The Evolution of the Devil

In the Bible, Christianity established the Devil as evil and full of malicious intent, causing the fall of mankind from God. Religion has and is still one of the most important factors in our society today, and it affects how we live, even if you aren't religious in any way. Religion established our moral compass and gave us the knowledge of good and evil (though unfortunately this led to our separation from God), such as not committing murder and theft. The Devil was embodied as the serpent, crafty and full of guile, attempting, and succeeding, to deceive mankind. 

Now let us discuss the evolution of the Devil into the mid 17th century, when Christianity was the cornerstone of life in Europe. However, there were differing views on Christianity, as exemplified during the 1500s by the Protestant Reformation, caused by the ideas of Martin Luther and other reformers. A century later, the Puritans were a group of English Reformed Protestants that believed that the Church of England was only partially reformed, and that they had too many Catholic characteristics. They were a minority, and were constantly under religious persecution by the Church of England. As a result, they departed upon a voyage to the New World in search of religious freedom. Once they arrived, they sought to establish a theocracy with the "city upon a hill" ideology. The Puritans were extremely pious and devout Christians, and if you didn't follow their rules, you would be punished severely, to the point of even death or ostracization.

Publick Notice: The observation of Christmas having been deemed a Sacrilege, the exchanging of Gifts and Greetings, dressing in Fine Clothing, Feasting and similar Satanical Practices are hereby FORBIDDEN with the Offender liable to a Fine of Five Shillings

Now, with some historical background, we can now discuss about the views of the Devil during this time period. As a result of their theocracy and strict rules, tensions began to build, and their society was on the edge of collapsing into anarchy. Unfortunately, this resulted in the Salem Witch Trials, in which 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft and 20 were hanged, most of which did not have substantial evidence, with only "eyewitness" accounts. The Devil was viewed as sinister and malicious, taking victims' souls and possessing them. In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, "the Devil is out and preying on [Betty] like a beast upon the flesh of the pure lamb" (Miller 1047-1049). The Devil was viewed as a tangible being that directly affected people and could interfere with their daily lives, with mostly negative influences.

However, in today's society, the Devil is mostly viewed as an intangible being residing in Hell, rather than interfering with our lives. However, he is still viewed as causing sin, ranging from mass murdering to lying, in our lives. Overall, the view of the Devil has changed dramatically over time, from a malevolent being to a distant threat.

Now here's the interesting musical part: the Devil's interval, or tritone/augmented fourth/dimished fifth (the latter two depend on the notation, which is confusing if you don't know basic music theory, so don't worry about it). A major principal of music theory is intervals, which are the distance between two notes. For example, you may have heard of the most prevalent ones, such as major thirds, perfect fourths, and perfect fifths. The tritone is a distance of six half steps in between two notes, such as F and B. Played together would result in a tritone, creating discord. The dissonance sounded spooky, so if you played it back then, you could've been hung for associating your music with the Devil. However, the tritone is very important in establishing the mood and tone of a piece, whether rock or classical.

On the left, you see a tritone between F and B, as stated earlier. On the center and the right, you can see the difference between augmented fourths and dimished fifths.

More info on tritones, augmented fourths, and dimished fifths: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tritone 

Christopher Columbus: Colonialism's Centerpiece

In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue. In elementary schools across the nation, schoolchildren are brainwashed to believe that Christopher Columbus was a hero for discovering North America. We were told that the Native Americans welcomed him gladly, and they lived peacefully ever after. The truth is quite blatantly different. Even though Native Americans were living in America 12,000 years ago, we still credit Columbus with discovering the New World. 

Christopher Columbus did establish a European presence in North America, which would eventually lead to the founding of the British colonies, which would in turn lead to the Revolutionary War and our country today. However, he did so in such a horrendous and terrible way, by enslaving a whole race of people just for his own personal economic and social gains. His actions have caused a multitude of suffering and grief that continues today. Indeed, Columbus's actions have truly been a decrescendo that started since he and his crew stepped foot off the Niña, Pinta, and Santa María.

Columbus singlehandedly caused a genocide of the Native American people, with an estimated 90% dead from the diseases the Europeans brought. The Native Americans were still prejudiced against centuries later, with being seen as inferior to white people. As Americans expanded west due to "manifest destiny," the Native Americans were pushed out of their home in which they had been living for centuries, to desolate, unwanted land. 

The most terrible tragedy known to the Native Americans was Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Policy, which forced many Native American tribes such as the Cherokee, Seminole, and Choctaw nations to relocate to designated "Indian Territory," in what is now Oklahoma. They were forced to march 2,200 miles in terrible conditions, and 4,000 died because of hunger, cold, and disease. They were uprooted from their homes, separated from their families, and lost most of what they had known. All of this was a direct result of Columbus. If he hadn't treated them like they were worthless, then perhaps there would've been a more symbiotic relationship between Americans and Native Americans.

Overall, Columbus Day should ultimately be replaced with Indigenous Peoples' Day in order to start the healing process. In the NPR article "Indigenous Peoples' Day Gains Momentum As A Replacement For Columbus Day," Lakota activist Bill Means sums it up in these sentences: "[Columbus] represents the mascot of American colonialism in the Western Hemisphere. And so it is time that we change a myth of history."