One of the first group of Indians that this unit will deal with is a mysterious group called the Olmec. “Some believe that they originated from the tropical lowlands of Tabasco. Others say that they were from the highlands of Guerrero. But most probably, they came from the region just south of La Venta.”
1
The Olmecs made pottery figures. They perfected a technique of firing a hollow clay object. They are especially renowned for work done in jade or hard stones. Because of this fascination, jade was more valuable to the Indians than gold and silver.
Most Olmec figures are well formed. “They show a certain realism yet there is something strange about them,”
2
Through skeletal remains, we have determined that the Olmec were short and thickset with round faces, broad noses and thick drooping lips.
The Peabody Museum and the Yale Art Gallery both have many Olmec artifacts. A field trip to these museums is strongly recommended. In fact, when planning for the trips, one should request to borrow the slides that are available as well as the sets of photographs mounted on lightweight cardboard. These along with the bus transportation are available free of charge to the New Haven Public Schools.
When observing the Olmec artifacts, one will notice that the Olmec heads tend to be flat and elongated. Concurrently, one will conclude that the figures are sex-less. The Olmec deliberately deformed the skulls of newborn infants. The procedure used was to bind the child’s head between two boards for several days. The resulting shape was a mark of beauty and distinction which was portrayed in their art. Students should be provided with pictures or plates of these characteristics which can be obtained from the texts listed in the bibliographies.
The Yale Art Gallery has a Stelae titled,
The Winged Jaguar
which is believed to be from Tlaxcala, Central Mexico before 500 A.D. A stelae is a tall shaft of stone. Some of the questions that should be posed to the students include: How many attributes of different animals do we see and what do they symbolize?
Through visual stimulation, the instructor generates more active student participation and a higher ratio of retention of information. The teacher could possibly have the students even compare Olmec art with perhaps the art of the Aztec or the Maya. This in itself would be most enlightening since it would be student-generated.
When introducing the people of Teotihuacan, it would be most advantageous to have maps available to show where the different sects came from. At the same time, the students would be able to learn about the present day geography of Mexico and its geographical relationship to the U.S. One could also have the student make maps of Mexico and of the United States.
The art of the people of Teotihuacan was much more innovating than that of the Olmec. Many of the former figures had animal characteristics which were powerful personifications of the forces of nature.
Quetzalcóatl, the god of winds, of life, and of the morning is one of the most prominent deities in the Aztec civilization where as, a Jaguar-god was worshipped by the Olmec. Quetzalcóatl not only has a long name, but he also has a complicated attire. In fact, there are at least four different plates that have each depicted him differently. He is also known by many other names out of which the two most common were: Ehecatl and Ce çcatl. This god is unique and quite colorful. Pictures and plates are recommended to initiate the creative expatiation process.
In the book,
The Aztecs
by Alfonso Caso, there are many color plates of the god Quetzalcóatl. It is suggested that the teacher use these pictures to better describe and understand this deity. This process would offer the students an opportunity to view the many “looks” of this chameleon-like god. Students would be able to write different descriptions about the different attributes of this god and thus also make an attempt at interpreting the symbolism involved. The author, Alfonso Caso, goes into a very complicated but interesting decoding description of one of these plates. This would make an informative comparison.
In some paintings, Quetzalcóatl generally wears a beard. Because of this, some considered him European. Others say that he wore a beard because he was a creator god. Students could be encouraged to research these contradictory legends to discover their source and also to prove or to disprove their validity.
Aztec mythology is difficult to understand because of the multiplicity of the gods and the diverse attributes of the same gods. One explanation would be that the Aztec religion was in a period of synthesis. And it was because of this that the people accepted Catholicism so readily. They were just following their beliefs. “And as in all pantheistic cultures, reality, nature, and experience were nothing but multiple manifestations of a single unity of being. God was both the one and the many. Thus, the deities were but his multiple personifications, his partial unfolding into perceptible experience. Therefore, it was not too difficult to make the transition to Catholicism.”
3
The legend of the divine pair, Ometecihtl’ and Omec’huatl, also known as Tonacaticuhtli and Tonacac’huatl, tells the story of creation. This primitive couple had four sons who were entrusted with the creation of the other gods, the world, and man. These four sons were: Red Tezcatlipoca (Xipe), Blue Tezcatlipoca (Huitzilopochtli), Black Tezcatlipoca (Tezcatlipoca), and White Tezcatlipoca (Quetzalcóatl). Everything was grouped in accordance to the four cardinal points of the compass and the central direction of up and down. Therefore, the numbers four and five were extremely important just as the number three is to Christianity. Heaven and earth—up and down—were represented by the divine pair and the four directions were represented by the four sons.
Another Aztec legend that is quite interesting is the one about Quetzalcóatl. This is the story of the creation of the world, or another creation version. This story tells of Quetzalcóatl going to the world of the dead to gather up ossifications of past generations to create a new mankind. This legend has been adapted to a skit which can be found later in the unit. And because man was created through a godly sacrifice, man must then reciprocate by offering up a human sacrifice. But, Quetzalcóatl who was opposed to human sacrifice introduced the custom of drawing blood from different part of the body. In spite of this, the worship of Quetzalcóatl made the Aztecs one of the bloodiest cults around.
Another sanguinary cult worshipped Huitzilopochtli, the sun god. Legend has it that he was a young warrior born each morning from the womb of the old goddess earth. Every evening, he dies in order to illuminate with his dying light the world of the dead. This complete legend will also be retold in a skit form at the end of this unit.
After reading the skits, the readers will realize that the Aztecs as well as past generations and civilizations tried to explain celestial phenomena through myths. As a result of their incredible stead-fast observations of the skies, they achieved a very advanced stage in astronomy. In this way, they developed their own calendar, the Aztec Calendar. It would be most interesting to compare Aztec accomplishments with those of the Greek and the Roman. Questions like these would be a good point of departures: How do they differ? How are they alike? How do they share universal answers to universal problems such as the changing seasons, agricultural techniques and hunting techniques?
The Indian gods, as were the gods of other great civilizations, were superhuman beings with individual characteristics and attributes from each taxonomical level. These gods could have thirty or more characteristics that defined, distinguished, or represented them. This in itself explains why the description of Quetzalcóatl is so complicated. And the Mexican honored the virtues not the vices of these gods.
And like the Greek and Roman gods, the Indian gods were also extremely active sexually. They also gave birth to human children with superhuman powers.
And they even had mythical animals that had combined characteristics of two or more animals. Here, it would be most appropriate to discuss heroes. What attributes should heroes have? Do these attributes make heroes special?
The students could also be introduced to some Mexican muralists such as Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and David Alvaro Siquieros. The murals painted by these men are social and political statements. The artists’ preoccupation was simply to present the history of Mexico combining the art with the politics. Many of the murals deal with the problem of the races, the land, the Spanish conquest, and the conservative oligarchies. The teacher should have the students get a feel for these works by having them try to reproduce them. By so doing, the feelings and themes will be brought out.
Some of the murals painted by José Clemente Orozco can be found at Baker Library at Darthmouth College, New Hampshire and also at Pomona College, California. When retelling the story about Orozco’s background, the teacher should include the human interest tale about the artist who learned to do what he desired despite his handicap. As a child, José Orozco lost his left hand in an accident. But the painter never let this handicap interfere with his determination and success. It was in first grade that he had to pass a printing shop to and from school. There, he would watch a cartoonist making drawings. This was the inspiration that the boy needed to pick up a pencil and to begin to draw himself.
Before commencing the works of Diego Rivera, the students should be given some historical background information on the history of Mexico. Synopses should be given on the following figures: Father Miguel Hidalgo, José Morelos, Montezuma, Hernán Córtez, etc. Students should also be encouraged to do their own research and to write reports on these figures. Having students make maps would also be recommended. One of the locations to be mapped could be the town of Dolores. This will lead into the Mexican Revolution with the famous “
Grito de Dolores
”. Most of Rivera’s murals depict the Mexican peasants or the downtrodden. His huge paintings show the suffering and pain as well as the exploitation of the Mexican people.
The innovative educational possibilities of this unit are endless. Before the skits are presented, short resumés on the Mesoamerican gods should be given. One way of doing this would be to borrow as many books as possible from the public library to keep in the classroom as reference since many of the students lack good library research techniques. This will encourage further research and study. The students can even be required to do more detailed oral and written presentations.
The skits that have been included in this unit were adapted from Alfonso Caso’s book,
The Aztecs
. But any text on Mesoamerican mythology may be used. In
Time Machine
, the story of the creation of mankind by Quetzalcóatl, I used Wilbur L. Cross High School as the location where the machine was being built. Teachers should use their own particular schools as well as the real names of the participants whenever possible to encourage a more enthusiastic involvement.
Also, upon introducing the skit, an ingenious instructor can also teach grammatical structures. Some of these may includes the simple present, the simple past, irregular verbs, formation of questions, formation of negatives, the imperative, and much more.
Another method that would ensure learning vocabulary would be to translate the main idea into the students’ native language. By so doing, the students will have to memorize lexicon and thus they will know what they are saying.
The teacher should utilize the skits that have been prepared especially for this unit to economize on both material and time. Prior taping of the skits by native speakers is strongly recommended since students need to listen, repeat, and imitate. By so doing, the teacher will be able to conserve physical energy and thus channel it more creatively. I would suggest that the teacher spend a minimum of two weeks on each skit since students will need the time to memorize it.
Finally, the teachers should provide the students with an opportunity to adapt their own skits. This can best be accomplished by having the students work together in groups first. The students should be able to select their own legends and their own parts. This technique is a wonderful tool that gives students a chance to practice their writing skills.