The Friar and the Maya
Diego de Landa and the Account of the Things of Yucatan
foreword by Kevin Terraciano
Copublished with the Institute for Mesoamerican Studies, University at Albany
IMS Studies on Culture and Society series
“In the wake of its quincentennial, the Spanish invasion of Mexico has become a dynamic and rapidly evolving field of study—of which this volume is resounding proof. The dozen skilled scholars of Beyond Cortés and Montezuma move beyond old assumptions and tropes to offer lively debate and thoughtful analysis of key aspects of this pivotal moment in world history.”
—Matthew Restall, author of Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest and When Montezuma Met Cortés
“Beyond Cortés and Montezuma showcases some of the most recent historical work on the ‘Spanish conquest of Mexico.’ The authors continue to dismantle the dishearteningly sturdy narratives that erase, romanticize, or distort both Mesoamerican and European histories of this confrontational moment. In the process, they ably demonstrate that the research possibilities opened by the New Conquest History are far from exhausted.”
—Laura Matthew, Marquette University
Beyond Cortés and Montezuma examines both European and Nahuatl texts and images that shed light on the complex narrative of contact and the ensuing conflict, negotiation, and cooperation that continued well after the colonial period.
A diverse group of scholars from Europe, Mexico, and the US with varied methodological backgrounds—linguistics, history, art history, and cultural studies—query the “conquest,” or rather conquista, of Mexico through a series of case studies that interrogate how historians, especially in Europe, Mexico, and the US, understand and interact with this concept. They consider the language used to encapsulate the event in Nahuatl documents from the colonial period, how the Spanish veterans led the transition to settlement in taking land for themselves, and the legacy of the conquista in discrimination against Tlaxcallans in modern Mexico.
Beyond Cortés and Montezuma is a compilation of nuanced reflections on the language, narratives, and memories of the conquista that balances the crimes of Spanish colonialism and asymmetries of power that existed within early New Spain with the abilities of Native peoples to resist, negotiate, and survive.
Contributors: María Castañeda de la Paz, Lori Boornazian Diel, Erika Escutia, Patrick Hajovsky, Robert Haskett, Julia Madajczak, Justyna Olko, Miguel Pastrana Flores, Stephanie Wood
