Imagining New Worlds: Geographic Imagination
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- *Questions about the video Imagining New Worlds
1. What elements of the modern cultural landscape of the Yucatan Peninsula serve as indicators of the various geographical imaginations which occupy this place? Tourist destinations such as hotels and resorts indicate the tourist veiw of the Yucatan Peninsula, a place of leisure away from the real world. Those same hotels and resorts are viewed by those working there, clipping the shurbbery or serving lunch, as places of labour (the real world). Also, the ruins of the ancient Mayan temples indicate their interpretation of it being the center of the spiritual world as well as being the center of trade.
2. What was the purpose of the building that the tour bus guide pointed out to the group? The pyramid was constructed by the ancient Mayans to observe the heavens, which they thought held the answers to details of when and what to plant, when to harvest, and how to live their lives. The Mayans looked to the sky to answer these questions because they believed that what happened on Earth was determined by the heavens.
3. How did this landscape fit into the geographical imagination of the ancient Maya? The ancient Mayans believed that the world was made of layers grouped into heaven, Earth, and the underworld. They believed that the Mayan civilization was the center of the Earth layers and, therefore, the center of all the layers. It was also the center of the trading area.
4. What is meant by cultural hybridity? How has cultural hybridity affected the families living in this region? Cultural hybridity is the mixing of cultures. The people of this region use modern clothes, ancient Mayan ceremonies, and speak a combination of Spanish and Mayan. Also, while the families live in old-fashioned huts the kids crowd around the modern arcade games in the front hall.
5.What elements in the lives of modern Mexicans reflect the duration of ancient Mayan understandings of the world? There are many elements in the lives of modern Mexicans that reflect ancient Mayan culture. For example, the language spoken is a combination of Mayan and Spanish, Mayan artwork is displayed in government buildings, and ancient ceremonies are still performed (Corn Ceremony/Festival, other religious ceremonies).
6.In what ways have the ancient Mayan and modern Mexican geographical world views been able to survive, given the increasingly dominant alternative views of the tourists and the free Market global economy: In what ways had the Mayan and Mexican views been compromised? The indigenous people believe in communal land where anyone who wishes to grow corn gets a plot of land to work. Big agro-industrial companies want to buy all the land and make a big profit, and they put pressure on the Mexican government which is worried that Mexico is falling behind in industrialism and commercialism. The indigenous people don't want to work for bosses they don't know and can't stand up to. The Zapatistas are a rebel army who stand up for the local ways of life. The local priest works as a mediator between the Zapatistas and the Mexican government.
7.What information about the ancient ceremony and the designs woven into the garments of each Mayan village is revealed? The garments that are worn by each village identify them based on the color and design of the garments. Their ideas about the world are also woven into the garments. Some of the designs contain references to the four corners of the universe.The squares represent the stars and the butterfly represents the sun.
8.What is meant by the term geographical imagination? Each person should be able to answer this question in a brief 5 sentence paragraph Geographical imagination determines how we interpret the world around us. It depends on the culture, language,and thought-processes we were brought up with. We start forming our geographical imagination almost as soon as we are born. Geographical Imagination is the way each person interprets the world. Where we were born, our culture, and our ways of life shape our geographic imagination. Often, people growing up in the same area have similar world views. Ethnocentrism is when somebody believes that there is only one way to view the world- the person's own or thinks that her own view is best. There are many world views in the Yucatan Peninsula- the tourist view, the local view, and the big company view. Sometimes, these different world views clash, as in the case of the communal land issue and the Zapatista.
