chapter2

While reading about the European society I was surprised when I came to the paragraph about nuclear families and that if a person lived outside the household of the family they were automatically more suspected of crimes like stealing or practicing witchcraft.  People in today's world live alone and move away from their families often and I do not not think they are any more likely to be a thief than a person who lives in a household with many family members.  The next part of the reading that caught my attention was about Columbus.  I find it fascinating that finding America was pretty much an accident while explorers were looking for faster ways to reach Asia.  I also think it is sad that foreign diseases is what killed many Native Americans.  I really enjoy reading about the first settlements in America and it just shocks me that during one winter Jamestown went from a population of 500 to 100.  In that winter they had to eat the dead peoples bodies just to try and survive.  I cannot imagine how hungry they were to be able to eat their own dead friends.