Bibliography
""Apocalypto" Tortures the Facts, Expert Says." Daily Nature and Science News and Headlines | National Geographic News. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2011. .
"Apocalypto - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2011. .
"Classic Maya collapse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2011. .
Henderson, John S.. The world of the ancient Maya . Ithaca N.Y.: Cornell University Press , 1981. Print.
Critique Apocalypto was a very good movie. I enjoyed all of the action, and how intense the movie was. It was a bit bloody and gory, but that just added to show how serious the events were. I also thought it was very interesting to see what kind of things they used to do before we existed. The sacrifices the tribes made were a bit disturbing; to watch them rip out a (fake) heart, but it was interesting to see how they cherished the human body and what it did for them. Although the entertainment value was pleasing, historical accuracy wasn’t the best. The movie shows the main character living in a mainly hunting forest, which isn’t something Mayans would do. Mayans relied heavily on agriculture and spent most of their time farming and trading, rather than hunting. The hunting lifestyle was depicted in the film, which is historically incorrect. In Apocalypto, their houses are made out of sticks, formed into a hut style in a forest. Maya villagers would typically live in more formed and stable stone structures, on a cleared plot of land and not the wild. Also, the villagers displayed in Apocalypto are clueless of such a place when they arrive at the raiders’ city. In ancient Maya, even the smallest of civilizations would know and be connected to some sort of political center, so the tribes’ clueless-ness is inaccurate (Lovgren, Stefan. “Apocalypto Tortures The Facts, Expert Says.” Nationalgraphic.org. National Geographic Society, 8 December 2006. Web. 17 April 2011.). At the end of the movie, it shows Spaniards arriving on their boats. This didn’t happen until a few centuries after the Mayan decline, which is what the movie displays. If it was to display the arrival of the Spaniards, the main characters would have to have been dead. The movie was trying to mix two very different time periods. Even though there are many historical inaccuracies, there were a few rights. The movie shows the king and high power wearing jade jewelry, which was common for high Mayan power. It also displays the downfalls correctly, like the undernourished and sick civilians, and the towns’ disrepair. It also shows dazzling pyramids, which was common to be a part of the center of town. While the captives were being sacrificed, the Mayans looked pleased, which is historically correct- they did get delight from sacrifices (Lovgren, Stefan. “Apocalypto Tortures The Facts, Expert Says.” Nationalgraphic.org. National Geographic Society, 8 December 2006. Web. 17 April 2011.). Overall, the movie did have some inaccuracies, but all in all was very enjoyable.
Reflection Before this project, I had watched Apocalypto a few times before and I really liked it. I was familiar with the film and it wasn’t foreign to me, so that’s why I decided to choose it. I learned that the Mayan time period did have a really serious downfall. I never knew that; I just thought they had amazing achievements like the calendar, and never had too many problems. Although, I was surprised to see how many historical inaccuracies there were in the movie- I never knew it had that many! The most difficult part of this project was definitely finding out the accuracies, considering I tried to base a lot of the facts to the movie. I overcame this by doing extensive research and comparing my facts to Angelica’s. This was a really good way for me to learn about history because it required me to do a lot more research and get the real facts, rather than those from just the movie. It helped me to learn a lot more about part of our world’s history.
Bibliography: ""Apocalypto" Tortures the Facts, Expert Says." Daily Nature and Science News and Headlines | National Geographic News. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2011. . "Apocalypto - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2011. . "Classic Maya collapse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2011. . Henderson, John S.. The world of the ancient Maya . Ithaca N.Y.: Cornell University Press , 1981. Print. Critique Apocalypto was a very good movie. I enjoyed all of the action, and how intense the movie was. It was a bit bloody and gory, but that just added to show how serious the events were. I also thought it was very interesting to see what kind of things they used to do before we existed. The sacrifices the tribes made were a bit disturbing; to watch them rip out a (fake) heart, but it was interesting to see how they cherished the human body and what it did for them. Although the entertainment value was pleasing, historical accuracy wasn’t the best. The movie shows the main character living in a mainly hunting forest, which isn’t something Mayans would do. Mayans relied heavily on agriculture and spent most of their time farming and trading, rather than hunting. The hunting lifestyle was depicted in the film, which is historically incorrect. In Apocalypto, their houses are made out of sticks, formed into a hut style in a forest. Maya villagers would typically live in more formed and stable stone structures, on a cleared plot of land and not the wild. Also, the villagers displayed in Apocalypto are clueless of such a place when they arrive at the raiders’ city. In ancient Maya, even the smallest of civilizations would know and be connected to some sort of political center, so the tribes’ clueless-ness is inaccurate (Lovgren, Stefan. “Apocalypto Tortures The Facts, Expert Says.” Nationalgraphic.org. National Geographic Society, 8 December 2006. Web. 17 April 2011.). At the end of the movie, it shows Spaniards arriving on their boats. This didn’t happen until a few centuries after the Mayan decline, which is what the movie displays. If it was to display the arrival of the Spaniards, the main characters would have to have been dead. The movie was trying to mix two very different time periods. Even though there are many historical inaccuracies, there were a few rights. The movie shows the king and high power wearing jade jewelry, which was common for high Mayan power. It also displays the downfalls correctly, like the undernourished and sick civilians, and the towns’ disrepair. It also shows dazzling pyramids, which was common to be a part of the center of town. While the captives were being sacrificed, the Mayans looked pleased, which is historically correct- they did get delight from sacrifices (Lovgren, Stefan. “Apocalypto Tortures The Facts, Expert Says.” Nationalgraphic.org. National Geographic Society, 8 December 2006. Web. 17 April 2011.). Overall, the movie did have some inaccuracies, but all in all was very enjoyable. Reflection Before this project, I had watched Apocalypto a few times before and I really liked it. I was familiar with the film and it wasn’t foreign to me, so that’s why I decided to choose it. I learned that the Mayan time period did have a really serious downfall. I never knew that; I just thought they had amazing achievements like the calendar, and never had too many problems. Although, I was surprised to see how many historical inaccuracies there were in the movie- I never knew it had that many! The most difficult part of this project was definitely finding out the accuracies, considering I tried to base a lot of the facts to the movie. I overcame this by doing extensive research and comparing my facts to Angelica’s. This was a really good way for me to learn about history because it required me to do a lot more research and get the real facts, rather than those from just the movie. It helped me to learn a lot more about part of our world’s history.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
Some Mayans were converted to Catholicism Maya Culture best shown by the traditionally dressed women and children Some resisted and held on to their native spirituality They worship on mountains and along rivers bright dresses and accessories Imagery Language that appeals to the senses Climax The most suspenseful or exciting point in a story Plot A series of connected events that make up a story 1. Manikins are created by heart of sky, then put on earth 2. They accomplish nothing before Maker, Modeler, who gave them birth and heart Resolution They get overthrown Climax # 3 10. A sudden Bloodletter comes and snaps off their heads Culture Literary Terms Some call themselves Christian but still follow ancient Mayan beliefs and pagan practices Guatemala is still populated with followers of the…
- 794 Words
- 4 Pages
Better Essays -
Medina-Elizalde, M. & Rohling, E. J. (2012). Collapse of Classic Maya Civilization Related to Modest Reduction in Precipitation.…
- 328 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
The Fall of the Maya: They Did it to Themselves. (2009, October). PHYS Org, (), . Retrieved from http://phys.org/news174152911.html…
- 466 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
It is still a great mystery how the Mayan civilization disappeared. This complex society reached its zenith around approximately 750 AD. However, within the next two hundred years, this civilization which was epic in its time collapsed and disappeared leaving minimal traces and even more scanty detail about what could have caused this disappearance. This knowledge gap has led to a lot of debate among scholars over the various possible reasons behind what seems to us to be the abandonment and desertion of these sites. Some of these explanations are suppositions made without convincing proof. It has been understood widely that the collapse of Late Classic Maya civilization involved more than the disintegration of political structure and that it could have involved a total systemic failure in which both centres and dependent villages were abandoned by elites and commoners alike. The lowland rainforest habitat where Maya civilization developed was not significantly reoccupied until comparatively recent time. Theories for this “Mayan Collapse” are wide-ranging and varied, and recent scholarship has postulated over seventy different theories including, but not limited to climate change, deforestation, drought, warfare and invasion, social upheaval or revolution. Some theories even go to the extent to postulate a lack of affirmative action by Mayan kings which could have saved the civilization. Archaeologists have made several attempts to come up with explanations for this collapse; however no specific theory has greater empirical sway than others. Why did such a mighty civilization collapse? Are there any Mayan descendants who can tell us anything? Where do we turn for informant given the dearth of evidence? This essay will critically examine the theories of demographic constraints, climatic changes including drought and warfare and invasion as they attempt to explain the disappearance of the Mayan civilization. Each theory’s overview and merits will be discussed and…
- 2592 Words
- 11 Pages
Best Essays -
1. Coe, M. D. (2005). The Maya (7th ed.). London and New York: Thames and Hudson.…
- 667 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
I initially started off with only internet research on the different civilizations I could do, homing the precise topic down to the Maya. Once I’d done this, I abandoned the use of internet resources and borrowed books from the city library. Books are a much more reliable source of information in comparison to internet websites and they provided me with much valued information. I used the books ‘The Fall of the Ancient Maya’ by David Webster, ‘The Ancient Maya’ by Barbara L. Beck, ‘Colliers Encyclopedia’, ‘The Mayan Prophecies’ by Adrian G. Gilbert and Maurice M. Cottereli and ‘Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes’ by Carl Waldman. From these, I took the liberty of photocopying pages of information relevant to my research. I also happened to find two documentaries which I borrowed also. These were ‘Dawn of the Maya’ from the National Geographic and ‘Mystery of the Maya’ from the IMAX theatre in Sydney. From these, I took extensive notes and found my first theory on why the ancient Maya civilization may have collapsed from archaeologist, Richard Hanson. This discovery actually cemented my topic question for me – I was definitely going to follow this path of research once I’d found this.…
- 688 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
For to long we have accepted the Eurocentric view that the people were not civilized that there culture and evolution produced no lasting accomplishments. My study is aimed at not only proving that the Maya were a great civilization but that they left us with useful technology and inventions that even the Europeans at the time did not have.…
- 2966 Words
- 12 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Warfare in the Maya life mainly branched off from the need to sacrifice human life for their gods. The Mayas believed that they were made of corn and water, and that human sacrifice was greatest gifts to their corn gods. Warfare would allow the Mayas to use processes to select individuals to sacrifice to their gods. An example of this would be Mayan ball game; the losers of the game would be the selected few who were…
- 830 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
What does Mayan religion involve? The Mayan religion involved several aspects of nature, astronomy and rituals. The Mayans were known for their calendar and their beautiful buildings they constructed. In “Science of Mayan Science/Religion” by Hunbatz Men talks about the teachings that were hidden by the Mayans also he goes in deep depth explaining the meanings of the letters “G”, “T” and “O”. However, in “Religions of Mesoamerica” by David Carrasco focuses on the study of the Americas, the religion, and cultural studies of the new world. Hunbatz Men all his sources come from Indigenous people. In the other hand David Carrasco quotes Bernardo Del Castillo and his information is not one hundred percent accurate. After reading the two books they…
- 1547 Words
- 7 Pages
Good Essays -
Reasoning: The Mayans sacrificed their people to appease their gods which would lead them to endure, and sustain their civilization. The Maya used ritual sacrifices as a massive role in the Mayan civilization. such as turkeys, crocodiles, iguanas, and jaguars. Similar to the Aztecs, the Mayans have done this as an attempt to allow their gods to please them. In fact, criminals, slaves, and children made up of most of the individuals in which got sacrificed. The Mayans sacrificed animals such as turkeys, crocodiles, iguanas, and jaguars.…
- 962 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Did you know that Mayan civilization left back beautiful landmarks they made with their advanced technology? The Mayan spread throughout Mexico, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala. They Mayans had really advanced technology to look at the sky and be able to make calendars. They were able to observe the sky and make inferences. The Mayan civilization was different from any other civilization. Mayan civilizations should be taught in schools because of their influence on today’s citizens, advanced technology and students should learn about another civilization that is really known but not taught in schools and so that people studying Mayans learn about the heritage.…
- 532 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
It is common belief that the Mayans developed the first solar calendar, but what most people don’t realise is how the entirety of El Castillo conveys this deep level of scientific understanding. El Castillo in its simplest form is a solar calendar due to each of its four sides having 91 steps, this including the altar ads up to 365, the full length of a Mayan solar year. 4Another distinguishing feature of this pyramid that highlights the Mayans revolutionary understanding of astronomy can be seen during the spring and fall equinox every year. As the sun sets, a play of light and shadow creates the appearance of a snake that gradually slithers down the stairway of the pyramid to reach the large snake-head sculptures carved into the base of the stairway5. This descent signifies the Mayan god of creation, Kulkulcan, who was believed to have come down from the heavens and ruled over the people of Chichén Itza.6…
- 939 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
The Mayan civilization is all but a dull one. Mathematical geniuses, engineering wizards, an abundance of food, water, resources, and the nicest weather of the earth shines down on their native land in an almost perfect utopia. Yet, the majority of their population at the time seems to have mysteriously disappeared out of nowhere. However, the Mayan people are anything but extinct with their overall headcount around ten million (Coe). That’s right. Ten million of the once almost extinct Maya people roam the earth today. However, at one point in time (approximately 1000 A.D.) the population had dropped to about 30,000 (Coe). How could this have happened?…
- 1650 Words
- 7 Pages
Powerful Essays -
There is a scene in the movie “Apacolypto” where salves are stung to the top of a pyramid to meet their bloodiest death. The ruler has decided there is a key to bring his kingdom out of decline that they are facing. The key to his country’s prosperity is to build more temples and offer human sacrifices to please the gods. The people of the tripe begin to think that the sacrifices are blessings for the future people of the tripe. Throughout the movie there is much blood shed and sorrow as you can see from image one. The movie is told from the point of view of a native named, Jaguar Paw. Jaguar Paw’s life is put at the top of the pyramid to ended, however though, an eclipse begins to take place and the Mayan ruler believes the gods have had their feel for blood now. Jaguar Paw’s life may have been saved but now he must race to his…
- 726 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
This book is called Mayan and Aztec Mythology. Written by Michael A. Schuman. I choose to write my report about this myth because it was the most interesting. I find Mayan and Aztec mythology to be the most grotesque myths I have ever read.…
- 495 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays