Abstract

This article proposes a Digital Humanities research methodology in colonial literature, namely late fifteenth and early sixteen century Spanish colonial literature, in order to explore the possibilities of Digital Media in the literature classroom. After an introduction to the software Antconc developed by Professor Laurence Anthony and explanation of its usages, the article analyses two epistolary texts from Hernán Cortés and Christopher Columbus through a correlative linguistic and terminology approach. The conclusions show how these conquistadors manipulate language related to space in order to reach their goal of colonizing the so-called New World, pledging to "civilize" the territory and its inhabitants. Ultimately, this article draws on alternative pedagogical methodologies and tools that can contribute immensely to the literature classroom in the COVID-19 era, a time that calls for educative renovation and the development of teaching strategies for the online, not in-person instruction. The methodology and its analysis exemplify the possibilities of Digital Humanities to offer new, interesting approaches to colonial literature through spatial theory.