Final answer:
Investors like John Law and others were attracted to the potential profits and economic opportunities that the English colonization of North America offered. The promotion of colonization imagery also had religious and nationalistic motivations, emphasizing the spread of Protestantism and the superiority of England over Spain.
Step-by-step explanation:
The English colonization of North America was driven by a combination of economic, religious, and nationalistic motives. Investors, such as John Law and others, were attracted to the potential profits that could be gained from overseas colonization. By establishing joint-stock companies like the Virginia Company, they could pool their resources and assume the risk of the venture in order to reap significant returns. These investors believed that the English colonies would provide opportunities for wealth through trade and resource extraction.
Additionally, English promoters of colonization emphasized the religious aspect of colonization. They believed that spreading Protestantism in the Americas was an important mission that would bring glory to God and England. The conversion of Native Americans to Protestantism was seen as satisfying God and proving England's superiority over Spain, which was associated with the Black Legend of cruelty.
In summary, investors like John Law and others were attracted to the potential profits and economic opportunities that the English colonies in North America offered. The promotion of colonization imagery also had religious and nationalistic motivations, emphasizing the spread of Protestantism and the superiority of England over Spain.
Investors like John Law used imagery and rhetoric to attract investment in colonial ventures by promising wealth and minimizing risks, while also promoting Protestantism and engaging in national rivalry against Spain.
John Law and other investors promoted imagery to potential colonists to encourage investment in ventures like the Company of the West by illustrating the expected wealth and the relative ease of overcoming obstacles such as the native peoples. This aligned with the economic and religious goals of the period, particularly the spread of Protestantism and the pursuit of profit through the export of raw resources or opening new markets for English goods. Joint-stock companies like the Virginia Company and the Dutch West India Company were instrumental in colonization, attracting capital and managing risks with the promise of significant returns.
The promotional efforts not only highlighted the opportunity for personal wealth but also played into national rivalries and religious conflicts, using the 'black legend' to vilify Spain and justify English colonization as a morally superior and economically beneficial endeavor. Writers like Richard Hakluyt employed both the promise of prosperity and the projection of English Protestant values to garner support for colonization, creating a narrative where establishing English colonies in the New World was seen as both a patriotic and a divine mission.