Aztec Poetry
Things to Consider:
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View of Gods
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Versions of Creation (and Relation to Culture)
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Comparison with Greek, Egyptian, and African Poetry
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Issues of gender with gods/goddesses
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Useful Links:
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An Aztec Bestiary
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Aztec Mythology
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Pronunciation of Aztec Names
** Homework Questions **
585:
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What were ancient America's Three Greatest Civilizations?
590:
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What was one of the first official acts of the Aztecs after establishing
an independent state in 1428?
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What happened to most of the native Aztec texts after the Spanish Conquest?
Why?
595:
"Beginning and End"
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How does the Giver of Life "write" with flowers (1-2)?
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How is earth a "painting" (8)?
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What does "black ink" represent (10)? How does this subject compare
to earlier treatments of divine destruction?
596:
"Song of Tlaltecatzin, Cuauchinanco"
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Why is the speaker guarding the mountain? What does the mountain
represent?
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Why must there be a "defleshing" (25)?
598:
"Song of Springtime"
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Explain: "Your heart is a book of paintings, / you have come to
sing" (20-21). Who is "you"?
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What does the red bird represent?
Other Discussion Questions:
586:
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What was the Wacah Chan?
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How did Aztec blood sacrifices differ from Mayan?
587:
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What is quipu?
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Who conquered the Incas in 1532?
593:
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What crucial role did Pre-Columbian poetry serve? Compare with African
Oral Poetry.
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Why did the poet have an elevated role in society? How does this figure
compare to the African griot?
594:
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What do flower and song represent in Aztec poetry?
"Song of Tlaltecatzin, Cuauchinanco"
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Who is Tlaltecatzin?
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What is the "flowering chocolate drink" (10)?
599:
"Song of Macuilxochitl"
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Who is Macuilxochitl?
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Who is Lord Axayacatl? Itzcoatl?
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What is the relationship between Macuilxochitl and Axayacatl?
600:
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Why do "his women" make supplication for the Otomi?
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