffrey Wright
Item Description
Special features: Behind-the-scenes: "Conquering the East"; behind-the-scenes: "Conquering the West."
Physical Description
2 videodiscs (DVD)(ca. 180 min.) : sd., col. ; 4 3/4 in
Format
Region 1, full screen (1.33:1) presentation; Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo.
Audience
Not rated.
Production Credits
Director of photography, Yoram Astrakhan, Abe Levy ; art director, Chris Davis ; editor, Tony Bacon ; costume designer, Jeannine Wiest.
ISBN
9780767082587
9780767082594
9780767082600
  • Disc 1. Southwest ; Southeast
  • Disc 2. Northeast ; Northwest.
Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 7 Up-This four-part production provides on-site reenactments and historical analysis of colonialism on the North American continent. The series is divided regionally (Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, Southwest) and details the voyages of Henry Hudson, Pedro Menendez, Francisco Coronado, Vilus Bering, and Jean Ribault. With the help of ship logs, personal diaries, oral histories, and other primary source materials, the events surrounding European expansion into the New World are dramatized and sensationalized. While the novelization of these exploits does entice the audience with period detailing and imagery demonstrating the harsh realities of exploring and colonizing present-day America, the expert analysis does little to contextualize the troubling language and treatment connected to both women and indigenous people throughout the series. Many of the episodes reinforce the racist and imperialist attitude toward American Indian culture without framing this perspective with information about the conventions of the time being depicted. Although Native scholars and historians take part in the general commentary, they do not speak to the portrayal of their culture in the film. As an educational resource, it would seem important to explicate words like "savage" to avoid violent stereotyping and to question the very concepts of "conquest" and "discovery." Gender norms in relation to both women and men during the age of exploration are similarly lacking a historical context. This resource may have value for a history curriculum, provided that educators link the retellings to a point in history and counter the reenactments' depictions with a more balanced worldview.-Vincent M. Livoti Kresge Center for Teaching Resources, Ludcke Library, Lesley University, Cambridge, MA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.