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Brimmley Nielsen
March 1, 2016
History 1510
Professor Blake
Document Analysis Essay
Broken Spears
Most people have a basic understanding of the conquistadores. Most people know who
Cortez is, what happened there in Mexico. The story most people would tell: Cortez comes in,
the Aztecs think he is some sort of god, so they gave him gold and he thanked them by
overthrowing their land. This is what most people would tell you, the average knowledge of the
conquistadores. The novel The Broken Spears written by Miguel Leon-Portilla and published in
1962, is an account of the Aztecs side of the story. Their story is one not many have heard. Some
might call it sad. Others might call it disturbing. As the book continues, it is clear to see that they
are not so different; it is both sad and disturbing. The whole story is a combination of emotions,
all stacked into a great emotional rollercoaster. This paper will discuss the things learned in the
novel and the advantage to knowing both sides of the story, and more importantly give evidence
to whether or not there really was a right and wrong side of the story.
The first time they saw the Spaniards sailing in, the Aztecs were afraid. They did not
know what was going on, who these people were, or what they wanted. There was no one to look

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to for answers. Their king, Motecuhzoma, was not sure what to do, so he decided to try the
hospitable approach. He brought them gifts of gold and human sacrifices, which is their custom.
They thought this would make the Spaniards, or as they called them gods, honored, and
grateful. The gold was successful, it truly honored them, and the Spaniards were very pleased to
receive the gold. However, they were the opposite of honored at the human sacrifices the Aztecs
sent. The conquistadores acted the way they thought they should. Christian Spaniards, when
seeing what they would think of as murder-a sin, reacted as one might expect them to; with acts
of violence and feeling the obligation to rid the world of the sinners. The Aztecs could not
understand why they would react that way, having a sacrifice in honor of you was the most
respectful thing Aztecs could do. So now, all the Aztecs knew was anything they did to honor
them just upsets them, with the exception of bringing them gifts of gold. Contrary to popular
belief, the Aztecs were smart. They quickly learned that the best way to win their trust was to
bring them gold. They also learned the best ways to avoid the guns, and keep from being shot by
the lightning sticks. Though it was the key part of keeping the gods from massacring them,
giving them gold might have been what caused the Spaniards greed to grow; they grew to expect
gold from the locals. They craved it, and the Aztecs noticed, And when they were given these
presents, the Spaniards burst into smiles; their eyes shone with pleasure they were delighted by
themTheir bodies swelled with greed, and their hunger was ravenous; they hungered like pigs
for that gold (51). In the Spaniards world, all this gold was priceless; they were suddenly

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wealthier than their king was. However, the Aztecs felt the gold meant nothing, they were mere
trinkets to them, and other things were of far greater value.
A societys culture is such an integral part of a persons identity. It may as well be part of
their DNA. It is something that a person can never forsake. It is important to understand this. To
some people, in their culture, something might be culturally acceptable, yet to other cultures, it is
terrible. When two very different cultures, like the Spaniards and the Aztecs, got mixed together,
ugly things could happen. Especially in this time era, most everyone was extremely unforgiving
of different cultures; this was especially true with Spaniards. Back then different was bad,
different was not allowed. The Aztecs come around sacrificing people, partying in honor of gods,
dancing with no clothes on, urinating while dancing, the Spaniards, and everything about their
culture tells them, This is wrong. On the other hand, for the Aztecs, this is perfectly acceptable;
they look forward to these celebrations. Seeing the sin festivals, the Spaniards reacted with
violence. What the Aztecs did angered them, they lashed out led a violent massacre. Not
condoning what they did, not supporting either side, culture explains so much of what went
down in Mexico during those dark times.
Most people, when talking about the conquistadores, talk about how terrible they were
towards the Aztecs. This is true. However, stand in the shoes of each side and decide which side
is right. Who truly were the honorable people in this situation? Are there bad people in this
event? On the other hand, is it possible both sides are bad people? The Aztecs were not innocent

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in this, they attacked the Spaniards just the same, yet, the Spaniards did ask for it, in their own
way. On the other hand, the Spaniards were only standing up for what they believed in; they
wanted to spread the catholic religion. Wanting to spread the religion really is not bad, yet their
methods were unsavory. A person could go on and on like this, trying to decide who the right
people were, it will never end. There is no answer. They all believed that they were doing right.
So how can people really judge them? They were not there.
In conclusion, the book The Broken Spears is one that sheds light on what happened in
Mexico, from the Aztecs side, it shows us the gritty details of what the Aztecs did, and what the
Spaniards really did. In reading it, it becomes clear that nothing about the conquistadores and the
Aztecs is pretty. They were overcome with fear, and greed and confusion, both sides were. There
is no way for modern day people to decide who was right and who was wrong. That is the
problem with people these days; they see history in black and white. They want there to be bad
people and good people, but the world is not that simple. History is filled with people that make
decisions, in history classes you learn about the decisions they make and are expected to decide
if is wrong or right. History is not that simple.