Essay On La Otra Conquista

Restall, Matthew. Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc., 2003

The Aztec people felt very strong about their beliefs in gods and superstitions. Montecuhzoma the independent ruler of the Aztec empire swayed his people to believe in the power of gods and idols and live a spiritual life. This ultimately was a turning point for the Aztecs and is where the Spanish once again gained advantage over the Aztecs. While the Aztecs were faithful to their beliefs it made them powerless an easy take down. Superstitions played a huge factor in the Aztecs first encounter with the Spanish people. In 1519 when the Aztec people saw sight of something coming from a distance in the water, they believed it was Quetzalcoatl (Leon-Portilla, 18). Quetzalcoatl was a legend to them that promised to come back. Montecuhzoma misread the situation and sent messages and gifts in hopes that it sent a gesture to welcome the gods onto their land. This was a big mistake that Motecuhzoma made by opening his arms to the Spanish people upon their first encounter together (Leon-Portilla, 63). This is just one case where the Aztec people poorly used their judgement. However, Motecuhzoma did come to realize the behavior of the Spaniards or “Gods”. When the Spaniards held the gold given by the Aztecs their greed became noticed in the eyes of the Aztecs. The Natives described them as monkeys. They soon caught on that the Spaniards were not gods and heroes and more so barbarians

It is crucial to focus on translators when it comes to understanding the conquest of Mexico. It shows how

The author argues that the Spanish were completely at fault for the total destruction of the Aztec Empire. In Broken spears, the author explains how many factors other than Spanish power contributed to the downfall of the Aztecs. Not only did the Spanish have many advantages over the Aztecs, but also they also exploited them and took advantage of the cultural difference. The main key aspects to the Spanish victory, is that the Spanish were viewed as gods at first because of their appearance, the Aztecs welcomed the Spanish with gifts and festivities, which showed the Spanish had total control of people. The Aztecs also held a ritual ceremony for the arrival of the “god” that included a human

The reading “An Aztec account of the Spanish Conquest” is mainly about a story when Hernan Cortes came for the first time at Tenochtitlan (nowadays Mexico City). The Aztecs believes that when Hernan Cortes arrive they believe the he was Quetzalcoatl, the main god in the Aztec culture. Cortes were friendly invite to the Aztec city as the most important guest, the Aztec people made a big party to celebrate the return of their god, but the Aztec people did not know Cortes intentions of conquer the empire. Later the Aztecs were betrayed by Hernan Cortes. Cortes’s army began to attack the city and at the end they take over the city.

For decades, the history of Latin America has been shrouded in a cover of Spanish glory and myth that misleads and complicates the views of historians everywhere. Myths such as the relationship between natives and conquistadors, and the individuality of the conquistadors themselves stand as only a few examples of how this history may have become broken and distorted. However, in Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest Matthew Restall goes to great lengths to dispel these myths and provide a more accurate history of Latin American, in a readable and enjoyable book.

La Otra Conquista was set in 1520 in colonial Latin America. The story focuses on Topiltzin, a young Aztec scribe and son of Moctezuma and his struggle with religion during the conquest. A Spanish Friar named Diego makes it his mission to convert Topiltzin into civilised Christianity. Hernan Cortes who is the voice of power in Tenochtitlan grants Friar Diego his wish to take Topiltzin, who is now called Tomas by the Spanish, to the mission. Topiltzin must learn how to navigate this new world while still holding to his own culture. Struggling against both spiritual and personal difficulties, Topiltzin tries to show Friar Diego how similar Christian beliefs are to the Aztec beliefs. Overall, the film stays fairly true to history with some exceptions that director used to move the storyline forward. Religion played a key role in the film as it did in the conquest itself. The Spanish conquistadors and friars were there for converting the Aztec to Christianity through whatever means necessary. Whereas the Native Americans were trying to hold onto their beliefs and culture throughout the horrific takeover. In order to communicate their wishes, the Spanish needed someone who could translate so they taught Native Americans to speak Spanish who could then communicate into the tribal language. The most famous of these was La Malinche, who is referenced in the film although at this time is her replacement, Dona Isabel or Tecuichpo. The film is fairly accurate to how this would have looked historically. The conquistadors are appropriately harsh, cruel and violent. At any moment trying to exert their power over the Native Americans and quick to subdue. In summary, La Otra Conquista was a fairly historically accurate film that portrayed the tension and violence of the time.

The legacy and impact of the Spanish conquest is continually discussed and analyzed. The struggle in finding native identities while also acknowledging Spanish heritage is a continuing process in Latin America. Modern film and art, such as Salvador Carrasco’s La Otra Conquista and Diego Rivera’s mural the arrival of Cortés speak about the conquest and its effects on Mexico identity. The film challenges myths about the conquest by arguing against the greatness of Cortés, showing power in native agency, and Spanish dependency on interpreters. The mural upholds myths of the conquest like the black legend, minimizes

“The Broken Spears” is a collection of many accounts of the destruction of Mexico by

     The history of the Western hemisphere is full of war and conquest. One of the most significant and defining of those conquests is the downfall of the Mexica/Aztec Empire. While there are many other events to choose from, this one stands out since it was one over one of the largest empires in Central America. It is also important to look at because of the immense cultural impact it had. The story of this takeover reads like a movie script, a small band of Spaniards single handedly takes down the most powerful empire in Central America. It was an epic battle, which unfortunately led to the destruction of a magnificent culture. As in any major historical event there are many underlying themes and storylines

Any student of history has come to recognize the fact that history is written by the victor and in lieu of this, research becomes essential to uncover where the truth lies. The True History of the Conquest of New Spain, so ironically named, is a personal account for historical events leading up to the conquest of New Spain, formerly known as the City of Mexico. The author, Bernal Diaz, was a soldier of the conquering army who composed the document well after the events took place sometime between 1552 and 1557. Though the document did provide insight in regards to the victor’s perspective, it also served as a tool to rewrite the account of the conquered people.

     In 1519 Hernán Cortés led a couple hundred other Spaniards inland to the impressive Empire of the Mexica ruled by the Great Montezuma. Many historians today tell how quickly and almost effortlessly these Spaniards conquered the Empire. They paint an image of ignorant, helpless Indians practically giving up their land out of fear of this group because certainly the Spaniards must be gods since they have powerful weapons and strange animals. We know neither Cortés nor any of his men were gods, of course, but what was it that allowed Cortés to prevail over the inhabitants of the land?

Maybe too much credit is given to Cortés as one of the greatest Spanish conquerors who developed effective strategy to defeat the Aztecs. Restall see this as somewhat of a myth accounting for the failure of historians to look at history before the 1519 (Restall, 19). Restall says “However, too often, without any direct evidence, the actions of Conquistadors after the 1519– 21 invasion of Mexico are taken as deliberately imitating Cortés, while pre-1519 patterns are ignored.” Whatever the case for whom should be given the credit for the strategy used to defeat the Aztecs; one must admit Cortés was able the win the trust of the people and use the Aztecs’ fear of him to control their empire. Cortés harbored fear of his own. Elliott says, “Cortés felt some uneasiness, when he reflected that it was in the power of the Indians, at any time, to cut off his communications with the surrounding country, and hold him a prisoner in the capital.” The Omens of the Aztecs betrayed them and caused them to see the arriving settlers as gods. They were not prepared to defend themselves against the advanced weapons of the Spanish. Much like the Aztecs, the Mayans faced hard times at the hands of the Spanish conquerors, but their defeat came much easier to the Spanish.

The film The Other Conquest is a drama about the aftermath of the 1520’s Spanish Conquest of Mexico told from the perspective of the indigenous Aztec people. It explores social, religious, and psychological changes that brought the historical process of colonization that both defined the South American continent and highly reminds us of today’s neocolonialism.

If religion was a guiding principle in the lives of the conquerors, as Todorov points out, so too was it for the conquered, especially in the case of the Aztecs. Baffled by the paradox of the famous story concerning Cortes and his several hundred Conquistador's ability to defeat the entire Aztec empire, which numbered at least several million, Todorov reveals that it was primarily due to Montezuma's belief that Cortes and his party were Gods, which led to his reluctance to raise an army in opposition.