Research Catalog

Title

Fifth sun : a new history of the Aztecs / Camilla Townsend.

Author

Townsend, Camilla, 1965-

Publication

New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2019]

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xii, 320 pages : illustrations, maps, genealogical table; 25 cm

Summary

"Five hundred years ago, in November 1519, Hernando Cortés walked along a causeway leading to the capital of the Aztec kingdom and came face to face with Moctezuma. That story--and the story of what happened afterwards--has been told many times, but always from the point of view of the Europeans. After all, we have been taught, it was the Europeans who held the pens. But the Native Americans were more intrigued by the Roman alphabet than the Spaniards ever knew. Unbeknownst to the newcomers, the Aztecs took it home and used it to write detailed histories in their own language of Nahuatl. Until recently, these sources remained obscure, only partially translated, and almost never consulted by scholars. For the first time, in Fifth Sun, the history of the Aztecs is offered in all its complexity, in an account based solely on the texts written by the people themselves. The Aztecs suddenly appear as real people, rather than the exotic, bloody figures of stereotypes. The conquest is neither an apocalyptic moment, nor an origin story launching Mexicans into existence. This book presents the story of Native Americans who had a history of their own long before the Europeans arrived and who used their talents to survive when the worst of times came upon them. It shows people who realigned their political allegiances, accommodated new obligations, adopted new technologies (such as alphabetic writing and European paper), and carried on. This revisionist history of the Aztecs explores the experience of a once-powerful people facing the trauma of conquest--as well as their survival and continuity--offering an accessible and humanized depiction of a civilization for experts and non-specialists alike."--Provided by publisher.

Subjects

• Mexico
• Aztecs
• HISTORY > Latin America > Mexico
• Mexico > History > Conquest, 1519-1540
• Aztecs > First contact with Europeans
• History
• Aztecs > Historiography
• Conquest of Mexico > (Mexico : > 1519-1540)
• Aztecs > History
• 1519-1540

Genre/Form

History.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contents

The trail from the Seven Caves (before 1299) -- People of the valley (1350s-1450s) -- The city on the lake (1470-1518) -- Strangers to us people here -- A war to end all wars (1520-1521) -- Early days (1520s-1550s) -- Crisis: the Indians talk back (1560s) -- The grandchildren (1570s-1620s) -- Epilogue -- Appendix: How scholars study the Aztecs.

Call Number

JFE 20-3159

ISBN

• 9780190673062
• 0190673060
• 9780190673086 (canceled/invalid)
• 9780190673079 (canceled/invalid)

LCCN

• 2019003623
• 40029538641

OCLC

1083699267

Author

Townsend, Camilla, 1965- author.

Title

Fifth sun : a new history of the Aztecs / Camilla Townsend.

Publisher

New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2019]

Type of Content

text

Type of Medium

unmediated

Type of Carrier

volume

Bibliography

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Chronological Term

1519-1540

Other Form:

Online version: Townsend, Camilla, 1965- Fifth sun. New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2019] 9780190673079 (DLC) 2019004887

Other Standard Identifier

40029538641

Research Call Number

JFE 20-3159