The adventures of Cabeza de Vaca in the unknown interior of America show that although the Christians thought themselves superior to the natives, both sides were diverse and could commit good, evil or neutrality. behavior towards each other. Indians and Christians were therefore much more similar than different. This is evident in de Vaca's accounts of Indian-to-Indian, Christian-to-Christian, and Indian-to-Christian behavior (and vice versa). Relations between Indians can be positive, negative or neutral. On the positive side, de Vaca notes that in the case of intra-court quarrels, "[i]f the quarrels are single men, they go to neighboring people who, even if they are enemies, welcome them warmly and give them much of what they received. they did” (95). Warring tribes could put aside their differences to help a member of the opposing tribe survive. Putting aside animosity and giving generously to an enemy is no easy task. This means that inter-tribe relationships could show empathy and, furthermore, kindness. However, de Vaca also recalls the negativity of inter-tribal relations: “All these tribes are warlike and have as much strategy for protection against their enemies as if they had been raised in Italy in continual quarrels” (95). This is interesting as de Vaca makes a comparison between Indians and Europeans. Despite helping individuals, it is clear that rival tribes displayed animosity in larger-scale interactions. Tribes warred against each other, just as Europeans warred against each other. The fact that de Vaca makes this comparison shows an equality in the way indigenous tribes and European peoples treated their adversaries. For the most part, De Vaca's writings show neutrality in Indian relations. “When the Cultalchulce... middle of paper...... it's about others, whether it's one of their own or someone completely different. This discrepancy shows that instead of being very different as de Vaca often describes, the two groups were actually equal. The best insight lies in De Vaca's own words on the subject. On several occasions, he describes the Indians as “savages”. However, at the end of his journey, he states: "Obviously, to bring all these people to Christianity and submission to Your Imperial Majesty, they must be won by kindness, the only sure way" (123). Cabeza de Vaca's transformation from a condescending invader to a man declaring the need for kindness toward the natives proves that his ideas toward the Indians had shifted from superiority to equality. If Cabeza de Vaca's advice to the ruling government regarding expansion had been followed, it is possible that the horrors of future imperialism would have been avoided...