Document 12.1-12.2 The first reading titled Diego Duran on the Aztecs is a historical document that details the Aztec Empire through the lens of the Spanish. The first topic discussed is the law put forth by Moctezuma I. In addition, the document covers various aspects of Aztec society, detailing its religion, human sacrifice, social mobility, and slavery. The document was created by a Dominican friar called Diego Duran during 1574 to 1581. Duran learned to speak the native language of the Aztec and interviewed the locals for studying their society and culture. Unfortunately, the document only provides a small glimpse into Aztec society, not the definitive answer. The glaring limitation that prevents the document from being a completely reliable source to learn about Aztec society prior to Columbus is that the information does not match the timeline. In the document, Duran discusses several aspects of Aztec society during the reign of Moctezuma I, 1440 to 1469. However, the local people that he interviewed for the information did not directly experience Aztec society prior to Columbus, but only after Columbus arrived to the new world. The information that he received was several decades …show more content…
The document sheds a bit of light upon Inca society. In contrast to the previous document, the Inca seems to be perceived in a positive light due to their noble actions whereas the Aztec is viewed negatively due to the human sacrifice. For example, the document states that Inca troops were not allowed to pillage and commit violence upon territory that they acquired through peaceful mean. One possible limitation is that the author did not witness the acts described in the document. Rather, the author “collected a great deal of information.” There is no information about the method in which he used to collect the
Depending on which society that you were born in would determine your everyday life as an Aztec which could either be a lord, commoner or occasionally a slave. However, slavery was around closer in the 1450’s and those were for only the people who could not afford to take care of themselves. There were two classes between the commoners which the peasants and calpolli and then there were the urban commoners. The “calpolli,” were known to be small groups of families who were made of peasants who also worked for the lord. This would make the commoners more dependent with their lord and it mean that their land was also dependent.
The roles of the Aztecs in the Aztec social pyramid helped to create the strong and solid civilization that we know today. To begin, the ruler's role in the Aztec social pyramid was to " maintain the empire" and to decide when to go to war. In addition, the roles of the government officials, priests, and military officials was to politically govern, patrol, and collect tribute from the commoners and peasants. Furthermore, the roles of the commoners was to be the essential spine of the Aztec empire. They had a variety of roles including being spies, trading on the market, crafting for the emperor, farmed crops, and paid tribute.
As far as inconsistencies, the way this book was wrote, they are expected based on whether the research was done from the Texans, Mexicans, or the observer standpoint. It also seems difficult to separate the myth from the truth at times. The primary sources used are found in the Texas State Library in Austin, Benson Latin American Collection and the Baker Center for American History at the University of Texas in Austin, the DRT Library in San Antonio and many more.
The two documents helped support the traditional myths that the Native Americans thought that the Spanish were seen as Gods. In document 2, written by Nahua, the first words spoken to the Spaniards from the Tlaxcalan rulers were "Welcome, our lords." (p. 9). On the same page from the same document, the Tlaxcalans "showed them great honors, they gave them what they needed and attended to them". The Spaniards were treated as one who is much more than just the common man.
The Broken Spears by Miguel Leon Portilla portrays many themes about the spanish conquest in the account of the Aztecs. However, The Seven Myth of the Spanish Conquest by Matthew Restall conveys themes harmonize with The Broken Spears concepts. In The Broken Spear the spaniards were perceived as barbaric by the Aztecs and vise versa. When the spaniards attacked during the fiesta of Toxcatl they performed a lot of bloodshed and barbaric actions.
Very many died of it. They could not walk; they only lay in their resting places and beds.” The first and the second part are showing a huge contrast and the impact that the Age of Exploration had on the Native life, and how the Europeans negatively affected the Native Americans and Africans. Furthermore, document 3 talking about the Estimated Native American Population of Mexico (1518-1593) shows that in 1518 at the start of the Age of Exploration the population was 25 million, then in 1533 it was 17.5, next in 1548 when it was about 6, and then gradually decreased. The population started at 25 million and ended approximately at 2 million.
Also according to document 12 the Aztecs had a strict cultural preference. I can back this up because according to the article the expectant of childhood marriage and disciplines are high and strict in my opinion the Aztecs should be remembered as a strict and religious community with cultural preferences that are strict. According to document 8 and 9 the Aztecs should be remembered as a community with Advanced agriculture. According to document 8 the Aztecs had a process called water walking that allowed them to plant their agricultural needs over floating island. This system is yet to be figured out by anyone, this shows how advanced their thinking and organization was.
When the spanish arrived, usually because of what the aztecs believe in they would have been sacrificed immediately but, in the 1500’s when Hernan Cortes a spanish conquistador, entered Aztec territory with a small group of men the aztec men thought that they were sent by their god, Quetzalcoatl which is a very important god to the Aztecs who had vowed that he would appear when the world was near its end. The spanish came looking to convert people to the catholic religion and also to get gold. The spanish stayed for awhile as a guest of emperor and the longer they stayed the more suspicious things started to become because they did not act like gods nor did they attend sacrifice ceremonies. When the Aztecs decided it was time for the Spanish
The Mexica’s tribute empire covered a massive region and was populated by numerous different indigenous groups. Many accounts have attempted to portray the conquering of this empire as a fete that was accomplished by five hundred men alone facing the vast population of indigenous people. However, this view of events inaccurately shows the indigenous people as united. In fact the indigenous people were far from unified. The Mexica Empire was a newly formed entity and many enmities remained between the recently subjugated groups and the Mexica.
The author gives insight on how many ways the Spaniards used their power to assist in the downfall of the Aztecs. The reason why the Spaniards became victorious, was because the Spaniards were looked upon as if they were gods because of their outer appearance. The Aztecs broke bread and welcomed the Spaniards with gifts and parties. The Aztecs triggered their relationship with the Spaniards by holding a ritual for the arrival of the god which included a human sacrifice. The Spaniards didn’t agree with the rituals and began to despise the Aztecs.
Undoubtedly, interpretations of history are reflective of the multifaceted contexts of the historians who write it - that includes profession, audience and heritage. The complexity of context affects history in an unpredictable manner, particularly in the case of the Aztec Empire; and often the effect of context on a history is only noticeable when the context is known - that is to say that the markings of context are only really evident once the context it is known to the responder, and therefore that the value of historical writings should be derived from the difference between accounts, that is the uniqueness of differing opinion, or a more holistic consideration of elements like media, purpose, than the commonality (primarily a modern,
Christopher Columbus and Hernan Cortes were both famous Spanish adventurers during the Age of Exploration. When the explorers came upon land, they encountered two different cultures. In 1492, Columbus encountered the Taino people, and in 1520, Cortes encountered the Aztecs. The two cultures that the men encountered were different in more ways than they were similar in regards to how the natives treated the men, what weapons they had and their war-like behavior, their technologically advancements, their housing and architectural structures, and even their religion.
Document C poses a map in which shows the spread of the Aztecs and demonstrate how their conquests allowed them to gain more control of land. Also, it states that how the “Aztec warriors had the reputation of being fierce fighters, and most territories shown on the map were acquired by force.” Document C mainly shows their military power of the Aztecs. Similarly, on document I, it represents how there were thousands of prisoners are killed as a sacrifice. The thousands of prisoners described how their military was advanced in which they were so powerful and highly that they were able to capture many prisoners.
By the time the Spaniards marched all the way to the Aztec metropolis, Tenochtitlan, they had created several allies. Portilla explains that the people that sided with the Spaniards were enemies that had been conquered by the Aztec. The Mexica’s began to resent their “gods” and mistrust King Motcuhzoma for letting the Spanish conquistadors wreak havoc among the natives and their customs. Before long the author begins to describe the many battles fought between the Aztec warriors and the strangers. These were awful and terrible battles that continued for three years.
Such documents shed light in understanding certain domains of Inca