Chapter 11
Worldviews in Conflict
“How does cultural contact
between two societies affect
their identity and worldview?”
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Please define the following terms:
Ideology
Catastrophe
Conquest
Franciscan order
educated guess
Chalice
Ecomienda
Biodiversity
Mestuzo
Viceroy
Section 11.1 – Changing a
Worldview
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Think it through read page 238:
What world event in your own time do you
think had a similarly far-reaching effect on
people’s worldview? Be prepared to defend
your choice.
Figure 11-2: How might applying Williams’
thoughts change how people treat the
planet and how the world’s nations interact?
They might see the need to work together for
the sake of the future of the world. They might
have greater respect for the world and the
people on it.
Exploring Sources Read Page
240:
- Why were these actions (destroying temples and burning
codices) necessary from the Franciscan perspective?
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The Franciscans probably felt that leaving the
symbols, temples, and relics of the old religion would
make it too easy for the people to return to it. They
felt their best chance of successfully converting the
Aztecs to Christianity was to erase reminders of the
old religion.
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In Chapter 7 and 8 you read how important religion
was to the Aztecs. How might the destruction of their
temples affect their sense of identity?
It would be another sign that their religion is failing.
To see a nation’s religion fail at a key moment in that
nation’s history and then to be forced to adopt
another religion would certainly have affected the
Aztec’s identity.
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Zoom in: read page 241
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Why do you think the museum in Sweden wanted
to display the pole?
To teach visitors about the culture and beliefs of
First Nations people of British Columbia.
Compare the perspectives of First Nations people
on objects such as the totem pole and those of
non-First Nation people.
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objects are important spiritual and
religious objects to First Nations peoples. NonFirst Nations people might see them as objects
of interest and beauty.
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Think it through read page 242: What effect would
such radical changes to their economic system
have on the Aztecs’ sense of identity, the way
they thought of themselves, and their position in
the world?
The destruction of the Aztec economy would
have dealt a heavy blow to the Aztec worldview,
especially given that along with that destruction
came the imprisonment of the Emperor, military
losses, and all the other societal changes brought
about by the conquistadors.
Figure 11-7: What effect did this arrangement
have on the Aztecs’ ability to create wealth for
themselves?
They could not create wealth for themselves. They
were only allowed enough to meet their basic
needs and to survive.
Section 11.2 – A New
Worldview Emerges
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Figure 11-11: How do Cortes’s policies affect the
population of Mexico today?
By giving the Spanish soldiers land grants and getting
them to marry he established an ongoing line of
Spanish ethnicity in Mexico. Today this mixed-race
people, the Mestizos, form the largest part of
Mexico’s population.
Figure 11-12: Based on what you know about Cortes,
make an educated guess about his reaction to
having his power undermined.
He was probably very annoyed. He would have
taken it very personally. He would have felt that Spain
owed him more for all that he had done for her.
Voices:
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: On Independence read page 251: How does the
artist show that all three groups-Indigenous, Mestizos
and Creoles cooperated to win Mexico’s
independence from Spain?
All three groups are represented in the painting. They
all worked together on this common goal.
Figure 11-17: What parts of Diego’s mural remind you
of his image of the Aztecs? Why?
The similarities are the costumes and use of popular
characters. His paintings depict what society was
like.
http://current.com/groups/culture/89014824_dia-delos-muertos-day-of-the-dead-the-road-tomictlan.htm
Zoom In: The Day of the Dead (Page 252)
Note how the Aztec practices Sahagun is describing
resemble the Day of the Dead ceremonies. What
does the survival of these traditions tell you about the
worldview of Mexico today?
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it through: page 254. Why do you
think Frida Kahlo dressed the way she did?
 She wanted to show that she was
sympathetic to their cause. She was
speaking out against the privileged in her
society.
 What factors influence the way you
dress?