I have quite enjoyed reading The Popol Vuh so far, although it was not what I expected. The writing is very poetic, and has a rhythm to it as you read. I also like how the writing is spaced out in different sections on each page, and across many pages, because I feel like it has made my reading experience more intentional. I find myself slowing down more to read each word and making sure I am finding meaning in each section between breaks.

Our class conversation about the importance of voice and spoken word was in my mind as I read this, and I found that the theme came up quite often. One bit that stuck out to me especially was the importance of names. Every (or almost every) character in the story was named explicitly, and the meaning behind many of these names was also explained in certain cases. At other times, like Quetzal Serpent or Heart of Sky, the name is not defined in terms of what it means necessarily, but the reason for this name is explained to be because of the significance of the thing it names. Names seemed to correlate with respect, which seemed to me to be another important theme. In one case, after One Batz and One Chouen turned to monkeys, only then were they given names, as well as titles. This was said to be for the purpose of remembering them, and also ties into the artistic and cultural acts of writing, carving, singing, and playing the flute.

Another theme that seemed to come up a lot was family. Characters were often defined in terms of familial relationships to other characters. Grandmother and Grandfather seemed to be important titles and roles. Family also does not seem to be restricted to human people, as personification is used to talk about surroundings and the Earth. Twins also came up more than once. I wonder about the significance of twins, and what might be the purpose of defining this relationship. Is it about emphasizing the differences between the two twins that are clearly not genetic, or is it more about their similarities?

I am also enjoying the descriptive sensory elements of the book. The actual page layout has allowed me to slow down and emphasize each detail of the descriptions, and beyond that, the language itself is very focused on describing sensory input. The smells and taste of foods stuck out to me particularly, but also the detailed descriptions of death and gore.

Hello, LAST303!

My name is Erika Peterson; I am a second year student at UBC studying international relations and philosophy. In the realm of international relations, I am particularly interested in decolonization and related political theory, protest, and resistance. I also study Spanish, and a fair amount of my political studies have focused on Latin America, but most have not gone in depth into indigeneity, in the area or elsewhere. I am excited to learn about indigenous peoples of Latin America in relation to concepts like sovereignty, political systems, and governance. I hope to gain a better understanding of indigenous cultures in Latin America and how they are similar and different to indigenous cultures here, as well as non-indigenous groups in Latin America. Additionally, because I am from Minnesota, I hope to also draw parallels and distinctions between what I know about indigenous peoples where I am from, in Canada, and in Latin America. I am also looking forward to analyzing the means of communication and literature that we will be examining, and how different modes of transmitting stories, history, and information can themselves carry certain values and biases.

In class on Wednesday, I found the discussion on land acknowledgements to be very illuminating. Although I was familiar with the UBC land acknowledgement, the recent Faculty of Arts one was new to me. Our discussions about language and voice were very interesting to me in both these contexts. The pronouns used and different perspectives taken in each acknowledgment seems to say something about the purpose they are intending to serve, as well as who is communicating to who, and I am curious about what motivated these differences. Additionally, the inclusion of the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ language in the Arts acknowledgement seems significant to me, especially in relation to our conversation about voice. I’m interested in exploring how language and voice are connected, and how language can carry culture in ways we do not realize until we are looking at languages other than our first. The concept of subalternity is also one I am interested in, especially in the context of political relations and how the power structures of politics intersect with social and cultural dynamics. Lastly, I am excited to look at how identity interacts with the aforementioned concepts. How does an indigenous identity look different in different groups of people, different individuals, and when intersecting with other identities? How do distinct cultures express these differences or similarities?

I am looking forward to spending this semester exploring these questions and others with all of you!