Hey Amir, So I think your thesis is one that will have a lot of primary and secondary sources to draw on, and it sounds like you've gotten a good start on surveying the material. If you're arguing that critiques of Aztec religious practices reflected on the emerging Catholic identity of Spain, it might be helpful to see if there are any primary sources on the Spanish identity from that time. Do Cortes or Diaz ever describe their homeland? What sort of qualities do they associate with Spain? Is there a Spanish identity distinct from other European countries? (I would assume so, given their experiences fighting with the Moors.)
Hi Amir, I love your choice of focus - how Spanish views on the religious practices of the Aztecs reflect on their hopes for and concerns about their own religion. This sounds really promising. The very notion of barbarism might help you here - what did they mean in calling something "barbaric" or "savage"? What was it supposed to denote? And what practices inspired the use of the term? That question might guide your understanding of what was seen as in complete various with how they understood their religion or what they wanted their religion to be.
Wow, you have everything really well laid out! Your central thesis - that your paper "will attempt elucidate how Spanish descriptions of Aztec religion can in many ways reflect the concerns and hopes of their own religion" - looks to be well on its way toward an answer based on the research youve done (especially on Spanish Catholicism), so well done there - it's an approachable scope for a paper, and a very interesting topic.
You've done a nice job of both narrowing down your topic and finding something original. I think looking into the religious motives has a lot of potential. You may want to look at the different characterizations of Aztecs vs Moors. As Aysha asks, were Moors characterized as complete "savage" as well or merely infidel invaders? Did Spanish descriptive terms for Muslims change after their encounter with the new world? With respect to the "concerns and hopes" of Catholicism, did the newfound mission of Christianizing the savages galvanize and unite the Church or change its discourse?
I really like that you transfered your interest in investigating the descriptions of Aztec sacrifice to see how it reflects the Spanish's own religious beliefs. I think this takes your popular primary source in a unique direction!
Hey Amir, You've come up some really interesting ways of thinking about these sources. Thinking about the Spanish response to the people of the new world in relation to the cultural representation of the Moors is really interesting. Focusing on the influence of the conqueror's catholicism definitely seems important. I'm curious about how explicit Cortes and Diaz are about their catholicism. Your job will be easier if they explicitly talk about catholic teaching a lot, but a closer more nuanced reading that finds subtle Catholic overtones would be rewarding and impressive!
The research question that you are asking is clearly elucidated in the paper: how Spanish descriptions of Aztec religion sheds light on their own religion. Furthermore, I think you have chosen the right secondary sources to supplement your primary source. G. Payne’s historical overview entitled "Spanish Catholicism" should prove useful to you. Do you have any sense yet what your hypothesis will be. You say that you want to see how the interpretations of the Aztecs reflects back on the Spanish religion, but what is your initial impression.
Furthermore, the one issue I see is that a lot of these conquistadors were motivated by desires for wealth and glory. Religion may have been a tertiary goal, and so I wonder how difficult it will be to pull out religious implications...
Hey Amir, I think your paper is headed in an excellent direction. It's definitely appropriate to bring up the notion of "attachment," yet it's interesting how the Spaniards could attach the acts of cannibalism and human sacrifice to anything they'd experience in Europe and their old lives. The connection you will attempt to make between Spanish conceptions of Aztec religion and their thoughts and beliefs about their Catholicism is a great direction to head in, and I'm interested to see what parallels can be drawn. You seem to have already found good sources on both sides of the debate, and no doubt will be able to make a cogent argument.
Hey Amir,
ReplyDeleteSo I think your thesis is one that will have a lot of primary and secondary sources to draw on, and it sounds like you've gotten a good start on surveying the material. If you're arguing that critiques of Aztec religious practices reflected on the emerging Catholic identity of Spain, it might be helpful to see if there are any primary sources on the Spanish identity from that time. Do Cortes or Diaz ever describe their homeland? What sort of qualities do they associate with Spain? Is there a Spanish identity distinct from other European countries? (I would assume so, given their experiences fighting with the Moors.)
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHi Amir,
ReplyDeleteI love your choice of focus - how Spanish views on the religious practices of the Aztecs reflect on their hopes for and concerns about their own religion. This sounds really promising. The very notion of barbarism might help you here - what did they mean in calling something "barbaric" or "savage"? What was it supposed to denote? And what practices inspired the use of the term? That question might guide your understanding of what was seen as in complete various with how they understood their religion or what they wanted their religion to be.
P.S. Appreciated the shout out on Indiana Jones!
Wow, you have everything really well laid out! Your central thesis - that your paper "will attempt elucidate how Spanish descriptions of Aztec religion can in many ways reflect the concerns and hopes of their own religion" - looks to be well on its way toward an answer based on the research youve done (especially on Spanish Catholicism), so well done there - it's an approachable scope for a paper, and a very interesting topic.
ReplyDeleteHi Amir,
ReplyDeleteYou've done a nice job of both narrowing down your topic and finding something original. I think looking into the religious motives has a lot of potential. You may want to look at the different characterizations of Aztecs vs Moors. As Aysha asks, were Moors characterized as complete "savage" as well or merely infidel invaders? Did Spanish descriptive terms for Muslims change after their encounter with the new world? With respect to the "concerns and hopes" of Catholicism, did the newfound mission of Christianizing the savages galvanize and unite the Church or change its discourse?
Amir,
ReplyDeleteI really like that you transfered your interest in investigating the descriptions of Aztec sacrifice to see how it reflects the Spanish's own religious beliefs. I think this takes your popular primary source in a unique direction!
Mackenzie Tudor
Hey Amir,
ReplyDeleteYou've come up some really interesting ways of thinking about these sources. Thinking about the Spanish response to the people of the new world in relation to the cultural representation of the Moors is really interesting. Focusing on the influence of the conqueror's catholicism definitely seems important. I'm curious about how explicit Cortes and Diaz are about their catholicism. Your job will be easier if they explicitly talk about catholic teaching a lot, but a closer more nuanced reading that finds subtle Catholic overtones would be rewarding and impressive!
Hi Amir,
ReplyDeleteThe research question that you are asking is clearly elucidated in the paper: how Spanish descriptions of Aztec religion sheds light on their own religion. Furthermore, I think you have chosen the right secondary sources to supplement your primary source. G. Payne’s historical overview entitled "Spanish Catholicism" should prove useful to you.
Do you have any sense yet what your hypothesis will be. You say that you want to see how the interpretations of the Aztecs reflects back on the Spanish religion, but what is your initial impression.
Furthermore, the one issue I see is that a lot of these conquistadors were motivated by desires for wealth and glory. Religion may have been a tertiary goal, and so I wonder how difficult it will be to pull out religious implications...
Hey Amir, I think your paper is headed in an excellent direction. It's definitely appropriate to bring up the notion of "attachment," yet it's interesting how the Spaniards could attach the acts of cannibalism and human sacrifice to anything they'd experience in Europe and their old lives. The connection you will attempt to make between Spanish conceptions of Aztec religion and their thoughts and beliefs about their Catholicism is a great direction to head in, and I'm interested to see what parallels can be drawn. You seem to have already found good sources on both sides of the debate, and no doubt will be able to make a cogent argument.
ReplyDelete