Aztec Essay Example
Aztec Essay
History has been very cruel to the Aztecs. What do you know about the Aztecs? The first thing that probably comes to your mind is human sacrifice, or them being very bloody and gory.
Well there is much more to the Aztecs than human sacrifice and wars. The Aztecs were a very advanced and successful civilization. They did perform human sacrifice, but it was a part of their religion, and it was common for cultures to sacrifice humans at the time. Also, all of the things we know today about the Aztecs come from the Spanish perspective, and the Spanish had every reason to make the Aztecs look bad. History should say the Aztecs were a well organized civilization who deserve credit, and should not be opinionated on because of their sacrificial ceremonies. History should say that the Aztecs were dedicated people, who want to keep their gods happy. The Aztecs sacrificed humans to the sun god (Duran). The purpose was to please the sun god, and to make it rise the next day. Being sacrificed was considered an honorable death (Del Catillo). The victims would be treated with luxury for one year before getting sacrificed. The victim would become a local celebrity, and be a figurehead in society. The Priest would cut open the man’s chest, and get the heart (Shahagun). This was a very brutal death for the victim, who body had to be perfect. The sacrificed victims were always men; there is no record of women being sacrificed. This is what history should say about Aztec human sacrifice. The Aztecs had a well organized and advanced economy that led to success. The Aztec built chinampas, a system of irrigation to meet their agricultural needs (Stearns). The Chinampas also served as a transportation system, with a river flowing through the middle. They had built 20,000 acres of chinampas, which had a place for the farmer to live. Aztecs also demanded tribute from their conquered territories (Carrasco). This was, in other words, their form of a tax system. These
History has been very cruel to the Aztecs. What do you know about the Aztecs? The first thing that probably comes to your mind is human sacrifice, or them being very bloody and gory.
Well there is much more to the Aztecs than human sacrifice and wars. The Aztecs were a very advanced and successful civilization. They did perform human sacrifice, but it was a part of their religion, and it was common for cultures to sacrifice humans at the time. Also, all of the things we know today about the Aztecs come from the Spanish perspective, and the Spanish had every reason to make the Aztecs look bad. History should say the Aztecs were a well organized civilization who deserve credit, and should not be opinionated on because of their sacrificial ceremonies. History should say that the Aztecs were dedicated people, who want to keep their gods happy. The Aztecs sacrificed humans to the sun god (Duran). The purpose was to please the sun god, and to make it rise the next day. Being sacrificed was considered an honorable death (Del Catillo). The victims would be treated with luxury for one year before getting sacrificed. The victim would become a local celebrity, and be a figurehead in society. The Priest would cut open the man’s chest, and get the heart (Shahagun). This was a very brutal death for the victim, who body had to be perfect. The sacrificed victims were always men; there is no record of women being sacrificed. This is what history should say about Aztec human sacrifice. The Aztecs had a well organized and advanced economy that led to success. The Aztec built chinampas, a system of irrigation to meet their agricultural needs (Stearns). The Chinampas also served as a transportation system, with a river flowing through the middle. They had built 20,000 acres of chinampas, which had a place for the farmer to live. Aztecs also demanded tribute from their conquered territories (Carrasco). This was, in other words, their form of a tax system. These