The society of Mexico during the Mexican Revolution was corrupt which is mirrored in the city of Comala. The encomienda system, the class system during the Spanish colonization of Mexico, was the embodiment of the corrupt ideals of the Spaniards. The encomienda system divided the people of Mexico into different social classes: Spaniards born in Spain, citizens born in Mexico with Spanish parents, citizens born to Spanish and Native American parents, and Native American Indians. The Spaniards born in Spain had the most opportunities and Native Americans Indians had the least. Comala is not immune to the effects of encomienda and a quote from Gerardo Trujillo, Pedro’s lawyer, shows this, “‘ You should be thankful,’ he’d told them, ‘that you'll be having a fair-skinned …show more content…
Caciques like Pedro did not disturb the system because it benefited them because for the most part they were fairer skinned white people. The Mestizos, half Spanish half Indian, also did not challenge the system because although they were awarded very few opportunities they did not want to lose them, allowing the Encomienda system to continue without opposition. When a system like the Encomienda system goes unchecked corruption is allowed to occur because it marginalizes a less powerful group to benefit a more powerful group in this case the Spaniards. When the Spaniards first came to Mexico, they found new lands free for them to claim in the name of God. However, this land was inhabited by the Native Americans who tended the land and were their for years before the Spaniards ever set foot their. Those first Spaniards share the same opinion as Pedro: “What law, Fulgor? From now on, we’re the law”(40). They came to a land where their was no written law, and used that lawlessness to their
Encomiendas: An encomienda was a grant of Native American labor given to prominent European men in the Americas by the Spanish king. This grant allowed European men to extract tribute from natives in the form of labor and goods. The value of the grants was dramatically increased with the discovery of gold and silver in the Americas. The significance of this term is that although this system was eventually repartitioned, it initiated the tradition of prominent men controlling vast resources and monopolizing native labor.
...ything and everyone that were there. At times they would work with the Natives at other times they would be at war with the natives. The Spanish had been engaged with the natives longer and over time felt the best way to control them would be to convert them or put them into same locations where they could “keep an eye on them”. The Pueblo Revolt of 1680 was proof that no matter what they tried, when one man, country, or society tries to oppress another, war is almost always inevitable.
Throughout history many people write what actually happened but from their point of view. One of them that really common is Eurocentric perspective since they have travelled to new places and wrote down what they saw when they were there. A lot of that has happened with Mesoamerica because they have been taken over by the Spaniards and they wrote what they thought has happened. They thought they were god like compared to them. The Americas wouldn’t be what it is because of them. Also they thought that the Aztecs were more savage like people who like to sacrifice people. All of this was from their point of view and not the Aztecs who are the ones who know better than them.
The early years of colonial Mexico were a time of great change, as the native Indian populations were decimated by disease and increasingly dominated by the Spanish social and economic structure. Under the encomienda system, the initial flood of Spanish immigrants were provided with a support structure in New Spain, as the Indians’ land and labor were put at their disposal in exchange for moral guidance.[3] As Spain sought to reap the benefits of its new colony, the need for dependable labor in Mexico’s agr...
In the years following the Spanish conquests, the southwest region of the United States developed into Spanish colonial territory. Indians, Spaniards, and blacks occupied this territory in which the shortage of Spanish women led to the miscegenation of these cultures. The result of mixing these races was a homogenization of the people of various cultures that came to be called mestizos and mulattos who, like present day Mexican Americans, inherited two distinct cultures that would make their culture rich, yet somewhat confusi...
Differences between cultures are not something new. Many of us can still see it in our daily lives. Four hundred years ago two very distinctly different cultures clashed in what we call the American Southwest. The Spanish presence brought new ideas, new culture, and new way of life to the new found Americas much to the demise of the already settled native tribes. Already having controlled much of Mexico and South America, problems were rising in the outskirts of New Spain. Secular and religious authorities were in conflict and the ever growing animosity of its aboriginal tribe made it difficult to maintain Spanish control. Though, for four generations the Spaniards had begun to feel successful in their endeavors of New Mexico. In early August, the sedentary and nomadic tribes banned together and overthrow the Spanish authority. There are many angles needed to be addressed in order to see why this happened. Historians and anthropologists have been trying to go beyond the bias history to uncover what happen. In the book “What Caused the Pueblo Revolt of 1680”, historians try to answer this question, some theories hold more pull then others in terms of what and why. Through reading this anthology I believe the revolt happened for cultural and religious reasons because the Spaniards were threatening the indigenous people’s very way of life through violence, exploitation of land/resources (food), and demoralization of their old ways and practices.
Both of them had to keep their societies together so in order to do so, laws, religion, and even just making the community aware was something always being done. Natives although did turn to their tribes for help, opinions, and even beliefs. Meanwhile, the Spanish worked more individually for themselves, and wasn’t exactly trying to be as diversified as the Natives were.
Classes in colonial Latin America are most commonly viewed by social standing or by ones wealth. The different levels of classes had their honor to defend. Social expectations needed to be defended. The family within a class also had a certain honor to defend. Any actions that would defile a family member would defile the honor of the family. The status of the family within the class would be on the line.
The Spanish crown sought tight control over the colonies, imposing a hierarchical government that allowed little autonomy. The wealth of the colonies was based on the exploitation of the native population (p 18). In Jared Diamond’s writing he writes that “gun’s, steel weapons, and horses with infectious disease,” were contributions to Pizarro’s success. True that technology easily overwhelmed the Indians; however, he does not explain that the people did not feel threatened by the invaders. Blaming Atahuallpa as miscalculating Pizarro is suggesting that the Inca’s were
Frances Calderón de la Barca explored Mexico for over two years during her residence away from Spain. During that time, she gave great detail of the life associated with the Mexican people and what it was like for her being a guest in their country. European influence played a major role in creating a stable nation for the country. Their religion has played the biggest part in providing stable principles during this time. In the novel, Life in Mexico, Mexicans have held on to the Spanish influence of Catholicism. Frances Calderón de la Barca gives great detail on how Catholicism has created holidays within Mexico, created numerous churches throughout the country, and influenced the daily lives of the Mexican people.
Sociology is the scientific study of social structure, social structure influences through culture and principles, together it produces each individual to the way they act, live and think. Due to social influences, many of our morals and values are influenced through media, parents and school. Social structure is important in our society because it affects all dimensions of human experience, it is a pattern of social interaction and over all makes us who we are. The sociological term for social structure describes society as a whole and the action in which determines individuals. The three main structures that have shaped up my social structure and impacted my life are, my ethnicity, income and religion. Being a Hispanic American Latina forever would have a impact in my life because our culture diversity and the advantage and disadvantages it is to come from a family who had to establish each of their lives all over again by moving to the United States has driven my priorities to become successful very high and not become part of statistics of staying in the middle class or in poverty.
The history of the Western hemisphere is full of war and conquest. One of the most significant and defining of those conquests is the downfall of the Mexica/Aztec Empire. While there are many other events to choose from, this one stands out since it was one over one of the largest empires in Central America. It is also important to look at because of the immense cultural impact it had. The story of this takeover reads like a movie script, a small band of Spaniards single handedly takes down the most powerful empire in Central America. It was an epic battle, which unfortunately led to the destruction of a magnificent culture. As in any major historical event there are many underlying themes and storylines that come together to make the event happen. The Spanish conquest of the Aztec is no different. Three major themes are seen in this struggle. One of them is the incredible advantage that the Spaniards technology gave them over the Aztecs. A second major theme is the greed that fueled the conquests in the New World. The last major theme was the effect of the political divisions and rivalries within Montezuma’s Central American Kingdom. As this historical event progressed each one of these themes began to intertwine until they became an almost unstoppable force.
In schools, students are being taught wrong information. “Our gods were vanquished after the fall of Tenochtitlan as were our traditions. Our warriors and nobles were eradicated, our children starved and our women ravished by the white conquerors and their allies.” (157). In books across America, the Spaniards were said to be good people, but the way that Huitzitzilin described what happened, shows the complete opposite of how the Spaniards actually were.
Honour was a principle that members of colonial society protected fiercely but whether one’s bloodline automatically inherited respect was debatable. The diverse society of ten required the judicial system to settle when these interests collided. During the colonial period, the defining characteristic of Latin American society was its highly stratified society. The rights afforded to the different social classes differed greatly depending on which class they belong. Those with pure Spanish blood were the elites of the society. Beneath them on the social hierarchy lay the plebians, people with mixed racial backgrounds including creoles and mulattoes. Next were the “indios” (indigenous
Much of Chicano history is not really known and it's not taught almost anywhere, and what is not known is that much of our history is rooted from other group of people such as the Arawaks, Indigenous people from Hispaniola and African people brought as slaves from the motherland we call Africa. In order to understand Chicano history we have to understand their history, and the inequality of race, social and economic inequality and how whiteness is implemented as soon as Columbus arrives in Hispaniola and how this all connects to our own history. When Columbus set foot in Hispaniola, his first goal was to find gold and his first way of doing it was to enslave the Arawaks to help him find the gold. Since there was no gold, he colonized Hispaniola