Megged, A. & Wood, S.: Mesoamerican Memory. Enduring Systems of Remembrance
In this compilation of essays, Megged and Wood approach memory, or “systems of remembrance” in its diverse manifestations throughout Mesoamerica. Their aim is to determine the elements and practices that account for the endurance of such systems through written and pictorial sources depicting political histories, genealogies, narratives of conquest, and local geographies. In order to carry out this task, the authors of the essays bring together a number of localities and ethnic groups, from the Maya of Guatemala to the Mixtec and Zapotec of Oaxaca, and the Nahua and Tarascan in Central Mexico and the Pacific Coast. The eclectic array of documentary sources as well as the geographical regions in which these are produced, effectively conveys the fact that the written and pictorial traditions in Mesoamerica created systems through which indigenous groups kept record of their histories even after the conquest. The major contribution of this work is the approach of the authors to indigenous sources within the context of the colonial period. In other words, the focus on the construction of memory in these documents opens another window into Mesoamerican thought, and how it prevailed – albeit with the influence that the new Spanish cultural system signified – during a time of transformation.
“What is remembered and what is forgotten are politicized. In the name of justice and for the lessons we can learn about the variety of human experience and cultural diversity, we enter into the fray to elevate these lost or stifled voices and evolving practices” (4)