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Lieutenant Nun and the Casta Paintings
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Lieutenant NunI found the text on Catalina de Erauso to be quite interesting. For not only does it show us the viewpoint of a male soldier but a male soldier who is actually a woman. Starting as a nun Catalina already had a unique experience as most wo... read full post >>
Casta Paintings and Lieutenant Nun
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The Casta paintings represented a wide array of racial mixtures derived from the offspring of unions between Spaniards and Indians-mestizos, Blacks-mulattos, and Blacks and Indians-zambos. These paintings received numerous documented critiques throughout centuries. It appears that in the earlier centuries, the paintings were vastly criticized. Particularly in 1746, Dr. Andres Arce y Miranda found that […] read full post >>
The Colonial Experience
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After reading both readings, I was a bit confused about the Catholic religion, the dominant religion in Europe. On one hand in the 18th century, Casta Painting were considered to be offending according to Andrés Arce y Miranda as they would confirm creole inferiority assumptions. However, in the 17th century, gender switching was even exempted […] read full post >>
Pure Race and Backwardness in the Casta Paintings
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Another conception one can draw from the paintings is that of backwardness. One of the titles of the casta series is "salta atrás", meaning "a jump backwards". Backwardness implies that the group being described is stuck in the past, they aren't "progressing" with the civilized, but rather are living like barbarians. We hear Columbus address the indigenous along these lines. He references their absence of religion, their indifference to gold, and associates their nakedness to a new born child. The latter implies that their nakedness reminded him of a state of infancy. We regard children below the age of 18 as "little people". They are human, however they are not fully human. Humans acquire their full personhood when they reach the age of maturity, 18. The same logic is used with regards to the indigenous. Their "barbaric" way of life justifies their dehumanization. And thus they are not seen as equals in the eyes of Columbus and Spaniards alike.
It is interesting to see how these notions of purity and the civilized versus the barbaric continue to be used as tools to dehumanize and have been internalized today. Terms such as "uncivilized", "backwards", "barbaric", "them", "other" can be heard among the discourse revolving around the war on terror. The narratives that accompany them paint Muslims and the Middle East as an unknown religion and place that does not require our understanding because we consider ourselves to be more "progressive". In putting distance between us and them, makes them easier to dehumanize, stereotype, Other, and defeat.
read full post >>Pure Race and Backwardness in the Casta Paintings
Posted by: feedwordpress
Another conception one can draw from the paintings is that of backwardness. One of the titles of the casta series is "salta atrás", meaning "a jump backwards". Backwardness implies that the group being described is stuck in the past, they aren't "progressing" with the civilized, but rather are living like barbarians. We hear Columbus address the indigenous along these lines. He references their absence of religion, their indifference to gold, and associates their nakedness to a new born child. The latter implies that their nakedness reminded him of a state of infancy. We regard children below the age of 18 as "little people". They are human, however they are not fully human. Humans acquire their full personhood when they reach the age of maturity, 18. The same logic is used with regards to the indigenous. Their "barbaric" way of life justifies their dehumanization. And thus they are not seen as equals in the eyes of Columbus and Spaniards alike.
It is interesting to see how these notions of purity and the civilized versus the barbaric continue to be used as tools to dehumanize and have been internalized today. Terms such as "uncivilized", "backwards", "barbaric", "them", "other" can be heard among the discourse revolving around the war on terror. The narratives that accompany them paint Muslims and the Middle East as an unknown religion and place that does not require our understanding because we consider ourselves to be more "progressive". In putting distance between us and them, makes them easier to dehumanize, stereotype, Other, and defeat.
read full post >>Christopher Columbus & his expedition
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Christopher Columbus portrays himself throughout the Journal as an optimistic and ambitious man in seek of the Island of Samoet, where the “Indians” claim the gold is at. His whole journey sole-purpose relies on finding the gold and the Great Khan. However, he is misled throughout his whole journey due to the lack of knowledge about the tribe´s he comes across, the geography of the various locations he travels through, and the cultural barriers that exist between them; such as language and cultural beliefs. Columbus can also be interpreted as...read more read full post >>
Introduction
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Hey everyone, My name is Mackenzie Baxter. Im a second year UBC student & I am planning to major in Human Geography. I was born in Australia, and had the privilege to live in Peru for the majority of my life. I believe this course will be a very interesting one, as Latin America has experienced a great amount of ordeals, from the invasion of the spanish to its effects on the local people in a religious, cultural and ideological aspect. I hope to learn alot from this course, and improve my knowledge about...read more read full post >>
Latin American Studies – Krista Anderson 2014-09-10 01:57:00
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-Week 2 Readings-
It was very fascinating to read primary sources from both a Spanish and Native perspective upon the arrival of the European people in Latin America. Although written a couple centuries apart, the two texts focus on similar interactions between the groups that occurred during the time of Spanish conquest.
Columbus's journal focused on reassuring the king and queen that they would gain their worth in funding his expedition. He promises gold, silver, extraordinary sights and land, and potential Christian converts. In order to maintain order within his crew and avoid being seen as a failure, he uses signs and over-exaggerated positive word choice to glorify his goals and actions.
The words from Guama Poma on the other hand, bring to light the true violence and miscommunication that occurred between the two cultures. It highlights several deaths and the greed of the Spanish which is overlooked in Columbus's writing.
Week 2: Columbus & Poma
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From what I can remember of learning about Columbus in elementary school, I’ve been taught that he is a man who should be revered and greatly honored. I live in the United States, where Columbus Day is even celebrated as a federal holiday! I used to think it was a pretty well deserved holiday for someone […] read full post >>
Latin American Studies – Krista Anderson 2014-09-09 21:34:00
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Introduction
Hi, my name is Krista. I am originally from Northern California. I started my studies in Geography at Arizona State University, then took a year to travel and perform music, and next transferred here to UBC where I study Social Sciences. I love to travel and learn about new cultures through history, language, music, and art. I have never been to Latin America, but want to learn more about the region's history and visit there someday in the future.
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