RUNNING HEAD: THE AZTECS: A REVIEW OF LITERATURE

The Aztecs: A Review of Literature

Armando Frausto
The University of Texas at El Paso
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Abstract

Ancient Empires have always had a level of romanticism attached to them, and the Aztec

Empire is no different. For hundreds of years people have imagined what that Empire must

have looked like before its destruction, and what it must have been like to live inside the walls of

Tenochtitlan. There are people who view the reign of the Aztec Empire with a great sense of

pride, however, history hasnt given the Aztecs a fair depiction. Instead history has shed a

negative light on this great civilization, and attached a stigma of European superiority and native

ignorance to the Aztecs. With proper research, the bias that has been placed on the Aztecs can be

lifted, and all people will be able to appreciate the Aztec Empire for the great industrial

civilization that it was.

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The Aztecs: A Review of Literature

The history of the Aztec Empire and its eventual fall to the Spaniards has been taught

throughout history from a European point of view. This brings a question to mind: Has this one-

sided version of history effected the way people perceive the Aztec Empire? Many historians

and researchers have embarked to discover what Aztec culture was like, what their customs

where, and if they were in fact an unintelligent group of people that were outsmarted by the

Spaniards. To fully understand the Aztecs these four questions need to answered:

1. What was life like for the Aztecs before Hernan Cortes conquered their Empire?
2. What motivated Hernan Cortes to conquer Mexico?
3. How did Hernan Cortes conquer the Aztec Empire, considering the Aztecs large

numbers and reputation as warriors?

4. What are the lasting effects Cortess conquest had on the Aztecs?

This literature review will: provide information on whether or not people have been influenced to

think of the Aztecs in a negative way, as well as provide information as to the Aztecs actual ways

of life before, during, and after the Spanish conquest.

What was life like for the Aztecs before Hernan Cortes conquered their empire?
The Aztecs had a very complex government, made up of a confederation of many

different city-states who all paid tribute to one emperor. This Empire was so vast in the number

of city-states it occupied, that it reached most of central Mexico and spread south all the way to

what is now Guatemala (Hassig, 2007). Each city-state when conquered by the Aztecs could

keep its original king in power if he agreed to pay tribute to the Aztec Emperor; because of this

each city-state was controlled by a different set of laws according to what the king demanded of
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his people, with a few exceptions (Smith, 2005). This civilization was made up of two social

classes, the nobility who was known as the pipitin and the commoners called the

macehualtin. The nobility was allowed more freedoms and a different standard of living, the

biggest difference between these two social classes was their marriage arrangements; the nobility

were polygamists and the men were allowed to marry up to twenty wives, while the commoners

where forced to practice monogamy (Hofstadter, 2005). Now there is some disparity between

Hofstadter and John M. D. Pohl in his article AZTECS; A NEW PERSPECTIVE regarding the

commoners way of life, Hofstadter makes the point that the commoners lived in small adobe

brick huts and where not allowed to display any form of wealth. On the other hand, Pohl argues

that commoners where relatively prosperous, because during excavations of Aztecs cities,

archeologists have come across some of the commoners homes, which were not only bigger than

what was previously believed but were also filled with decorative artifacts and jewelry (Pohl,

2002).

Aztecs had a deep appreciation for science, the arts, and strong religious beliefs. They

had a complicated calendar based on astrological knowledge that matched those of the

Europeans at the time. Dance was a very important part of Aztec culture, they saw this form of

expression not only as artistic but as an extended form of religion. Religion was probably the

most important part of Aztec life, because of its importance all children had to receive religious

education that was mandated by government law (Hofstadter, 2005). The Aztecs did not have a

written language, they did however have a very complicated form of picture writing that would

be very difficult to understand to the uninitiated (That fateful moment when two civilizations

came face to face, 1992).

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Aztec civilization is well known for its practice of slavery and human sacrifice, but less

known are the reasons why they engaged in these behaviors. We know slavery in the United

States as a brutal and inhuman act, taking someones freedom away is the worst thing that could

be done to a person. The Aztecs however had a different view of slavery, for the most part

slavery was voluntary and temporary. In Aztec culture a person would volunteer to slavery in

order to pay off a debt which they could not afford, a set amount of time would be agreed upon

and slave work would begin. But of all things the most important to mention is that, unlike

slavery in the rest of the world, Aztecs could not be born into slavery (Hofstadter, 2005). Human

sacrifice is another part of Aztec life that has been debated for many years, and still has people

arguing both sides. Hofstadter in his article THE AZTECS: BLOOD AND GLORY, says they

used sacrifice as a terroristic political tool to keep control of all its conquered city-states.

AZTECS: A NEW PERSPECTIVE by Pohl, describes sacrifice as no more brutal than what the

romans did in leading their slaves to the arena to be eaten by lions. Human sacrifice was a

religious practice by the Aztecs, they believed they needed to present their god with the hearts of

its enemies to keep him happy and allow them to continue to rule over his land (Pohl, 2002).

Probably the most progressive part on Aztec civilization wasnt their advanced

knowledge of astronomy, but instead was the fair and equal treatment of their women. Because

the women wove all the cloth needed by the entire empire, they were treated with respect (Smith,

2005). Women were treated with such respect that when a woman was in labor they were

considered warriors, and given the same level of adoration as any male warrior. It even went to

the extent that if a woman was to die during child labor, she would receive warriors honors and

she would be given a warriors funeral (Hofstadter, 2005). The Aztecs allowed for divorce in
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cases of domestic abuse, and in most circumstances women would be given the custody of her

children (Hofstadter, 2005).

What motivated Hernan Cortes to conquer Mexico?

Hernan Cortes came to the new world in pursuit of two things: gold and fame. Hernan

Cortes had already accumulated a small fortune during his time in Cuba making him relatively

wealthy. Because of his wealth and bravery, he was sent to the new unexplored land of Mexico

to seek trade, but not to conquest or to colonize the new land (That fateful moment when two

civilizations came face to face, 1992). The Emperor of Spain had declared that only twenty

percent of all gold and silver that was discovered in the new world was to be send back to Spain,

the rest would be kept by those who discovered it. Armed with this information Cortes ignored

his direct orders, and he along with his men decided they were willing to die if it meant giving

them the opportunity of becoming rich and famous (Anguinado, 2010). Anguinado writes of

Cortess deep religious beliefs, and speaks of Cortess third mission which was to convert all the

Indians to Catholicism. The letters Cortes wrote to the Emperor of Spain support this claim. In

his letters, Cortes discloses that every time he won a battle, he would give the Indians an

opportunity to pledge their allegiance to the Spanish crown, and agreed to spare their lives if they

converted to Catholicism and destroyed the statues of their false idols (Morris, 1962).

How did Hernan Cortes conquer the Aztec Empire, considering the Aztecs large numbers

and reputation as warriors?

Hernan Cortes was a very bright individual, but his brains alone werent enough to

overtake the Aztecs, he had many things go his way during his conquest. The first and probably

the smartest thing he did was to get translators; he famously captured a woman known as La
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Malinche who translated the Aztecs language of Nahuatl into Spanish. She was as much a key to

his success as anything else (Anguiano, 2010). The Aztec Empire was led by Emperor

Moctezuma, a man of great power and ruler of many city-states. In the early stages of his

mission Cortes discovered that the Aztec Empire was divided, and actually had city-states who

were under Aztec rule by means of force. Cortes used this new information and quickly took

advantage of it, by defending a tribe of Indians against a group of Aztec messengers he gained

their trust, and they pledged their allegiance to help him overthrow Moctezuma and his Empire

(That fateful moment when two civilizations came face to face, 1992). On his route to

Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztec Empire he encountered many other city-states who were

tired of paying tribute to the Aztecs, they also pledged their allegiance to Cortes and followed

him on his quest (Anguiano, 2010). One of the main reasons Cortes was successful in

convincing other city-states to join him, was his use of weapons. Cortes and his men would put

on shows for the Indians so they could see how great and deadly their weapons were, and by

displaying their mastery of horse riding, animals the Indians had never seen before (That fateful

moment when two civilizations came face to face, 1992).

Cortes had a brilliant military mind, but his arrogance almost cost him total failure in his

mission. He gained the trust of many city-states, but the tribe of the Tlaxcaltecs proved different.

Cortes was humiliated by the Tlaxcaltecs and nearly killed, even with the use of his great

weaponry he was at the verge of losing, one of the main reasons he was not defeated sooner was

that Indians would rarely kill their enemies, but would rather capture them and use them as a

sacrifice for their gods. If not for the Tlaxcaltecs stopping the attack on him and his men, we

would have a much different version of history in our textbooks. The Tlaxcaltecs were not a
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city-state but rather enemies of the Aztecs, and they felt joining forces with Cortes and using his

weapons along with their army, they could finally overthrow the Aztec Empire (Hassig, 2007)

The conquest of the Aztec Empire was due to the great number of alliances Cortes made

on his way to Tenochtitlan. The Tlaxcaltecs led the charge on the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan,

the Spaniards were only one percent of the military forces that waged war on the Aztec capital

(Hassig, 2007). Cortes and his men made up 250 of the 200,000 men that attacked the Aztec

capital, using the Spaniards superior weaponry along with the fighting force of the Tlaxcaltecs is

how the Aztec were defeated (Pohl, 2002). Hassig in his article HOW CORTES WON MEXICO

BY LOSING, expresses a sentiment that is echoed by many researchers and historians, and its

that the victory over the Aztecs that Cortes has been so historically given credit for, should be

given to the Tlaxcaltec people.

There was also one other deciding factor that played a huge part in the Aztecs demise,

and it was decease; particularly smallpox and typhus that spread rapidly and viciously among the

natives. As many as seventy-five percent of all Aztecs died due to smallpox and typhus (Pohl,

2002). If not for all the deaths that came from decease it is believed the Aztecs would have

prevailed, even with the Tlaxcaltec people helping the Spaniards (That fateful moment when two

civilizations came face to face, 1992). With only twenty-five percent of their people fighting, it

still took Cortes and his allies three months to finally overtake the city of Tenochtitlan and

receive the Aztecs surrender (Pohl, 2002)

What are the lasting effects Cortess conquest had on the Aztecs?

The biggest problem we face in researching the Aztecs, is that most of their temples, land,

and artifacts have been destroyed or altered by the Spaniards who conquered them. The Aztec
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capital of Tenochtitlan is described to have been a beautiful city that sat in the middle of a lake,

unfortunately the only images we have of this once great city are the ones that were sketched out

by the Spaniards during their conquest (Smith, 2005). Tenochtitlan was left in ruins after the

Spanish conquered it, and was eventually buried by the Spaniards underneath what is now

Mexico City, the capital of Mexico. This was done in an effort to show Spanish superiority and

remove all memories of the once great Aztec capital (Pohl, 2002).

All knowledge we have of the Aztecs comes from distant descendants, and from Spanish

records. The reason we have very little knowledge about the Aztecs is simply because there

arent any left. It is believed mass genocide along with a large smallpox outbreak, is what was

responsible for taking the population of the Aztec Empire from twenty-five million to under one

million (That fateful moment when two civilizations came face to face, 1992).

The Spanish narrative, that depicts the Aztecs as nothing more than savages tricked out of

their gold and land by the much smarter Spaniards, is the same one most of us were taught

throughout grade school. I directed a survey of fifty random people in Tobin Park located in

North East El Paso on Saturday, March 4th 2017 to find out what the general publics feelings

were on the Aztecs. To make sure that the survey would provide accurate results, none of those

surveyed had any form of college education, and they ranged in ages from seven to sixty-five.

Each person was asked two questions. Question one was Do you believe the Aztecs were

tricked out of their gold and land by the Spaniards? and question two asked, Would you

consider the Aztecs to be savages?. The results of the survey were as follows.
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Would you consider the Aztecs to be Savages?

8%

Yes
No

92%

Do you believe the Aztecs were tricked out of their land and gold by the Spaniards?

14%
Yes
No

86%

As can be seen by the results, the answer to question one, Do you believe the Aztecs were

tricked out of their land and gold by the Spaniards?, eighty-six percent of those surveyed

answered yes, thats forty-three out of fifty. Many of those who answered yes went as far as to

tell me that the Aztecs were dumb, because Hernan Cortes made them trade all their gold for

little mirrors. When those same people were questioned as to how they came about getting this
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information, the most popular answer was Thats what they taught us in school. Question two,

Would you consider the Aztecs to be savages?, offered similar results with ninety-two percent

of those surveyed answering yes, again thats forty-six out of fifty-people surveyed. The

majority of those who answered yes said they did so because of the Aztec practice of human

sacrifice. I understood that people had much more to say about this topic than just yes or no, so

it was important to refine the research questions to further understand what the public really felt

about the Aztecs. The second survey once again targeted the same demographic and included the

same number of people as the first, the only differences were the age range, the second was from

11 to 54 years of age, and the location, it took place in Fox Plaza Shopping Center in Central El

Paso on Saturday, March 18th 2017. The two new questions were; Which answer choice best

fits the description of the Aztec Empire in your mind? and, Would you be proud if you

discovered that you were a direct descendant of the Aztecs? The answers appear on the next

page, and its important to note, findings in both surveys are inconclusive because of the small

amount of people who participated in the survey. However, those who did participate answered

in a way that really left the door open for many more questions to be answered by future

researchers, for example. Does level of education effect the way people feel about the Aztecs?

Do millennials and baby boomers believe the same version of history when it comes to the Aztec

conquest?
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Which answer choice best fits the description of the Aztec Empire in your mind?

A tribe of savages/killers A tribe of weak people

A tribe of great people ; 24%

A tribe of intellegent, caring people ; 4%

A tribe of weak people ; 2%
A tribe of savages/killers ; 70%
A tribe of intellegent, caring people A tribe of great people

Would you be pround if you discovered that you were a direct descendant of the Aztecs?

No I would be ashamed ; 6%
Dont care; 2% Absolutely
Maybe ; 8% Maybe
Dont care
No I would be ashamed
Absolutely ; 84%

The results of these questions are contradictions, in question one seventy percent of

people answered they believed the Aztecs to be a tribe of savages and killers, but in question two

eighty four percent answered they would absolutely be proud if they were direct descendants of

the Aztecs. That indicates a majority of the people surveyed would be proud to be in a tribe of
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what they consider to be savages and killers, but again it allows us to understand the topic of the

Aztecs and Hernan Cortez is one that still needs further research.

Conclusion

The story of the Aztecs has been altered to fit a narrative that isnt completely accurate.

With the continued introduction of new research by historians, a better and more accurate

depiction of Aztec civilization is beginning to take shape, from the size of their Empire to the

level of industrialism, and even their fair and equal treatment of women, we begin to understand

them more with each coming year. The hope is that in the not too distant future, and with the

continued acquisition of unbiased information, the Aztecs will be given the proper place in

history they deserve.

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References

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Anguiano, A. A. (2010). Hernan Cortes, el conquistador. Contenido, Issue 562. 88-96.

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Hassig, R. (2007). HOW CORTES WON MEXICO BY LOSING. Military History, Vol.24. 60-
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Hofstadter, D. (2005). THE AZTECS: BLOOD AND GLORY. Smithsonian, Vol.35. 76-85.
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Morris, J.B. (1962). 5 letters of cortes to the emperor: Hernando Cortes. New York: Norton &
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Pohl, M.D. (2002). AZTECS; A NEW PERSPECTIVE. History Today, Vol.52, 10.
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American Special Edition, Vol.15. 90-97.
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