Ancient Cultures of Middle America Final Exam, Page 2
Anthropology 3618 Ancient Cultures of Middle America
Spring Semester 2005
Answer SIX (only 6) of the following questions. Keep in mind that there is more than one approach you can take in answering these questions. Each question is worth 100 points.
Follow these guidelines:
$ Organize your answer before you begin.
$ Be sure to state:
1. What or who something is
2. Where it occurred or is located (if appropriate)
3. How it is important
4. When it occurred
5. Why it is important
$ State YOUR position or approach clearly.
$ Cite specific examples or references to support your statements.
$ Mention problem areas or other relevant materials which you would like to consider further in a more thorough statement. That is, when you're finished with your answer, what major questions are still left unanswered?
$ Summarize your argument or discussion.
$ Wherever appropriate use materials from more than one region of the world.
$ Remember that each of your responses should have a beginning, a middle, and an end.
$ Note: Do not discuss any topic at length in more than one question.
Discuss any major Precolumbian art style other than the Olmec. Include social aspects of art in your discussion.
Coe and Koontz, in Mexico, maintain the following: AThe image of the Aztec people as bloodthirsty savages bent only on rapine and murder B an image carefully fostered by the Conquistadores B is belied by the great compendium of Nahuatl poetry preserved to us in the Cantares Mexicanos.@ Nezahualcoyotl, the poet-king of Texcoco, is often cited as one of the great poets in history. Discuss the apparent contradiction between great human sensitivity Aztecs displayed in their literature and poetry, and their human brutality in running the Aztec Empire.
Coe and Koontz devote a chapter in Mexico to the Toltecs. Describe AThe Toltec State@ and its importance in Mesoamerica.
Although we did not cover them very much in class, the Mixtec people were an important culture in Mesoamerica. Discuss the Mixtec people. As part of your answer include some discussion on how they were like, and how they were unlike the Aztecs.
Most of what we know about the early cultures of Mesoamerica comes from the writings of the early Spaniards. The best described of these groups was the Post-Classic Aztec empire as they existed in the 16th century.
This Aztec information is often used to interpret finds and events occurring in earlier Mesoamerican stages (especially the Pre-Classic and Classic) and with earlier peoples. What are the pros and cons of using the Aztec as the major interpretative model for all of Mesoamerica?
ACharacteristics of Civilization@ include specialization of labor and the development of market economies. Discuss these two aspects as they were manifest in the 16th-century Aztec society.
Identify ten of the following in one or two sentences:
Chacmool
Remojadas
Popol Vuh
Tepeapulco
The "Triple Alliance"
cenote
Codex Dresden
Pochteca
Huasteca
Calmécac
Puuc
calpulli
The Aztec Calendar
eccentric flints
Xochicalco
hematite
hacha
Tarascans
Cahokia
It has often been said that modern Mesoamerica can only be understood in terms of its past. A major aspect of the people of Mesoamerica is their national pride and identity, which has its base in the "high civilizations" of ancient Mesoamerica. These civilizations, they point out, developed independent of cultures in the Old World and were among the most advanced of the world. All of the "high civilizations" in the New World followed a general development pattern. Discuss the major stages of this development pattern and indicate what you think the relevance of this might be to modern national character.
1. Coe and Koontz devote a chapter in Mexico to AThe Epiclassic Period.@ Coe, in The Maya, includes a chapter on AThe Terminal Classic.@ Compare and contrast AThe Epiclassic Period@ with AThe Terminal Classic.@
Coe and Koontz, in Mexico, discuss "The Post-Classic Period: Rival States." Describe this period and discuss its importance in Mesoamerican prehistory and history.
Describe the prehistoric developments in one of the following areas. Do not select any site or area you have focused on as part of any other question.
Bajío
Huasteca
Mixteca Alta
Petén
Puuc Area
Soconusco
The "Colonial world"
The Maya "Highlands"
Describe the type of civilization that you think might exist in Mesoamerica today if neither Cortéz nor other conquistadors had come to Mesoamerica. That is, what might Mesoamerica be like today if they had never been invaded by outsiders? Give specific reasons for each of the major points you make.
Most theories on the development of civilization focus in some way on the production of agricultural surplus. Discuss Mesoamerican agricultural production in the Classic and Post-Classic periods.
Discuss the "fall" of the Classic Maya. Include a summary of the problem and proposed explanations.
Coe and Koontz use the word "dynasties." For example, a section of The Maya is called "Maya-Mexican dynasties in the Southern Area." Discuss the concept of "dynasty" as Coe and Koontz use it in The Maya and Mexico. Be sure to include examples in your discussion.
Rites and ritual were fundamental to Mesoamerican life. Describe your favorite Mesoamerican ritual(s). Include in your answer a description of the ritual(s), when and where they likely occurred, its/their importance, who participated, and why it/they were carried out. Also briefly indicate why the ritual(s) you chose is your favorite.
In both The Maya and Mexico Coe and Koontz discuss the life cycles of the Maya and of the Aztec. Discuss the life cycle of either the Maya or the Aztec.
Compare and contrast any two videos seen in class.
2. Compare and Contrast any two of the following sites, but do not choose any which you may have discussed in another question:
Tula
Uxmal
Tikál
Bonampak
Palenque
Tenochtitlán
El Tajín
Teotihuacán
Tlatilco
Copân
Cobá
Putún
Mayapán
3. If you do not like these questions, make up and answer a question of your own choice relating to a topic which you have not considered in your other answers. Answers should contain specific information supporting your position. Both your question and your answer will be evaluated. If you like these questions but simply prefer to make one of your own, go ahead.
If you elect to make up and answer a question, you may prepare your question and answer in advance and bring them with you to the exam. If you prepare your question and answer in advance you only need to answer five (5) midterm exam questions in class.
Coe and Koontz, in Mexico, describe "the 'ladinoization' of Mexico." Discuss the "ladinoization of Mexico" and its importance in understanding Mesoamerica.
4. In The Maya Coe discusses "The Cotzumalhuapa problem." Discuss "The Cotzumalhuapa problem" and xxx
Discuss the Classic Stage as it was manifested in the Mesoamerican culture area. You may include in your answer comparisons with the cultures of North or South America, but do not include materials you might have discussed in another question.
5. Discuss the Postclassic period and its importance in Mesoamerica. Include in your discussion examples of sites and/or artifacts which best exemplify the Postclassic period, but do not include materials you might have discussed in another question.
Many times you have heard in class and read in the texts comments about "the northern barbarians." What is a "barbarian" in the Mesoamerican context?
Compare and contrast any two of the following:
Pacal
Cuauhtémoc
Ramon
Huehueteotl
Sahagún
George ADubya@ Bush or Hillary Rodham Clinton or St. John the Baptist
Tezcatlipoca
EightDeer
Landa
ChanBahlum
Tlacaelel
Moctezuma
Molcajete
Spinden
huehuetl
One Rabbit
Cerro de las Mesas
Baktun
Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli
Xipe Totec
Quetzalcoatl (the 16th century [our calendar] human)
Linde Schele
La Malinche
xxx
Xochicalco
Yanjuitlàn
Tamaulipas
Otumba
Tilantongo
Altar de Sacrificios
Dzibilchaltùn
Chichén Itzá
Malinalco
6. Discuss any one of the major Mesoamerican sites considered since the midquarter exam. Include in your answer both a description of the site and an analysis of the importance of the site (or if more appropriate, the basic culture of the people). DO NOT select any site you may have discussed in any of the other questions (including the identification question).
1) Discuss the people of Tzintzuntzan. How are they like the people who lived in the Valley of Mexico? How are they different?
Discuss the Mayan people as we know them from the archaeological record. How are the archaeological Maya like and unlike the historic Maya?
Most of what we know about the early cultures of Mesoamerica comes from the writings of the early Spaniards. Probably the best described of these groups was the Post-Classic Aztec empire. Describe and discuss the major characteristics of the Aztecs as they existed in the 16th century.
xxx
From prehistoric times to the present the tiangus or the markets (or trading) have played an important part in the lives of the Mesoamerican people. Describe and discuss markets or trading in Mesoamerica, including in your answer reference to and a brief description of at least one prehistoric market place.
Xxx
Discuss the importance of astronomy in Mesoamerican prehistory. Be sure to include specific examples in your discussion.
On 11 July 1991, about twothirty in the afternoon, there was a total eclipse of the sun. Describe what you think might have happened prior to, during, and after a similar event which may have taken place during Aztec times.
Objectively discuss the role of human sacrifice in Mesoamerica from the Pre-Classic through the arrival of the Conquistadores.
Some suggest that many Mesoamerican cultures (i.e., the people of the cultures) were preoccupied with death. Argue for or against this proposition.
7. Discuss the prehistoric relationships which existed between Mesoamerica and at least one of its "neighbors." Include as part of your answer your evaluation of the impact of those relationships on the development of Mesoamerican civilizations.