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Upon first reading Guaman Poman De Ayala’s “The First New Chronicle and Good Government”, I was originally inclined to read it as text that was inherently based firmly within colonial idealogy, though, with slightly more progressive (for lack of a better word) tone than I am used to in these Spanish colonial texts. The text is clearly built on colonial frameworks, with Guaman Poman De Ayala, writing the entire thing in Spanish and basing his text, including his critiques, in core principles of Christian morality. While he is, in fact,...read more read full post >>

Thoughts on the beginnings of The First New Chronicle and Good Government by Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala.  Something that stood out to me when reading the text was the translation of one form of language to another. In class, we’ve learned about the importance of language – how it can be a marker of […] read full post >>

On History, representation, and Guaman Poma… read full post >>

We are fortunate today to be in Peru, taking a course called “Making and Unmaking Indigeneity in the Andes.” However, as our professor Jon Beasley-Murray pointed out in our last lecture, we have begun to lose sight of some aspects of this subject. This is why hearing the voice of Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala […] read full post >>

Hi baes! As I was reading Poma I was intrigued by the repeated focus on Generacion or lineage. Being able to associate oneself by blood to a person with status or power has usually granted one certain benefits, which seems to hold true in the time of Puma. Puma spends much of these first 50 pages attempting to legitimize the rule of the Inca’s as not that different from the Spanish crown, while also attempting to legitimize his social standing. I was particularly interested in the legitimacy gained from the illegitimate. read full post >>

  The first time that Pizarro and the conquistadors came in contact with the Inca Empire, the Inca ruler, Atahualpa, welcomed the Spanish into the city. Atahualpa did not know the intentions of the Spanish at this time, and ultimately the Inca’s trust and customs were taken advantage of, leading to the execution of Atahualpa […] read full post >>

After my post about trees, I don’t think Jon is going to like this one either. On page 7 of The First New Chronicle and Good Government, Quechua and Inca are listed as separate languages. I was under the impression that Quechua was the language spoken by the Incas. Was Quechua not the official language […] read full post >>

I find Guaman Poma an interesting figure. Even though he is not the direct focus of the book he puts himself in there a lot, mentioning himself and his family. He stresses his family’s importance and status as nobility as well as his own devotion as a Christian and to the Spanish crown. He uses […] read full post >>

(Waman Puma) Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala wrote a letter to king Phillip III of Spain. This Quechua speaking, Incan nobility formatted over a thousand pages of hand written text titled Nueva Corónica y Buen Gobierno, as direction for the “right living of Christians.” As a very loyal subject, Guaman Poma is basically reiterating genesis, the creation story from the bible, title translated by David Frye as “Generation.” Of the 398 fine line drawings, there are two depiction of Adam and Eve, read full post >>

Reading Blog 4 read full post >>