The Encounter of Europe and the New World (Volume C)

Indigenous Populations “I will simply say that the manner of living among the people is very similar to that of Spain, and considering that this is a barbarous nation shut off from a knowledge of the true God or communication of the enlightened nations, one may well marvel at the orderliness and good government which is everywhere maintained” (p. 555). Cortés, The Second Letter In spite of a sincere belief that indigenous peoples were barbaric and uncivilized, Western writers and travelers increasingly wrote about the simplicity and candor of these peoples, as well as what was perceived to be a better form of government and social hierarchy. The image depicts Hernan Cortés entering the city of Tabasco (17th century painting).

Popol Vuh Mayan creation myth Spanish Conquest Quiché language Heart of Sky, tripartite god, creation through speech nance tree competition, sport Like traditional epic narratives that explore both myth and history, the Popol Vuh traces Mayan creation myth through events at the time of writing (1530s) during the peak of the Spanish Conquest and establishment of Christendom in Quiché, Guatemala. Like oral epics that were recounted over centuries (i.e., Homer’s the Odyssey) , the Popol Vuh was written in the Quiché language, but used the Roman alphabet, and was likely based on a previous Mayan source. The blend of Christianity and Mayan myth is persistent throughout the work, particularly in the description of the tripartite Heart of Sky God (Thunderbolt Hurricane, Newborn Thunderbolt, Sudden Thunderbolt) as similar to the Christian trinity. God’s speech brings the earth into formation from the waters, which parallels the creation description in Genesis. Similar to the eating of forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, the false god Seven Macaw eats the fruit of the nance tree. Competition and sport to demonstrate heroic valor and honor are important tributes in epic narratives. Part 3 of the Popol Vuh recounts the Mesoamerican ballgame played between One Hunahpu, Seven Hunahpu, and the underworld deities. The image is a scan of Father Ximénez’s manuscript, which contains the oldest known text of the Popol Vuh. It is written in parallel Quiché and Spanish.

Popol Vuh (continued) “council book” agriculture, etiological myth Seven Macaw Split Place Xmucane “Prayer for Future Generations” Popol Vuh translates as “council book,” and initially recounts the creation story using many agricultural allusions and etiological myths. The Creator, for example, carefully measures and stakes the earth just as a farmer preparing the cornfields. Etiological myths use divine and mystical explanations for natural occurrences; the myth of Seven Macaw losing his jeweled teeth and metal patches are used to explain why the scarlet macaw has white, featherless eye patches. In Part 4, the animals bring news of the yellow and white corn from Split Place, and these grains become the ingredients to manufacture human flesh. The goddess Xmucane grinds and prepares the corn with water before forming it into human shapes. In the opening song of Part 5 (“Prayer for Future Generations”), the “green and yellow” drops refer both to semen and to plant growth to represent fertility and procreation. The image is a photograph of Utatlan. The caption reads: “The ballcourt of Gumarkaaj, the Late Postclassic capital of the K’iche’ Maya, in Guatemala.” Two of the main temples of the city are also visible, with the Temple of Tohil at the left and Temple of Awilix in the background. The photograph is taken by Simon Burchell (2000, uploaded to Wikimedia Commons on 05/31/2009).

Huarochirí Manuscript The Huarochirí Manuscript details events from the Andean (Inca) conquest of the region when the Spaniards arrived and the end of the Paria Caca cult with the establishment of Christianity. The editor of the manuscript was Andean, possibly a scribe, and thought by scholars to have been recruited by Father Francisco de Avila for several reasons: to document non-Christian rites and beliefs, to blackmail local parishioners, and to show a parallel between ancient and Christian beliefs (often deemphasizing the ancient cultic beliefs). The text recalls the lives of “the ancestors of the Huaro Cheri people,” and credits the meeting of the female earth deity, Chaupi Ñamca, with male water and mountain deity, Paria Caca, with creation myth; according to the text, all the Huaro Cheri peoples descend from a common forefather. The image is a painting titled Funeral of Atahualpa, by Luis Montero (n.d.). Museo de Arte de Lima. The caption states that Atahualpa’s death (he was the last Sapa Inca) on August 29, 1533 marks a main event in the Spanish conquest of the Incan Empire.

Huarochirí Manuscript (continued) Huacas are revered objects, monuments and natural locations, based on the Andean belief that all things possess spirits of creation and animation. Cannibalism, difficulty initiating an agricultural society, and sacrifice are characteristics of the early huacas cultural beliefs, and led to the development of the Huaro Cheri civilization. Smaller communities within the society are sacrificed for revealing information about this sacred culture to the Spaniards (chapter 18: 224–27), particularly regarding gold and silver, which belong to the huacas. The image is a painted façade of the Huaca de la Luna in Trujillo, Peru.

Christopher Columbus navigations tabula rasa natives’ reaction “they are the most timorous creatures there are in the world, so that the men who remain there are alone sufficient to destroy all that land” (p. 545). Christopher Columbus remarks upon the absence of weaponry from their culture other than those made of natural materials like reeds. The natives are described as timid, generous, and grateful to receive even the most lowly and broken items from the foreigners. Columbus and his men are viewed as deities visiting from heaven due to their color and stature. He considered the New World a tabula rasa—a clean slate ready to be imprinted with Christianity and European ways. Image: The Landing of Christopher Columbus. Caption reads: Columbus and others showing objects to Native American men and women on shore.

Pero Vaz de Caminha (ca. 1468–1520) “Although he reassured and flattered them…they soon became skittish like wild animals and went away upstream” (p. 548). Caminha was a captain on the first Portuguese expedition to reach Brazil. Caminha describes an exchange of a voyager’s old hat for a worthless, green stone from the native’s mouth piercing; the people dance and entertain themselves and become frightened when the foreigners kill a shark. Caminha, like Columbus, states that these are a “timid” people, though he ascribes it to their ignorance and primitive behavior (“bestial and of very little knowledge”). He praises the Indians’ innocence but reads their suspicion of newcomers as a sign that they are primitive. The image is a facsimile of the original letter written to King Manuel I of Portugal.

Hernán Cortés (1485é1547) “Considering that this is a barbarous nation shut off from a knowledge of the true God or communication with enlightened nations, one may well marvel at the orderliness and good government which is everywhere maintained” (p. 556). Cortés encountered the Aztec Empire, taking their ruler Moctezuma II prisoner. After many setbacks and the destruction of Tenochtitlán, the chief city of the Aztecs, Cortés succeeded in his conquest. Cortés’s letter reaffirms the widespread assumption that the indigenous peoples were barbaric and deserving of punishment and oppression. Cortés, on the other hand, acts as a police tyrant, shadowing the streets and, with other Spaniards, capturing a street and burning down several hundred homes and important towers in order to inspire terror in the people. The image is a photograph of the ruins of the Great Temple at the former Tenochtilán (now Mexico City).

Florentine Codex Compiled over three decades, the Florentine Codex represents the joint effort of the Franciscan missionary-ethnographer Bernardino de Sahagún and the Aztec elders and scribes who labored with him to produce a permanent record of Aztec culture. It can be considered the first work of modern anthropology. Franciscan friar Sahagún, gathered evidence for almost 50 years (1545–90) and compiled 2,400 pages with illustrations to document the culture, religion and ritual, economics, and history of the Aztec people. As an ethnographer, Bernardino relied upon his work specifically to evangelize the Mesoamericans and uses a medical allusion of “curing” patients that suffer from the disease of idolatry. As an ethnographer, Bernardino uses the following methodology: adopting the native language, speaking with authorities, immersing himself in Aztec culture to master their methods of recording and transmitting knowledge, objectively presenting the Aztec culture without European bias, gathering information generally by using questionnaires, and evaluating information from multiple sources to verify their reliability. The image is page 51, book IX from the Florentine Codex. The text is romanized Nahuatl (a language not known to have been written prior to its romanization). Library Medicea Laurentiana, Florence, Italy.

Bartolomé de las Casas (1484–1566) Although Las Casas had participated in the conquests of Hispaniola and Cuba, the violence he witnessed spurred him to conversion (he became the first priest ordained in the New World) and political activism. He worked to reform the encomienda, a system designed to offer legal protection, religious instruction, and a small wage to Indians placed in the care of a Spaniard, but the system devolved into abusive, forced labor. The left image shows the indigenous people’s reaction to the soldiers after the Massacer of Gonzalez de Ocampo in 1521, by Theodor de Bry (1631). The right image depicts Friar Bartolome de las Casas, by Felix parra (1875). Museo Nacional de Arte in Mexico City. The painting depicts Las Casas as a savior for the indigenous peoples.

Jean de Léry (1534–1613) “Not only would a savage die of shame if he saw his neighbor lacking what he has in his power to give, but also, as I have experienced it, they practice the same liberality toward foreigners who are their allies” (p. 575). In 1554, Léry sailed the first Protestant mission to the New World, landing where Rio de Janeiro stands today. The Tupinamba Indians seemed more peaceful than his own compatriots in France, who were engaged in violence in a nation now torn apart by religious differences. Léry’s account reports on the violence and savagery exhibited by the Tupinamba people; however, he acknowledges his role as an interpreter and emphasizes that personal experience is subjective and therefore no more credible than others’ assumptions and observations (see in particular the closing line of his excerpt, which details the hypocrisy of the Europeans in comparison to the “humanity of these people, whom nonetheless we call ‘barbarians’”). The image is titled Tearful Salutations in the History of a Voyage to Brazil (1580).

Inca Garcilaso de la Vega (1539–1616) “I write only of the empire of the Incas, and do not deal with other monarchies, about which I can claim no similar knowledge…for my purpose is not to gainsay [Spanish historians], but to furnish a commentary and gloss” (p. 577). The young mestizo Gómez Súarez de Figueroa, born of a Spanish conquistador and an Inca princess, traveled to Spain as a young man and took on a new name that combined his indigenous expertise with a Spanish name. Aware of the prejudice with which European readers might respond to a mestizo writer, Garcilaso establishes his own authority on Inca culture to correct the misunderstandings of previous Spanish accounts. The image is a possible (not verified) portrait of de la Vega by Jacopo Carucci Pontormo. Galeria de Kassel.

Guaman Poma de Ayala (1535–ca. 1616) “Twenty years from now, there will be no Indians in this kingdom to serve your royal crown and defend our holy Catholic faith. Without these Indians, Your Majesty is worth nothing…” (p. 587). Guaman Poma was an indigenous Peruvian born after Pizarro conquered Peru. He was an indio ladino, or Spanish-speaking Indian who had been educated and converted to Christianity by the Spaniards. He condemns assimilation between Spaniards and Indians in order to prevent the extinction of his culture. His ethnography includes a letter written to a king to recommend rules that support colonization while still preserving the local elite culture. He argues that the local Inca are unsuccessful precisely because the women are “taken” by the Spaniards and their servants, and the interracial relation creates an inferior mestizo accepted by neither the Indians nor the Spaniards. He also argues that the resources in the Incan lands should be mined and used by the Spaniards; however, the local peoples should not be enslaved or mistreated as they labor to gather these resources. The locals, too, should pay income and property taxes to demonstrate their loyalty to the Catholic King, which in turn will make them more loyal to the King, Christianity, and European practices. The image is a self-portrait by Guaman Poma de Ayala (1615–16).

This concludes the Lecture PowerPoint presentation for The Norton Anthology of World Literature