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Rise of aztec civilization
Rise of aztec civilization
Rise of aztec civilization
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Culture Clash
Culture Clash can be defined as when one or more cultures are integrated into one environment, causing disruption and challenging contemporary traditions. Often occurs in multicultural societies. -www.urbandictionary.com The fusion of wheat and corn into Old World and New World cuisines is an example of two different cultures in discordant. According to the text, “The Spanish conquest of America brought together two vastly different cultures with equally distinct culinary traditions.” (Pilcher, 3) Mesoamerican “Old World” cuisine centered on the usage of corn as the primary ingredient for the majority of dishes, while the European “New World” cuisine focused on wheat as the main ingredient. According to Pilcher, “European intellectuals claimed that corn was inherently inferior to wheat and that progress would only be possible if the government would wean Indians of corn and teach them to eat wheat.” (Pilcher, 3) The Mesoamericans depended heavily on maize (corn) as a primary source of
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The Mexico Reader mentions how the Spaniards were killing the warriors “by their metal darts,” (Joseph & Henderson, 111) allowing me the reader to assume that the natives were using their wooden clubs studded with obsidian glass against Spanish cannons and muskets. The Spanish Horses also provided an advantage for the Spanish army because the Aztecs had never seen the horses before. Another key aspect of the battles focused on how the Aztecs saw war as a religious experience that would lead to the capture of prisoners and an eventual sacrifice “in the gladiatorial ritual,” (Joseph & Henderson, 73) while the Spanish saw war as a “means to an end” of obtaining what they wanted. The culmination of Old World weapons and New World weapons during the above mentioned battles is a representation of cultures combining on the
The religion and culture of the Aztecs played a role in the way the way they thought and fought. They worshiped the war-god Huitzilopochtli. He was identified with the sun and was called "the Giver of life" and "the Preserver of Life" (xxxix). The religion carried some ridiculous rituals such as human sacrifice along with using magicians and wizards to cast spells. In war conditions, human sacrifice played a big role because the Aztecs would not fight to kill,...
Indian Givers How the Indians of the Americas transformed the world. This paper tries to explain Jack Weatherford's Indian Givers by examining the history of the Native American connection to many agricultural products that would not have been produced without the knowledge that Indians gave. Weatherford further stipulates that it is through these advances in agriculture that the United States has remained a strong contender in the global market, that without the influences of the Native Americans on the early settlers those early immigrants to America would not have survived. Through his work, "Indian Givers: How Indians of the Americas Transformed the World", Weatherford brings an insight to a people that most individuals have neglected to consider. The paper concludes that it is Weatherford's purpose to demonstrate that Native Americans have been a misrepresented and forgotten people when the history of North America is discussed.
In the first third of the book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, by Michael Pollan, he draws the reader in by bringing to light many interesting facts about corn that most individuals may not realize. He states that the majority of food that people consume contains corn. Although people of Mexican descent are usually referred to as the “corn people”, Americans have now surpassed them in the amount of corn consumed in their daily diet. Corn is consumed in a variety of forms and many of the animals that are eaten by Americans, such as the chicken, pig, turkey, and lamb are fed corn. When a person eats these animals, he or she is essentially increasing their corn intake, and in most cases without even realizing it. The corn crop has spread vastly and is massively produced because it is efficient. Unlike other crop plants, corn can survive in harsh weather conditions and it is light and easy to transport. Maize is also self-fertilized and pollinated by wind, and it has evolved over time and continues to evolve, into new forms and new uses.
Upon arrival in the Americas, Europeans set out to make wheat the standard grain in the lands they had discovered; the establishment of wheat was both functional, as it was a staple of the European diet, as well as an attempt to institutionalize European control. While wheat did gain some ground in the Americas, especially among the upper classes, it failed to surmount maize as the “the foundation of indigenous livelihood.” The persistence of maize as a staple of the indigenous way of life is not shocking, as J. Eric Thompson writes: “Maize was a great deal more than the economic basis of Maya civilization: it was the focal point of worship, and to it every Maya who worked the soil built a shrine in his own heart.” The Americas were not
The Aztec empire was a complex civilization that practiced agriculture, imposed a hierarchy system, and practiced cultural events involving religion, various gods, and rituals. Agriculture in the Aztec empire was complex, required knowledge of flora, farming techniques, and local environment. The process was “more elaborate than just throwing a few seeds on the ground and waiting for a stalk to sprout up” (Blanton, Kowalewski, Feinman, Finsten, 1993); it was essential to grow enough food to feed an entire population. The most important and common crop grown was maize, also known as corn, which could be manipulated in various ways to yield products of varying tastes and textures; tortillas, tamales, atole, and maize gruel to name a few (Zizumbo-Villarreal, 2010). Maize was an ideal grain to keep around, not only did it provide nutrients to its consumers, it could be eaten raw or stored for months without spoiling.
The English and Spanish empires in Americas differ largely in terms of their relation with the native people. The treatment of Spanish colonist was much harsher than that of the English. Buoyed by the stories of gold lying to the west, Spanish conquest was focused only on gather invaluable treasures rather than building relation with the native settlers. The invasion of Aztec empire by Hernán Corté (1485-1547) with superior weapons aided by vicious attack dogs represents the climax of brutality and the harsh treatment of Aztec warriors fighting bare foot with stones, spears, and arrows. Spanish were not at all tolerant of their unique identity and beliefs.
The populations of the New and Old Worlds were greatly affected by the Columbian Exchange. In the Old World, populations and life expectancies of individuals were flourishing. This was due to the exchanging of various edible plants between the two lands. In Europe, the introduction of the potato would greatly increase populations in many countries, especially Ireland. “The potato was originally grown in the Andes mountains” where the Natives first grew the tubular root (“Potato.”). Much of Europe was hesitant in growing and consuming the new food, but in 1794, during a wheat famine, soon came to love the new source of energy (“Potato.”) In Ireland, the potato quickly became a staple food as the population grew “by seven million in two centuries (“Potato.”).” With milk and approximately three acres of healthy potatoes planted, a family could be fed for two years, assuming no potatoes spoiled (“Potato.”). However, the Europeans weren’t the only ones who experienced the benefits of the Columbian Exchange. Maize was brought to Asia, causing rapid population growth, and wheat, beef, and plantain were of benefit to Native American’s nutrition (Crosby). However, Amerindian...
When the Europeans arrived in Africa during the late eighteenth century the culture and the lives of the people of Africa are altered. Colonialism and Imperialism in Africa has adversely changed the way of life of the African people, and changed their culture, that had developed for so many years, unscathed by any distraction from the outside world. This dominant European influence has led to poverty in the African continent for the next 100 years, because of the institutions that were put into place by Europeans. In Things Fall Apart, it becomes clear that the Ibo culture responds in a distinct way to the European colonization; when compared to other villages and ethnic groups in Africa. These foreigners had such an enormous effect on the Ibo tribe that many of the clansmen decided to abandon the traditional ways or were too afraid to rise against the takeover of their tribe by the Europeans since the natives lacked the adequate technology to fight off the Europeans. The culture collision between Europe’s culture and the Ibo culture causes Nwoye’s sense of identity to be challenged and causes him to distance himself from his family and his tribe because of the introduction of Christianity and western ideals.
... (Schweikart 5-6). The Aztecs’ greed for sacrificial hostages turned these Indian neighbors against them (Kingfisher 196-197). The Aztecs were defeated, partially because they had been weakened by smallpox, but also because the Spanish fought together as a single force, while Aztecs fought as individuals (Schweikart 6-7).
There are many different types of cultures and ways people would react in different situations. When a person thinks of the word culture they start to think of races, places, and states. Culture is in fact a lot more than that, culture is a society’s set of unique patterns, behaviors and beliefs (M.A., Lucas, Social Psychology Sociological Perspectives 3rd edition). Culture can be identified in various ways for example, the way you feel about certain situations or how would one person react differently from the way they grew up environmentally or religiously. The way a person was raised environmentally, physically, and spiritually all have an effect on other cultures. The way a person would normally act would no longer act that way due to the actions of the past. Different cultures affect other cultures in almost any way possible.
The downfall of the Aztec Empire was a major building block of the Spanish colonial empire in the Americas. Spain’s empire would stretch all the way into North America from the Southwest United States all the way up the Pacific Coast. The unfortunate side effect of this was the elimination of many nations of indigenous people. The three major themes shown in this conquest really give deeper look into the anatomy of this important historical event. Without context on the extent of native assistance given to Cortez in his fight with the Aztecs, a reader would be grossly uniformed. The Spanish conquest was closer to a civil war than an actual conquest. Until reading detailed personal accounts of the fighting it is difficult to judge the deadly effectiveness of the Spaniards technological superiority. Without it is difficult to imagine 500 conquistadors holding thousands of native warriors at bay. Once the greed of Cortez and greed in general of the Europeans one understands that if it wasn’t Cortez if would have just been a different man at a different time. Unfortunately fame and prosperity seem to always win over cares about fellow human beings
When colonist came to the Americas, corn was quickly adopted as a new grain. With England across the ocean, there was no easy way to acquire food. The ability to grow ones’ own crop dictated the death or survival of a colony. Corn was easy to grow and provided a good source of carbohydrates. Corn so...
A good percentage of the food in the supermarket is linked to a specific kind of plant. This vegetable, which has many uses, is corn. Since the beginning of the United States, corn has taken an important role in the development in the nation, meaning that without corn this nation would not be the same. When the Europeans came here, there were no real resources that they could exploit for the benefit of their survival. But then one can ask the question, how did the Native Americans survive before they were killed by the infectious viruses and diseases from the Europeans? Well, as simple as it can be, corn was one of the prime elements for their survival, it was one of their main agricultural products. The Europeans that came to the United States adopted corn as the ‘nations’ vegetable for future generations.
The story of maize domestication is not only an interesting topic to us today, but an impressive realization on how hard it was for people living thousands of years ago to find food for themselves. The people living in modern day Mexico eight thousand, seven hundred years ago found a crop that was not much more than a stick with small pods that could be pried off for a small reward of nutrients. However, with that plant they created one of the most useful foods today because of thousands of years of artificial breeding and domestication. Maize is an extremely useful crop that is easy to grow, and gives giant harvests thanks to the experimentation and instinct of our ancestors, and the act of artificial selection over the passage of time.
Italian culture has a rich history that includes art, classic architecture, music, popular traditions and customs. Many people who visit Italy are somewhat surprised by the diversity of the dialects, cuisines, architecture, and craftsmanship.