Bound Lives chronicles the lived experience of race relations in northern coastal Peru during the colonial era. Rachel Sarah O’Toole examines the construction of a casta (caste) system under the Spanish government; and how this system was negotiated and employed by Andeans and Africans.Royal and viceregal authorities defined legal identities of “Indian†and “Black†to separate the two groups and commit each to specific trades and labor. Although they were legally divided; Andeans and Africans freely interacted and depended on each other in their daily lives. Thus; the caste system was defined at both the top and bottom of society. Within each caste; there were myriad subcategories that also determined one’s standing.The imperial legal system also strictly delineated civil rights. Andeans were afforded greater protections as a “threatened†native population. Despite this; with the crown’s approval during the rise of the sugar trade; Andeans were driven from their communal property and conscripted into a forced labor program. They soon rebelled; migrating away from the plantations to the highlands. Andeans worked as artisans; muleteers; and laborers for hire; and used their legal status as Indians to gain political representation.As slaves; Africans were subject to the judgments of local authorities; which nearly always sided with the slaveholder. Africans soon articulated a rhetoric of valuation; to protect themselves in disputes with their captors and in slave trading negotiations. To combat the ongoing diaspora from Africa; slaves developed strong kinship ties and offered communal support to the newly arrived.Bound Lives offers an entirely new perspective on racial identities in colonial Peru. It highlights the tenuous interactions of an imperial power; indigenous group; and enslaved population; and shows how each moved to establish its own power base and modify the existing system to its advantage; while also shaping the nature of colonialism itself.
#698646 in Books 2009-04-03 2009-04-03Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.25 x 1.00 x 6.13l; 1.25 #File Name: 0822344238400 pages
Review
14 of 17 people found the following review helpful. Unfortunate Typos....By Deer Girl in SnowI found the thesis of the book exciting; a perspective that has not been studied much: interpreting the imperial throne through legal documents. The book traces and illustrates well how one interpretation became dominant in broad academic discourse and people behind it. Such investigation responds; in one way; to a long-standing question of the role of intellectuals in 1930s and 40s Japan. While I agree with the previous reviewer in many respects; the book certainly brought about an overlooked insight about the wartime Japan and its intellectual history.What ticked me off was rather petty---typos; yet became grave---throughout the book---to the extent that some of them certainly confuse readers. For example; Minoda Muneki is introduced as "Minoda Kyôki" then switched to "Muneki;" and returned to "Kyôki." Similarly; on page 233; Tô Katsuaki is misspelled as "Fuji" Katsuaki; while Kajikawa Hikaru as "Kajiwara Hikaru." "Konuma Tadashi" on p. 236 is usually referred as Onuma Shô. Some names miss macrons while other names have extra macrons. Especially; the book does not contain "Kanji;" such misspelling can be fatal.Despite an exciting thesis; I was very much distracted by typos.... which is very unfortunate.2 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Excellent work. It is the only systematic analysis of ...By American samuraiExcellent work. It is the only systematic analysis of the ideology of prewar Japan in 70 years since the end of World War II.5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Japanese nationalism as a war against individualismBy Richard KoenigsbergWell; you can call the ideology "radical; but it was the ideology that generated World War II. Nationalism itself is a radical ideology; but we don't perceive OUR OWN nationalism as radical. Skya reveals the bizarre fantasy that lay at the heart of Japanese war-making: the belief that Japanese individuals could fuse or merge with the Emperor. Thus the entire nation could become "one heart; one body." Each and every Japanese human being would become assimilated into the body of the Emperor; and each and every Japanese would fuse with one another.According to this theory--that Skya lays out clearly--there could be no such thing as individualism; or individuality. The idea of the SEPARATE INDIVIDUAL terrified those who bought into the fantasy of oneness. The separate individual contradicted or negated the individual that there was only one body (the body of the Emperor) that contained every human being.The Japanese waged war in order to destroy the idea of the "separate individual" which; they imagined; was promoted by Westerners.
