Blog Entry - Week 3 - Jan 26

The content of the class is starting to come together for me.  While the readings are being understood better and the discussion of the class interesting, I am getting a good foundation as to what formed Hispanic Culture and Civilization.

The first handout – Living in Tenochtitlan was about a family moving to Tenochtitlan.  The boy excitedly talked about what they are going to do when they get there.   The last sentence was incomplete as it had them arriving and we had to finish the sentence.  At last it was moving day, and we entered Tenochtitlan……it appeared to be everything we had hoped for - new adventure and opportunity.    My response was a result they were nomads and looking for a place to call home.  When people move you are hoping for the better to make things better for you and your family.  You can see this today when people move to a different city for a new job or just a change of scenery.  You can also see it in the case when the British and Spaniards came to the Americas.

We also played out an Aztec Codex.  The Codex was a series of pictures that told a story.  We had speakers that played the roles of the characters.  This particular codex was the story of Cortes’ conquest of the Aztecs.  His journey to Tenochtitlan,  and the downfall of Moctezuma and the Aztecs.  It was an interesting way to learn the story as it gave us the story in different perspectives.  The end of the story gave us the perspective of Bernal Diaz – a Spanish soldier, Bartolome de las Casas – a Catholic friar, and an Aztec woman.

We also discussed the different methods of colonization by the British and Spaniards.  The biggest difference to me was the relationship that the British colonists had with the natives was that of displacement.  When they came they brought their families with the intent to settle in communities. There was no need for them so they pushed the natives out.   The relationship the Spaniards had was that they had a responsibility to civilize with an intermixing of cultures.  The came as a group of monks and they used the Aztec women to procreate.   The Catholic Church married the men and women of different races. 

This started to make me think.  Could this thinking of the British be the root of racism we have today in the United States?  To this day we have laws and treaties to protect the rights of American Indians.  I do not see that within Mexico…I could be wrong.  The Spaniards treated the Indians as human beings, there was no separation of race and they became one people.

Blog Entry - Week 2 - Jan 19

The second class we started with a ritual where we observed the different directions we were facing. At first I thought we were doing something similar to a Pledge Allegiance. I believe the message was more in tune with the way the indigenous thought of the earth and their place.

We discussed the reading assignment and the consensus was that it was a hard read. I would have to agree with that as well. I found the introduction interesting but the first chapter there was a lot of information with facts and dates. I found the discussion much more interesting material.

Curtis had a show and tell of different natural items on a map. Curtis used the donkey jaw and a stick to use it as a musical instrument. I found this interesting as I remember it being similar to a Mexican toy - wooden animal (frog) with a serrated edge and a stick to make a very similar sound.
We learned more in depth of the different Indian tribes – Olmec, Maya, Aztecs, Incas. The Mayans were big into sacrifice. They would play a game similar to basketball were the victor was sacrifice to the gods. This was considered an honor. This practice does not fit much into the way the world could be seen today with a “Survival of the Fittest” attitude.

We learned more about Tenochtitlan. This is where the Eagle and Serpent was first discovered on a cactus. The indigenous meaning symbolizes the sky with the eagle and the ground with the serpent and together it is an earthbound being. My thoughts were more of a battle of good versus evil. This symbol is currently depicted on the Mexican flag. The Church of Guadalupe was made of the same red stone as a buried indigenous structure. Today it would be called recycling but I am sure that was not the intent. The intent probably had more to do with dominance and conquer. The video showed Tenochtitlan surrounded by water. If this is now Mexico City, I wonder what happened to the water.

The last thing we discussed was the Virgin of Guadalupe. We were shown the examples of syncretism that enabled Catholicism to be the accepted religion. Could this be why people named Guadalupe also go by the name of Maria?

Blog Entry - Week1 - Jan 12

This is my first classroom class that I have participated in over 20 years. I was initially surprised with the variety of ages and the diversity of the class. We started out the class with introductions and shared a little about ourselves.

I found out some very interesting things in the class. We in the United States call ourselves Americans. The continent is comprised of North America, Central America, and South America. What gives us the privilege to call ourselves Americans?

Another thing I found interesting was the stereotype of other Latin or South Americans being called Mexicans. I found that to be ignorant on the person calling the other people Mexican. Why would it be assumed that somebody with brown skin being from Mexico? Could it be it is all they have experienced? Could it be media influence with the people south of the border are Mexicans?

At the end of the class we broke into little groups and talked about what we know and heard about Latin Americans. We came up with family orientated, religious, hardworking, people are into arts, great vacation spots, desire to migrate to the United States and so forth.

One of the questions Curtis asked us is “Why are we here?”

I am here because I want to learn more about the Mexican culture and civilization. My mother, who passed away when I was 11 years old, was Mexican. I want to learn more about what made her who she was.