The Aztecs - Contributing to Society Flashcards
How can society promote good citizenship?
Society could promote good citizenship because they were very strict with their expectations and rules. They made sure what they told the citizens to do and how to act was held up by them. They made the citizens live in constant fear of punishment, so they were too scared not to obey the laws and commands. They would also be taught to be extremely disciplined as children so they grew up into good citizens. From the beginning of their lives, the five virtues of an ideal Aztec citizen was placed on the children.
What was Aztec society focused on producing?
Aztec society was focused on producing good citizens who could contribute to society. They needed to have/live by the five virtues in order to become an ideal Aztec citizen.
Explain the five virtues of an ideal Aztec citizen.
The 5 virtues that made someone an ideal Aztec citizen were courage, self-sacrifice, modesty, clean living, and obedience.
Courage: Aztecs were expected to show courage and deal with hardships without complaining because it made the army strong. The worst insult among the Aztecs was to call someone a coward; a lack of courage in any soldier weekend the army, which then threatened the state.
Self-sacrifice: The group was considered more important than the individual. Every Aztec had to be willing to sacrifice possessions, comfort, and even their own life itself, for the good of society.
Modesty: No one, not even the greatest warrior was to boast about personal achievements or do anything else to stand out from the crowd.
Clean living: People had to keep themselves healthy and avoid overindulging in food and drink. The Aztecs harshly punished what they considered evil or unclean behavior.
Obedience: Everyone had to obey their superiors without question because this helped preserve the social order.
How did the legal system maintain order in society?
The legal system was powerful in maintaining order in society because it served as a tool to remind everyone of their responsibilities as citizens to be honest and obedient. Every citizen had to obey the laws and if they didn’t, there would be harsh punishments. Since the nobles were a good example for the citizens, they were judged more harshly.
What were the punishments for lawbreakers?
The punishments for lawbreakers differed with their crimes. For lesser crimes, the guilty person was fined or sentenced to slavery. For larger crimes, the guilty person was killed, since they didn’t have any prisons to put them in.
Explain the two slave laws.
The Aztecs made 2 laws for the slaves to protect their rights because they realized that the slaves performed much necessary work.
- The first law was that if a noble beat a slave so severely that the slave died, the noble could be executed.
- The second law was that if the slaves that were sold in the marketplace could escape and run to the emperor’s palace - one and a half kilometers away, they would immediately earn back their freedom.
In what two ways were the Aztec slaves different from European/American slaves?
- First off, the Aztecs didn’t think it was shameful to be a slave, but it was a matter of bad luck.
- Secondly, being a slave wasn’t considered a permanent condition, as they were able to win back their freedom/move up in society. They were able to keep their property - including their own slaves - until they paid off their debts.
- They weren’t owned, only their work was.
- Their children weren’t born into slavery, but they were free commoners.
Summary paragraph
Aztec society was focused on producing ideal citizens who would contribute to their community. Society could promote good citizenship because they were very strict with their expectations and rules. They made sure what they told the citizens to do and how to act was held up by them. They made the citizens live in constant fear of punishment, so they were too scared not to obey the laws and commands. They would also be taught to be extremely disciplined as children so they grew up into good citizens. From the beginning of their lives, the five virtues of an ideal Aztec citizen were placed on the children. The Aztecs had a very clear notion of what an ideal citizen was to them. The 5 virtues that made someone an ideal Aztec citizen were courage, self-sacrifice, modesty, clean living, and obedience. For courage, the Aztecs were expected to show courage and deal with hardships without complaining because it made the army strong. The worst insult among the Aztecs was to call someone a coward; a lack of courage in any soldier weekend the army, which then threatened the state. For self-sacrifice, the group was considered more important than the individual. Every Aztec had to be willing to sacrifice possessions, comfort, and even their own life itself, for the good of society. For modesty, no one, not even the greatest warrior was to boast about personal achievements or do anything else to stand out from the crowd. For clean living, people had to keep themselves healthy and avoid overindulging in food and drink. The Aztecs harshly punished what they considered evil or unclean behavior. For obedience, everyone had to obey their superiors without question because this helped preserve the social order.
Military service was compulsory among the Aztecs, meaning that the law required every young man to serve in the army. As soon as a boy was born, his parents would place a tiny bow and shield in his hands, which symbolized his commitment to protect the Aztec people. Contributing to society through military service was very important for the Aztecs and helped maintain order in society.
Another powerful tool in maintaining order in Aztec society was their legal system. The Aztec people had their rights protected by a system of written laws. Everyone was to obey these laws, no matter what. It served to remind people of their responsibilities as citizens to be honest and obedient. The emperor would sit on his throne at the top of his palace. Below him in the room to the right sat the judges of the high court. If someone was not satisfied with the decision made by the lower court, they would appeal to the high court and eventually to the emperor himself. The judges would base their decisions on evidence that was presented to them so that they were orderly and fair. Once they made their decisions, they handed down their sentence. For lesser crimes, the guilty person was fined or sentenced to slavery. For larger crimes, the guilty person was killed, since they didn’t have any prisons to put them in.
The Aztecs made 2 laws for the slaves to protect their rights because they realized that the slaves performed much necessary work. The first law was that if a noble beat a slave so severely that the slave died, the noble could be executed. The second law was that if the slaves that were sold in the marketplace could escape and run to the emperor’s palace - one and a half kilometers away, they would immediately earn back their freedom. The Aztecs also saw the slave differently than the Europeans. First off, the Aztecs didn’t think it was shameful to be a slave, but it was a matter of bad luck. Secondly, being a slave wasn’t considered a permanent condition, as they were able to win back their freedom/move up in society. They were able to keep their property - including their own slaves - until they paid off their debts. Thirdly, the slaves themselves weren’t owned, only their work was. Fourthly, their children weren’t born into slavery, but they were free commoners.
