42 ChapTEr 2 | Colonial north aMeriCa | period two 1 6 07–175 4applyINg ap® historical Thinking Skills
n ew sKIll Comparison
Sometimes we compare two things to understand each one better. For example, if you want
to understand the weather today, it often helps to compare it to yesterday’s weather: “Today
is warmer than yesterday.” If your listener knows what the weather was yesterday, she will
understand what the weather is today. Historians use comparison to illuminate the similarities
and differences between two or more historical events, individuals, or concepts.
The historical thinking skill called comparison can be used to answer the following
prompt:Compare the Spanish, English, and French policies toward Native Americans. To
what extent were these policies shaped by economic considerations?steP 1 Use the documents from Topics 1 and 2 above (and if you have time, Docs. 1.6–1.9
and 1.11–1.12 from Chapter 1) to characterize Spanish, English, and French policies toward
Native Americans. Consider the ways in which these policies were shaped by economic con-
siderations. One is already done for you.European
colonizerspolicies toward natives
Ways in which these policies were
shaped by economic considerations
Spanish Philip IV tried to prevent further
uprisings by ordering Governor
Don Luis de Valdés to treat
natives less cruelly (Doc. 2.7).The Spanish depended on native laborers,
especially through the encomienda system.EnglishFrench03_STA_2012_ch2_027-056.indd 42 11/03/15 12:37 PM