1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

ACTIVITY 1: “Map the Changes Columbus Set in Motion”

In this activity, students will demonstrate their understanding of the widespread impacts of the Columbian Exchange by creating a map tracing the movement of several organisms around the globe.

Among other things, 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created explores the way the Columbian Exchange facilitated the movement of organisms around the earth. Create an annotated map of the world that traces the movement of some of these organisms.

Your map should focus on just 1 of the following aspects of the Columbian Exchange:

• The voluntary migration of people
• The involuntary relocation of enslaved people and displaced Indigenous people
• The movement of microorganisms
• The movement of plants and animals

Use arrows, labels, and brief explanations to annotate a map in such a way that your audience can see five distinct organisms moving from place to place and creating impacts on the environment and/or on human beings. Use parenthetical page numbers to cite the information in Mann’s book that each of your annotations is based on.

When you finish your map, share it with your small group and answer the following question in a few sentences:

• When you consider everyone’s maps as a group, what trends are clearer than when you consider just your own map in isolation?

Teaching Suggestion: The creation of the map can be completed individually, with a partner, or in small groups. If your students have internet access, they can use an online tool to create a custom map. (Please note that some educational institutions block these particular tools.) If this is not practical for your classroom, copies of a blank world map might be made available to students. Since students working with print copies will likely be using pen or pencil to annotate, black-and-white outline-only maps are probably the most practical.

Differentiation Suggestion: To support information gathering in Mann’s book for those who benefit from strategies with reading fluency, students might be permitted to work with a partner or small group to gather evidence, even if they will later be creating individual maps. Students with visual impairments may be unable to complete this assignment as written. A reasonable alternative assessment might be to ask these students to write a few paragraphs about the movement of organisms rather than plotting their movement on a map.

ACTIVITY 2: “Gamify the Columbian Exchange”

In this activity, students will demonstrate their understanding of the various cultures and goods involved in the Columbian Exchange by creating a game based on the trading networks of this exchange.

Many cultures were involved in trading a wide variety of goods through the vast trade networks that made the Columbian Exchange possible. Create a game (e.g., a board game, a text-based role-playing game, a trading card game, or another type of game that appeals to you) that demonstrates the diversity of cultures and goods involved in the Columbian Exchange.

Your game should:

• Be playable in class, in 5-10 minutes’ time
• Be designed for 2-4 players
• Have clear rules and straightforward mechanics
• Have a clear objective related to global trade, whether it is competitive or cooperative
• Demonstrate the wide variety of goods and cultures involved in the Columbian Exchange
• Not include the trading of human beings as commodities

When you finish your game, share it with your peers; play through some of the games. When you finish, answer the following question in a few sentences: Other than your own, which game was the most informative? Why?

Teaching Suggestion: This activity is best suited to partners or small groups so that in the final part of the activity, it will be easier to arrange for students to play through the games. The playing of the games can be tailored to fit your own classroom circumstances. The final reflective questions can be answered by groups or as individuals. In order to complete this activity, students will need access to computers, art materials, or both. The use of pieces like dice and play markers is optional but may be welcomed by groups wanting to design board games.

Differentiation Suggestion: Students with visual impairments may be unable to complete certain kinds of games; games that are based on oral questioning or a written game description may be alternative possibilities. Any groups that include these students should include peers sensitive to the ways in which visually impaired students can contribute.

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Because of the wide scope of Mann’s subject matter, he can only briefly cover the consequences of the spread of the specific plants, animals, and microorganisms he mentions. Choose one of the organisms Mann mentions and conduct additional research into its global impact.

• What is one impact the spread of this organism had on global culture or on the environment that Mann does not mention in 1493? (topic sentence)
• Explore the causes and effects of this impact. Give at least 3 pieces of evidence to support your claim about the organism’s impact. Be sure to cite your sources.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, comment on how this impact further supports Mann’s contentions regarding The Widespread Impacts of the Columbian Exchange.

2. Mann shares parts of the life stories of several formerly enslaved people.

• What is Mann’s likeliest rhetorical purpose in sharing these stories? (topic sentence)
• Discuss your interpretation of Mann’s purpose. To support your discussion and topic sentence, give at least 3 examples of detail or language choices, drawn from the stories of at least 3 different people.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, comment on whether Mann’s use of these stories contributes to or undercuts his thematic concern with The Humanitarian Cost of Expansion.

3. Many of the foods we commonly eat today are made possible by the Columbian Exchange. Choose one such food (e.g., pizza) as the basis for your response.

• What aspects of this food (ingredients, techniques, etc.) are made possible by the Columbian Exchange? (topic sentence)
• Use the text to support your assertions. Provide 3 pieces of strong evidence to analyze and discuss.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, comment on how this food exemplifies Mann’s ideas about The Widespread Impacts of the Columbian Exchange.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Mann’s primary purpose is to advance an argument about the impact of the Columbian Exchange, but he is also trying to write an entertaining story aimed at general American audiences. How does this secondary purpose shape his choices as an author? How do Mann’s stylistic and content choices create an engaging tone, keep the reader interested, and impart information without dwelling on aspects of history that might alienate the reader? Write a 3- or 5-paragraph analysis that demonstrates how Mann uses language, tone, details, and other elements of his text to appeal to his intended audience. Support your analysis with both quoted and paraphrased evidence drawn from throughout the text, making sure to cite all quoted material.

2. The book’s central thesis is that the Columbian Exchange resulted in a historically unique spread of biological organisms, creating a kind of homogeneity of the global biome. Is this accurate? Trade routes in the Middle Ages, for instance, also spread plants, animals, and microorganisms across Europe, Asia, and Africa. Is there a significant difference that makes the Columbian Exchange truly unique? When considered against the actual number of species that exist in any given environment, how “similar” do a few invasive species make the world’s various places? Write an essay evaluating Mann’s central thesis; come to a conclusion about whether the idea of A New Evolutionary Era: The Homogenocene can be accepted as Mann has proposed it or whether his thesis should be somewhat qualified, given the available evidence. Support your evaluation with evidence drawn from throughout the text, making sure to cite any quoted material.

3. Today, the climate impact of heavily industrialized nations is being felt around the world. How do the climate impacts created by industrialized and industrializing nations affect the health, security, and cultures of other nations? In what ways is this similar to the impact of European exploration depicted in 1493? In what ways is it different? After conducting research into these and related questions, write an essay comparing and contrasting today’s climate change concerns with the Columbian Exchange as depicted in 1493. Support your assertions with evidence from Mann’s book and from your outside research, making sure to cite all borrowed data, ideas, and language.

Multiple Choice and Long Answer Questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, exams, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. Which kind of homogeneity is Mann primarily focused on when he talks about the “Homogenocene”?

A) Economic

B) Cultural

C) Ecological

D) Linguistic

2. What do Sir Francis Drake and Zheng Chenggong have in common?

A) The theft of Spanish goods taken from the Americas

B) Exploration of the Americas during the 1700s

C) Leadership of immigrant colonies in the South Seas

D) Prosecution as enemies of the British crown

3. What does Mann use Juan Garrido, Esteban, and Aqualtune as examples of?

A) The humanitarian cost of European expansion

B) Formerly enslaved people who rose to leadership positions

C) The diverse backgrounds of Spanish explorers

D) People who inadvertently introduced invasive species

4. Which statement would Mann be most likely to agree with?

A) Slavery in all forms is unjust and should be judged as such.

B) Slavery is an institution that should be judged according to historical context.

C) Slavery in the Americas came about because of endemic yellow fever.

D) Slavery in the Americas was largely modeled after slavery in Africa.

5. Which are both consequences of the spread of European farming practices?

A) Population growth in China and the spread of tobacco worldwide

B) The use of slave labor to farm rubber trees and riots among tradespeople in Spain

C) Erosion in the mountains of China and relief from famine in Prussia

D) The Irish potato blight and the use of slave labor to harvest guano

6. The Bas de Fleuve region of Louisiana was founded by escaped enslaved people. Which is this region an example of?

A) A quilombo

B) A joint-stock company

C) A Malthusian Trap

D) A maroon community

7. What do wacho and lazy-beds have in common?

A) Both were made illegal due to piracy in the Atlantic.

B) Both were supplanted by European agricultural methods.

C) Both are derogatory terms for Indigenous people.

D) Both resulted from the spread of European microorganisms.

8. Which most accurately summarizes Mann’s ideas about Columbus?

A) Columbus was barbaric even by the standards of his own time, and even his contributions to history do not outweigh the damage he did to Indigenous peoples.

B) Columbus was a gifted navigator and leader but hardly exceptional compared to other explorers of his time, and his contribution to history should be viewed as largely accidental.

C) Columbus committed acts we would not approve of in our own time, but his accomplishments and contributions to history should be recognized.

D) Columbus was a masterful storyteller and self-promoter, but others were largely responsible for the accomplishments that history has attributed to him.

9. Which of the following was not introduced to the Americas by the Columbian Exchange?

A) Cockroaches

B) Sweet potatoes

C) Yellow fever

D) Earthworms

10. Which of the following was not introduced to Asia by the Columbian Exchange?

A) Rice

B) Maize

C) Tobacco

D) Chili peppers

11. Which statement is most clearly supported by the examples Mann gives in 1493?

A) Expanding political power often involves a net economic loss.

B) Expanding trade networks creates benefits for everyone involved.

C) Geographic and political expansion often create human suffering.

D) Cultural exchange can offset imbalances in political power.

12. What do rubber farming and earthworms have in common?

A) Their introduction into new territories was by stealth.

B) They were indirectly responsible for famine in Ireland.

C) They were introduced to the Americas by John Rolfe.

D) Their introduction into China caused the loss of biodiversity.

13. Which characteristic of the modern world is Mann chiefly engaged in explaining?

A) Its interconnectedness

B) Its unequal balance of power

C) Its unsustainability

D) Its geopolitical strife

14. What are we reliant on today that is most clearly an unintended consequence of the Columbian Exchange?

A) Fiat money

B) Inorganic pesticides

C) Fossil fuels

D) Military technology

15. Which did not play a role in the expansion of slavery in the Americas?

A) Sugarcane

B) Tobacco

C) Guano

D) Potatoes

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. What does Mann suggest caused nations to continue projects such as the colonization of Virginia and trade in the Philippines despite the massive loss of life these projects involved?

2. What rhetorical point is Mann making with the images of gardens with which he begins and concludes the book?