Ray's Blog – January 2009 Archive (2)

Bermann (1997) provides a model useful for describing “vertical social ties” that considers the nature, intensity, and degree of directness of the ties. Bermann’s descriptive model details questions that we might ask regarding the “nature of ties”, such as, “What kinds of connections (economic, political, social, religious or a combination) existed between individual households and the larger system?” Considering “intensity” of “vertical social ties”, Bermann indicates the importance of… Continue

In the Hall of Paintings:

Metaphor and World View in the Poetry of Nezahualcoyotl



I chose a study of the poetry of Nezahualcoyotl, fifteenth century ruler of Texcoco, as I was at once struck by both the simplicity and subtle elegance of poems attributed to him. In Xopan Cuicatl, or Song of Springtime (of which I attempt to render a very rough translation in the body of this paper), for example, Nezahualcoyotl uses natural imagery such as a pheasant or turtledove and red-plumed… Continue