Furthermore, he describes so many dances involving human sacrifice. He notes how some Spanish chroniclers lamented the massacre of the Aztec people and others romanticized Cortès’ involvement as a rescuer. All were deliberately killed by the Spanish because they thought it was a ruse to overthrow them. For example, He writes of the Noche Triste in which thousands of unarmed Aztecs were massacred by the Spanish conquistadors as they danced to celebrate the Toxcatl ceremony. Yet, what is remarkable to me are the ways in which Scolieri notes that the Spaniards justified the conquest of Mexico by referencing Aztec dancing. Scolieri (2013), I vividly imagine the Aztecs dancing for their social and religious ceremonies. As I read through the book Dancing in the New World: Aztecs, Spaniards, and the Choreography of Conquest by Paul A.

Aztec Dancing Used to Justify the Conquest They must be conquered, guided, and converted to Christianity.Ģ. Think about it, if you position the Aztecs as simple minded people who believe that the Spaniards are gods, then these are people who need the guidance and help of the Spanish.

In fact, this idea surfaced in a poem written by a Spaniard in 1798 and continued from there (Restall 43-44). Restall states that Cortès never mentions in any of his writings that the Aztecs thought of him as Quetzalcoatl. Matthew Restall in When Moctezuma Met Cortès (2018) argues that this a myth designed to justify the conquest of the Aztec people. When I was growing up, I remember learning in my history class that part of the reason that Cortès was able to defeat the Aztecs is that they thought of him as the god Quetzalcoatl who was supposed to return to rule them.

The Aztecs Never Thought of Cortès as a God.

Here are a few new ideas that I find fascinating. Scholars still debate among each other, offer up different perspectives, and discover new finding even in the 21 st century. Our understanding about Aztec people and their dancing is constantly changing. When I was growing up, I was taught to think of history as searching for the “truth.” Now, I know that history is more like listening to different perspectives-not necessarily finding the “truth” as in this case with my two friends arguing with each other. Believe it or not, our ideas about history are always changing. Well, this reminds me of how we think of history. Each one told me their side of the story.Īll I could do was sit and listen to them tell me their perspectives on what One time my two dear friends fought with each other.

Ancient aztec glyphs