It was a cold week (the wind is insane & Frozen II came out).

This week marked the official turning point of the semester where classes are winding down, final assignments are posted, and my “to-do” list has doubled in size. In combination with going home, I am a bit overwhelmed, to say the least. 

A large portion of this week was filled with my Space Force essay… which is 99% new from my first draft, so I will be crossing my fingers that it is at least a little better. I find Conquest of America a whole different experience than our other readings. For starters, I and some other Global Scholars in the 1st year seminar, “Globalization and the New Monroe Doctrine”, were assigned to read both 1491 and 1493 by Charles Mann. These books focused on the conquest of the Americas while venturing into many global implications as the years passed. It has been interesting to note the differences between these authors' rhetorics and the information they each presented. So far I have noticed that Todorov integrates more primary source accounts into his speech whereas Mann was an avid supporter of summaries and footnotes. I think I have enjoyed Todorov’s work more as it is more concise while still getting the main ideas across, additionally, I appreciate how he explores La Casas in comparison to Cortes and Columbus. This book has caused me to question more the role and exchange between morality and politics in international relations, as well as how all historical accounts are inherently biased in a multitude of different ways. As Todorov compared the ways that these explorers looked at the Indians through different lenses, I got a better sense of how drastic these accounts can be. 

This weekend I got to see Frozen II with a couple of friends, and as an avid Disney fan, I would say this movie is pushing the best that Disney has ever produced. I immediately texted my sister (who works at Disney) to pick up all the Frozen II goods for me with her employer's discount. Between this movie and watching The Good Dinosaur this week, Disney has been working its magic to refuel me. Basically, Spot is the best animated Disney character and this Frozen II soundtrack is going to be on repeat for the rest of the year.