Liz Da Costa Inquisition Case Analysis

In the time period of the Inquisition, a great deal of restriction was imposed on its subjects. The Inquisition was established during a time in which many people were emigrating – for various different reasons – to European and South American countries, bringing their values and cultures with them. This naturally brought about a multitude of conflicts between existing citizens and immigrants. Some pose the argument that due to this more prevalent blend of cultures across the world, the Inquisition led to more legal action and punishments for – what some argue to be – trivial and petty crimes, such as witchcraft and sodomy. However, we, as readers, understand these cases in different manners, based on the sources that we derive information
According to his confessions, da Costa and Alves Cabral were on a hunting trip when Alves Cabral sodomized da Costa, a manner in which Richard Gordon describes as “under the threat of death.” This case takes a keen similarity to many other instances of the time period, in the respect that although a slave was victimized, he or she was to stand trial for the actual act of the crime. Even though da Costa was the sodomite and the recipient of the crime, he was tried in Lisbon due to his role in the sodomizing. Da Costa was able to prove that he did not initiate the actions, and subsequently received a very light penalty; in the time period, a customary penalty for sodomy was a death sentence consisting of being burned at the stake. We are able to make our own conclusions and develop our own thought processes about the trials in many ways. Investigating the case mainly leads readers to a primary source and a secondary
Gordon provides a detailed account of da Costa’s life before and during the trials in his investigation, “Confessing Sodomy…Luiz da Costa.” Gordon not only elaborates on his analysis of the trials and da Costa’s life, but includes the actual, translated transcripts of the trials of Luiz da Costa. Gordon, who is an accomplished author, historian, and journalist, is very-well versed in Latin American studies, and begins the account by providing a detailed account of who da Costa was, and what he might have encountered during the trials. Gordon’s commentary and analysis is an excellent way to provide background information for the next segment of the chapter, the transcript of the trials. The transcripts are the materials that were taken directly from the time period of the Inquisition, and translated into English, defining them as a primary source. We can come to the understanding that a primary source is any piece of material that comes directly from the time period of the material of interest. Some may argue that since the material was translated, it is therefore not authentic by definition. However, many prominent sources, including the University of Maryland Libraries, agree that it still maintains its status as a primary source since it is an original material deriving from the time period at