Spanish/Aztecs Worldviews in Conflict

Over the course of the next few weeks through an exploration of the conflict between the Spanish and Aztecs we will come to gain a greater appreciation of how intercultural contact affects the worldviews of societies.

Some of the specific questions we will address are as follows. To help you better understanding each of these questions, I have provided some sub questions along with a series of supporting resources. At the end of this unit there will be a in class assignment to evaluate your understanding of the questions below.


An outline of the 7 Elements of worldview
Clues for identifying worldview

• What were the key elements of the Aztec worldview prior to contact with the Spanish?
• We will explore this question through first examining primary source documents and images. 
• Additionally, we will use the documentary Engineering an Empire: The Aztecs to address this question. The series can be found in these links part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5. 

What key elements of Spain's worldview led to the desire to expand the Spanish Empire?

• We will explore this question through first examining primary source documents and images. 
• I will provide a powerpoint presentation on how trade shifted from east to west at this time. 

• How did the Aztec civilization's worldview influence the Aztecs' choices, decisions, and customs?
• To help us address this question we will view the BBC documentary Heroes and Villains: Hernan Cortez. This series can be found in these links: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6. Beware there are some graphic scenes in this documentary. Cortez's conquest of the Aztecs was violent and brutal.

• In what ways did factors such as technology and disease contribute to the dominance of the Spanish over the Aztec civilization?
• To explore this question we will use the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs to see if Jared Diamond's thesis holds true concerning how it was possible for a relatively small group of Europeans to conquer the "New World".  This series starts here: part 1.

• To what extent were the divergent worldviews of the Spanish and Aztecs factors in the dominance of one nation over another?
• To explore this question we will use our knowledge to date to consider the puzzle as to why Montezuma was so willing to let Cortez into Tenochtitlan and why the Aztecs allowed Montezuma to be held hostage within the main temple for so long without attacking the Spanish.