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Kaytlinde12
SignatureAssignmentOutline.docx2
Signature Assignment Outline
Kaytlin De Los Santos
West Coast University
HUM 370
September 19, 2021
I. Introduction
The Aztec community remains one of the earliest to arrive on the shores of America. Their presence led to the shaking of the status quo. The Aztec community practiced a different culture than most of the other communities in America, and their assimilation and continued interactions with other communities through war and conquest continued to shape their culture and religion. It also, in a more significant way, impacted their economic way of life.
II. History
The Aztecs emerged in Mesoamerica–as the south-central area of pre-Columbian Mexico was recognized in the early thirteenth century. Their arrival occurred after the Toltecs, the formerly dominating Mesoamerican civilization, fell or may be aided in the collapse of the Toltecs. The Aztecs arrived in the Valley of Mexico as nomadic wanderers around 1300 A.D (History.com Editors, 2021). They arrived in the region north of the California Gulf. The Aztecs used armed conquests to expand their reign and kept it running by levying taxes on conquered areas. Every 80 days, the Aztecs demanded fresh slaves to pay tribute to Tenochtitlan. The Aztec civilization was a maze of intricacies. Between the nobles and the ordinary people, there was a social divide.
III. Cultural context
a) Represented in the United States
1) The Aztecs were foreigners to the Valley of Mexico in Mexico. During the first migration, people lived as far north as the Valley of Mexico in South America and Central America. The second migration began approximately 12,000 BCE when the glaciers in northern North America began to melt. The Aztec community is credited as the genesis of the current populations of Canada and the United States.
2) The Aztec’s arrival to the shows of America continued to challenge other communities through war fairs and cultural activities. In their dominant period, the Aztec community assimilated most other communities, making it the largest community, which by far continues to influence the United States Culture.
b) Individualistic/collective
1) During the migration ad the settlement on American soil, individual culture continued to be shaped by interactions with other communities, interactions between one another, and mainly through economic and war activities.
2) Collectively, the cultural believes of the Aztec community continued to be shaped by their cultural, economic, and war fair activities. The Aztecs relied on other communities for products they could not produce themselves, and, in the process, the interaction brought about change in their own culture. Secondly, during wars and raids and the capturing of slaves acted as a catalyst in impacting the Aztec culture.
c) Artistic
1) The Aztec communities contributed to numerous artistic values during their era. They practiced human sacrifice. One of the Aztecs' most precious assets was a human sacrifice to their gods. The Aztecs believed that to maintain the universe's integrity, the gods needed to be fed human blood. It was essential to secure human sacrifices since they were in desperate need.
2) The Aztecs also practiced iron smithing and cloth making. They produced their swords, spears, and arrows that were utilized during wars and raids.
d) Values/Religion
1) Aztec thinkers stressed morality as a method of reaching harmony. The world was seen as constantly changing because of the ever-changing teotl. In an ever-changing environment, morality was preoccupied with finding a means to live a balanced living that would provide stability.
2) The Aztecs, like other Mesoamerican cultures, had a vast number of gods and goddesses. As a result, they were a polytheistic civilization, worshiping several gods representing different parts of the world to the Aztecs.
e) Sex and gender roles
1) In Aztec civilization, men and women had very different roles. Males were expected to do more physically demanding labor, while females were expected to stay at home and care for their families. Women were entrusted with tasks like caring for tiny children, preparing meals, and repairing clothing.
IV. Acculturation
1) The Aztecs expanded their empire via armed conquests and maintained it by taxing conquered areas. Through war fairs, the Aztec civilization was able to spread its culture.
V. Conclusion
a) The Aztec arrival in America is documented as to have happened in the 1300A.D. Their influence over the land was immense, and their arrival affected both their culture and that of the natives.
b) The Aztecs practiced human sacrifice to entice their many gods and practiced war and raids as cultural and economic practices.
References
History.com Editors. (2021, September 9). Aztecs. HISTORY. retrieved from
