Previous editions published under title: Readings in Latin-American civilization: 1492 to the present.
Contents
v. 1. The colonial origins. The Aztecs of Mexico -- The Mayas of Central America -- The Incas of Peru -- The Hispanic background -- The great discoveries -- The conquest of Mexico -- The conquest of Peru -- The quest for El Dorado -- The evolution of Spain's Indian policy -- The economic foundations of colonial life -- Commerce, smuggling, and piracy -- Class and caste in the Spanish colonies -- The political institutions of the Indies -- The church in the Indies -- The Bourbon reforms and Spanish America -- Colonial culture and the enlightenment -- The revolt of the masses -- The formation of colonial Brazil -- Government and Church -- Masters and slaves -- The background of the Wars of Independence -- The liberation of South America -- The war for Mexican independence -- Spain's work in America: for and against.
v. 2. The national era. Dictators and revolutions -- The pattern of economic activity -- The way of life -- Toward a Latin-America culture -- Brazil : from empire to republic -- The Mexican revolution -- Storm over the Andes -- The new Argentina -- Republican Brazil -- Latin American roads to socialism -- Latin-American society in transition -- The flowering of Latin-America culture -- The two Americas.
