Precolonial and Colonial Latin America

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Pre-colonial and Colonial Latin America

• DP for LAS 800
• By A. Hira, SFU, Fall 2005

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Themes

• 1. No inherent diff b/t indigenous power and
  European power
• 2. Lack of rivalry stifles
• 3. Elite family system has deep roots
• 4. de las Casas does more harm than good but has
  no choice

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1. Indig Societies were no diff than European ones

• Large tributary empires Incas and Aztecs
• political hierarchy
• exploitation of other groups (neo-colonial)-
  ethnic diffs colonization of other areas moving
  grps
• emperor, language, religion
• use of coercion, fear to enforce
• provision of public goods- roads, etc
• Also worth noting- on the wane when Euros arrived
  effective control was quite limited as compared
  to Euro monarchs
• Story of La Malinche, beads are misleading yet
  represents a most impt. fatalism in LA/Euro
  thinking (ironically, same thing happens to Sp)
  why other areas eg ME,Asia dont see pre-col
  invasions in same way

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2. Lack of rivalry, threats, condemns you to
complacency

• Europe- lack of resources, fragmentation from end
  of Roman Empire creates rivalry
• underlying security threat and enough density to
  push concentration into nations (vs. geogy,
  density of Americas)
• lack of resources leads to search outwards, leads
  to devt of modern world ecoy
• need for security helps to push devt. of moden
  Ksm, warfare, technology, edu sys.s

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3. Elite Family Systems

• Colonial family sys tied in with colonial ecoy
  continues
• land ownership personalismo/honor control
  of resources
• LA industry is replete with family ownership
  patronage of state continues
• Of course, industrialization growth of state
  requires some middle class, but limited by lack
  of access volatility

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4. de las Casas

• Gaugin- nativism- innocence, purity, simplicity
• appeals to natural Christianity vs. barbarism of
  Euros destruction of Indies
• Not convincing if victory was harder fought?
• No other avenues to appeal for leniency? Lds. to
  forced conversion,
• justification on basis of religion
• Are we any diff. in the rhetoric of aid, poverty,
  Western-rights? Any way around otherness? Can
  we see others w/o trying to see ourselves?