The Effect of European Trade Goods on Native Americans
Native Americans’ trade relations with Europeans significantly influenced their way of living. Thus, it is possible to state that American Indians, who were traditionally focused on a handicraft, received access to steel knives, metal pots, hatchets, and guns (Gallay 244). As a result, when using these tools, Native Americans enhanced their skills in hunting and cooking. The quality of their lives also improved because they became able to find or cultivate more food with the help of hunting and gathering as well as raising crops when using metal tools.
Additionally, Native Americans became interested in receiving colored textile, mirrors, and liquor from Europeans (Gallay 244). The use of these goods changed Native Americans’ lives while providing them with more opportunities to succeed in supporting and protecting their families and hunting with the help of knives and firearms.
Still, while changing their particular lifestyles, Native Americans also faced certain challenges associated with using European goods. It is stated in academic literature that the quality of purchased tools made Indigenous Americans highly dependent on Europeans and their goods (Gallay 244). The reason is that indigenous people could not repair metal tools or guns, but they also could not live effectively and perform routine tasks without these goods again.
Moreover, Native Americans also became dependent on liquor, and the quality of their life was affected. Thus, as a result of relying on the trade relations with Europeans, Native Americans were involved in conflicts, their handicrafts diminished, and the impact of foreigners on their lands became profound (Gallay 245). From this perspective, it is important to conclude that the acquisition of trade goods was not worth changing American Indians’ lifestyles significantly.
Adopted Goods and Devices Causing Harm
When discussing goods or devices that have been recently adopted by people to make their lives more comfortable but causing harms, the two key categories to discuss are transportation and nuclear power. Different types of vehicles made people’s life easier, and now it is almost impossible to reject using cars in a daily life (Hill 128-130). However, the excessive use of petrol has led to the development of the greenhouse effect, and it is discussed as the cause of the climate change, which affects the environment and people’s lives negatively.
Additionally, thousands of individuals die every day as a result of car accidents due to the fact that humans’ chances to survive them are minimal. Therefore, focusing on the use of traditional vehicles, people have negatively affected their surroundings in terms of the impact on the quality of air and general climatic changes.
The research on nuclear power properties has resulted in developing nuclear power stations and plants, as well as nuclear weapons. On the one hand, people received access to a cheap source of energy to address also their needs in this area without using a range of resources. Moreover, during many years, nuclear weapons were discussed as the most effective protection tool (Hill 137-138). On the other hand, several accidents at nuclear power stations and plants have resulted in causing harm to humans, animals, and the environment. Referring to these facts, it is important to state that negative effects of these environmental catastrophes will be observed during hundreds of years. Therefore, the outcomes of adopting some technologies and goods can be viewed as requiring further analysis and discussion in order to assess their actual impact on society.
Works Cited
Gallay, Alan. Colonial Wars of North America, 1512-1763: An Encyclopedia. Routledge, 2015.
Hill, Pamela. Environmental Protection: What Everyone Needs to Know. Oxford University Press, 2017.