First published 2010
Inga Clendinnen examines the cultural mechanisms that prepared Aztec warriors for combat in the militaristic society of Tenochtitlán. She traces the experiences that shaped young fighters to accept their obligations to their community and the cosmic forces governing their world. The collection moves beyond Aztec warfare to investigate how Yucatec Maya populations maintained their cultural identity under Spanish rule. Clendinnen analyzes the transformation of rigid ideologies when transplanted to unfamiliar contexts and examines the diverse religious practices developed by conquered peoples in sixteenth-century Mexico. The final essay shifts to colonial Australia, where Clendinnen studies George Augustus Robinson's 1841 expedition journal. Robinson served as Protector of Aborigines in the Port Philip District, and his records provide insight into early colonial encounters. The book demonstrates how societies adapt their values and practices when confronted with conquest, colonization, and cultural disruption across different continents and centuries.
Genres: history, anthropology, non-fiction, military-history, academic, cultural-studies
Vibes: academic, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: conquest-and-colonization, cultural-disruption
Setting: Tenochtitlán, Yucatec Maya, Mexico, Australia, Port Philip District
Period: 16th Century, 19th Century
224 pages · Paperback · Cambridge University Press