Letter to Charles V
It seems like when reading this that the purpose of this letter was for Cortes to convince Charles V that his expedition was very successful. As this is a primary source it is hard to know exactly what Cortes was describing. Did he really find these things or was he just composing a letter that would make Charles V pleased? In this introduction to the letter it states that some believe that Cortes may have “invented” facts to fit the purpose of his letter. He goes into great detail describing the animals and vegetation, you have to wonder how the reality differed from the description Cores provides. I definitely think that Cortes is viewing the native people through a lens. By this I mean he is viewing their culture and their customs through what he has come to know as Spanish.
Cantares Mexicanos
The first poem describes the fall of Tenochtitlan. It describes how the Aztecs are fleeing the city, which is being destroyed. At the end of the poem there is a description of how the once kings of the city, are now doomed to become prisoners. It is hard to imagine the type of scene this poem depicts; I felt this poem was quite powerful.
The second poem address the aftermath of the fall of Tenochtitlan, as the survivors are left to ask questions as to why such an event occurred. I think there is a sense of disbelief, as these people come to the reality of what has happened.
Codex Mendoza
I think all of this artwork is exceptional. It helps when your are reading various accounts of a time period, and trying g to visualize these people and their cultures, to have pictures and artwork to help you connect people and ideas to images. The descriptions are necessary to fully understand what you are looking at in each piece.
Captives and Cousins
I did not understand this writing at all. I was confused form the beginning, while I understand physically what a Christ child is, I do not know what it is intended to signify. I really have no idea how to interpret this piece; I look forward to the discussion where I can hear others viewpoints and hope to make sense of this.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I agree with your comments on the Codex Mendoza on how it helps us visualize the people and the culture. It is especially accurate and helpful because the artwork was done by the people about their culture.
ReplyDeleteThe 2nd and 3rd maps both had churches in them. They did not have 'churches' or anything of that kind before the Spanish came in, so I think the map is not an insight to the Aztec culture, but more of a picture of Aztec history at given time.
ReplyDelete