How was race created in New Spain?

How did hegemony affect colonialism?

HW #12 “A Power Called Hegemony” Research Paper 
Background:

Both the Spanish and Portuguese Crowns had limited resources for colonization.  Neither had large military forces in the American colonies.  Iberian colonizers and their American-born descendants were a small minority even in the central areas, so how did  they maintain control over so much of the hemisphere for three centuries?

 

Task:

Choose one of the examples of cultural hegemony control (listed below) and conduct research via internet and databases online (see link on class blog).  Discuss information revealed in your search and summarize your findings.  Prepare to read 1 page summaries.

Database Link: http://lanic.utexas.edu/la/region/african/

 

EXAMPLES OF CULTURAL HEGEMONY

 

Catholicism

o      Inquisition kept a list of banned books that people were not allowed to read

o      Church controlled time: tolling of bells signaled the hours of work, rest and prayer

o      Successive Sundays marked the 7-day week

o      Baptism cards = status

 

Patriarchy

o      fathers rule, male hierarchy of the church

o      husbands legal control of wife

o      a man can support more than one woman heightened their social existence

 

Race Mixing/Caste Systems

o      one category – wholly European

o      second category – African descent

o      third category – Mixed

o      fourth category – European father and an indigenous mother

o      fifth category – Indigenous and African mix

·            sixth category – indigenous and other (people in between)

HW#11 - Plague of Ants - de Las Casas Summary

Read pgs. 35-38 in our Latin American Short Stories book and summarize De Las Casas "Plague of Ants" story.  What do the ants represent?  Discuss the meanings of his use of symbols.

How can we create our own history?

HW #10: In a 2-3 page paper, write YOUR OWN account of the Spanish encounter with the Native population in Latin America. 
1) Read the sections a) "Taino Descriptions" and b) "Columbus and his Trajectory" from the article A Note on Tainos: Whither Progress? by Jose Barreiro.

2) As historical background, refer to writings from a) Jose Barreiro, b) Christopher Columbus, c) Bartolome De Las Casas and d) Eduardo Galeano.

3) Some ideas: Write from the perspective of one a chief (cacique), or from the perspective of a father, mother, a child, or from various people.  Describe your home, your lifestyle, your expectations, your emotions before and after the encounter takes place.

Be historical and be creative!

How can history be changed?

HW #9: Read four of Christopher Columbus' diaries from Zinn's "Voices."  How did he perceive natives? What were his intentions? In what tone did he write his accounts?

Aztec Perceptions

HW #8-What is your perception on Aztec culture?  An Empire that was the most advanced in the Americas or A political system built on systematic terror tactics and brutality? OR Both? OR Neither?