Editorial Letter
Founder
Elizabeth del Castillo Zavala Editor in Chief
We find ourselves presenting a new edition of México Intercultural, with a new visual concept that upholds our working philosophy of constant growth, change and innovation.
Elizabeth del Castillo Zavala
We have started a long journey of words that seek to discover new and interesting worlds, some in unexplored terrain and others needing to be revisited to discover greater secrets. However, our search does not end here; though it has been in our line of vision as a goal for some time, the journey has only just begun. What do you think?
Lenya Caldarera Bloom
Thank you for joining us again in this great adventure called México Intercultural. It will always be a great honor to be the ambassadors of the essence of humanity in such a noble, loyal project. Today, culture, education and the arts are dressedto celebrate in our pages.
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Elizabeth del Castillo Zavala Carlos Alberto Reyes Arroyo Eduardo Barragán Reyes José Luis García Valdés Mónica Jiménez Ortiz Market Editor and General Inquires
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MEXICO INTERCULTURAL, Year 5, #13 May – August 2019 is a quarterly publishing, edited by María del Consuelo Elizabeth del Castillo Zavala; Address: Camino Cuayantla
#1804-B, San Bernardino, Tlazcalancingo, Puebla, Zip Code 72821, Phone number: 284-1253, www.mexicointercultural.org/revista-digital, Editor in Charge: María del Consuelo Elizabeth del Castillo Zavala. Number rights reservations 04-2017-031508512400-203, ISSN number 2448-9174. Title Legality and Content both granted by Instituto Nacional del Derecho de Autor. Responsible for the latest update: María del Consuelo Elizabeth del Castillo Zavala, Camino Cuayantla #1804-B, San Bernardino, Tlaxcalanzingo, San Andrés Cholula Puebla, Zip Code 72821, last up May 2019. The opinions expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the posture of the publishing editor. The partial or total reproduction of contents and pictures of the publishing is strictly forbidden without a previous authorization of the national institute of author rights.
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Journal of Culture and Education
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“A look at Mexico through the World”
That promote Human Development Laura Berenice Sánchez Baltasar* *Doctor in Organizational Administration, Puebla State Popular University. Research professor at the postgraduate program in Marketing and Administration, research in Digital Marketing.
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here were five children playing in the water— fun, happy, honest, caring for one another and without apparent worries. Seeing them so happy and trusting, and so full of the freedom which is the maximum human state, awoke questions about their future development in me. One of them has already achieved great recognition in taekwondo; the girls excel at drawing: “I´m going to be a designer” one said; the youngest one shows signs of female empowerment, explaining to me in detail a book she read about female superheroes and how they achieve great things by conquering the villains designed by gender. The youngest boy in the group, Lucas (after the creator of R2D2) has surprised us since birth with his intelligence and sensitivity. Will they experience a more refined human development than the adults that accompany them?
Human development is a composite index centered around three basic elements: (1) the opportunity to live a long, healthy life, which can be measured by life-expectancy upon birth; (2) the opportunity to acquire knowledge, which can be measured by expected years of schooling, and (3) the opportunity to achieve a worthy standard of living, measured by gross national per capita income. On the other hand, we now use technology, and especially apps, on a daily basis. During the third trimester of 2017, apps saw a 28% annual increase in income, reaching seventeen billion dollars. The amount of time dedicated to use of mobile apps also grew 40% from one year to the next, closing in on 325,000 million hours of use during the third trimester of 2017 (Alejo, 2017).
Human development has been defined as the widening range of opportunities people have, along with their ability to live longer, healthier and more fulfilled lives (Rezende, 2018). And although human development could be seen mainly as a task for government and organizations, the greatest steps in development revolve around the empowerment each person achieves, and their individual abilities to set goals and be responsible for themselves (Noha, 2018).
“Human development has been defined as the widening range of opportunities people have, along with their ability to live longer, healthier and more fulfilled lives.” Journal of Culture and Education
Thus, the use of technology, and especially apps, as a resource contributing to human development has become a viable and timely option. Below are five apps that can support the growth of this index:
4. Money Wiz Is an app designed to help administrate money and improve personal finances. It shows details of the users spending to compare activity to other months and generate a rubric for saving.
1. Runtastic Balance Offers personalized advice based on personal information, exercise objectives and weight as entered into the app. With this information the app proposes a number of calories and macronutrients for daily consumption. In fact, this app makes a recommendation for the number of calories to be consumed at each meal throughout the day. 2. Mindfulness Sci Is an app developed to collaborate in research on Complete Attention developed by the Aragon Institute of Research and Health Science. It includesa virtual instructor to guide your practice, a Mindfulness level test, videos and illustrations to simplify your practice, alarms and reminders.
5. Today in history (Hoy en la historia) Is an app that captures key information on iconic world events and important dates from across the centuries. How better to improve human development than by reminding us about moments in the past that have an impact on our present? Using these applications will not guarantee that Lucas and the other children enjoy the water more or undergo a more improved human development, but perhaps they will help adults reflect on and increase their responsibility in daily life. This, in turn, could have enough of an impact on quality of life, education, and personal finances to contribute to human development.
3. Coursera Is one of the main sources offering MOOC, open, online, free mass classes developed by Stanford University in which other universities now participate as well. It offers more than 500 classes in various languages covering 20 different fields or categories; many of these classes offer a certification of completion.
Bibliography Rezende, M. J. (2018): The Human Development Reports published between 2000 and 2005 and the construction of a public agenda on military expenditures. RAP: Brazilian Review of Public Administration, 52(5), 863-879. https:// ezproxy.upaep.mx: 2074/10.1590/0034-7612174646 Noha; Yuval (2018): 21 Lessons for the XXI Century. Spain: Debate. Alejo-Santos, Jesús; Hernández-Chan, Gandhi; Ceh-Varela, Eduardo (2017): Trends in the use of Mobile Apps. High Technology and Society Review, Vol. 9 Issue 4, p. 112-115. 4p.
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Social-Emotional
skill and psychological
wellbeing in teachers Ericka Ileana Escalante Izeta* y Laurie Cheryl Sosa Vera**
*Master of Health Sciences, specializing in human nutrition: Mexican Institute of Public Health and Doctor of Social Pedagogy: University of Granada. Research Professor and Coordinator of the Masters in Human Development: Puebla Iberoamerican University. **Student: Iberoamerican University.
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n the world we inhabit today, knowing how to handle our emotions and relearning how to communicate effectively with our social group, whether that be our family, coworkers, friends or neighbors, is fundamental. These skills are normally learned at home. However, the social crisis facing our world requires these skills to be reconstructed and presented within formal learning spaces. Traditional curriculum design has been centered on scientific and technical knowledge, leaving integral human knowledge on the sidelines for decades whilst underscoring the lack of emotional, interpersonal and communication skills. Recent scientific contributions highlight the link between emotions and thinking and thought as the bases for all human activity. Because of this, in various parts of the world, cognitive and emotional aspects have been included in curriculum design, for example in Spain and the United States, where a movement called Social and Emotional Learning is underway. Mexico has recently adopted a new curriculum that requires schools to open spaces specifically dedicated to the development of social and emotional skills in their students. In order for this education to be carried out effectively, Rafael Bisquerra, professor in Psycho-pedagogical Orientation at the University of Barcelona (UB) suggests it is necessary to begin with “an education well founded in theory and practice, where the teaching staff first develops these skills.” According to the program “Construct”, proposed by the Mexican Secretary of Public Education in 2018,
social-emotional skills are the “tools that allow people to understand and regulate their emotions, feel and show empathy for others, establish and develop positive relationships, make responsible decisions, define and achieve personal goals” social-emotional skills are the “tools that allow people to understand and regulate their emotions, feel and show empathy for others, establish and develop positive relationships, make responsible decisions, define and achieve personal goals”. Based on the results of previous research, the Secretary selected six different social-emotional skills that have been shown as fundamental to human development. These include: self-knowledge, self-regulation, social awareness, collaboration, responsible decision making and perseverance. These skills help diminish violence amongst school children, strengthen the development of tolerance and appreciation of differences, empathic interactions with peers, stronger constructive social relationships, resistance to external pressure and efficiency in seeking social support.
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All these virtues put in evidence by academia make social-emotional skills attractive because of their impact on personal development and how they build-up psychological wellbeing in teachers. Psychological wellbeing can be defined by how people evaluate their own lives. The researcher Carol Ryff defined six dimensions of positive psychological functioning that include elements of human development: autonomy, self-acceptance, positive relationships, mastery of the environment, purpose in life and personal growth. Considering this subjective wellbeing as fundamental to the work of teaching, Rafael Bisquerra proposes training teachers; this has yet to happen in Mexico. There is a great vacuum that shows how badly teachers must know to handle their own emotions, and find better ways of relating to others that allows them to live in a sense of wellbeing across all areas of their lives. As reported in a number of research reports, mental and psychosomatic illnesses are more frequent in teachers than in other professionals; teachers present higher indices of malaise, exhaustion, fatigue, headaches and tension. Cladellas-Pros, Castelló-Tarrida and Parrado-Romero published a study in 2018 revealing that 70% of teachers frequently suffer from stress, burnout, and dissatisfaction with their performance in their given positions. These feelings affect their working performance as well as their physical and mental health. In Mexico, the current situation is not favorable for teachers. Economic changes, social transformations and extended longevity have modified the population’s health outlook, and caused an increase in psycho-social problems like burnout syndrome and mental health issues. In 2005, Kohn reported a pre-
Kohn reported a prevalence of 6.2% to 8.1% depression and 5.5% general anxiety in Mexico´s population of teachers. valence of 6.2% to 8.1% depression and 5.5% general anxiety in Mexico’s population of teachers. This outlook demonstrates the need to encourage mental health among teachers, accounting not only for their need to handle their emotions and “adapt” to the education system, but also their need to deeply question and study their work environments and the education system not only as sources of knowledge for students but also as sourcesof wellbeing and health for teachers. Teachers deserve to be the center of attention with regard to health within self-initiating communities.
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Bibliography Bisquerra Alzina, R. (2005, December). Emotional education in Teacher Training.Interuniversity Journal of Teacher Training, 19(3), 95-114. Ryff, C. (2016). Well-Being and Higher Education: A Strategy for Change and the Realization of Education´s Greater Purposes (Ed. rev.). Michigan, United States of America: Bringing Theory to Practice.
“A look at Mexico through the World”
A generation of new masculinities Berenice Romero*
*Doctor of Literature: the Catholic Pontifical Universidad in Chile Mexican researcher and CONICYT Grantee (National Science and Research Council, Chile).
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am a fan of Rocky Balboa. If I tattooed a saying onto my skin, it would probably be something I learned from Rocky: “Nobody hits harder than life”. Times have changed; the construction of masculinities as complexities of the patriarchy has received a good many strong blows, some that missed and some directly to the ribs. The saga of the Italian stallion evolved, and Creed II revealed a contemporary update: a new face for new generations, touching on the nostalgia of forever-fans. Creed II is a transition piece in which we meet subjects that deny or hide their emotions and feelings, that moves on to show characters sweating out pieces of their souls during training sessions.
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“he will never leave his son, never feel ashamed of him, never abandon him like his mother did. Drago throws down the towel.”
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or centuries, men have had to keep quiet, fearful of expressing themselves differently. These silences and fears have been legitimized by men, and repeated as an echo across the long and painful history of masculinity. Apollo Creed, Rocky Balboa and Ivan Drago connect us to the original saga, especially to Rocky IV, where the confrontations and fights to reaffirm both strength and ego end up annihilating Apollo. Something changed drastically -for the better- in the characters of Adonis Creed and Viktor Drago. They are strong, powerful masculine subjects with desires for revenge. At the same time they are more human, more willing to put things right.
The character of Ivan Drago is key to understanding new masculinity; in him we can recognize that fear has a way of penetrating from generation to generation, but that it is also an option to forget traumatic social and familial histories produced in the past, to focus on the present and the future. I bet we will never forget the scene from Creed II where Viktor falls against the ropes, the camera flashes to his father’s face as he picks up a towel and looks at Adonis, Rocky and his son. Spectators are taken to the past when Rocky, fighting in the Soviet Union, lifted a white towel in his hand so as not to humiliate the African-American boxer: he never throws it down and Apollo (his friend) dies. There is a moment of doubt that lasts only seconds: Will Ivan run away, leaving his son lying there? Will he do the same thing as Rocky and overcome his pride? In the book Young Men and Masculinities: Global Culture and Intimate Lives, Victor J. Seidler asks: If in modern times men continue to define themselves as the first sex in a way that teaches independence and self-sufficiency, love becomes a problem and emotions are a sign of weakness. Men learn to hide
Journal of Culture and Education
There are only fathers that will not allow their children to make the same mistakes and who will never walk alone.
their vulnerability, even from themselves. But if they cannot allow themselves to be vulnerable, how can they allow themselves to love? (79) I return to the character of Ivan Drago: he is not afraid to show affection for his son. A father’s love wins out, he will never leave his son, never feel ashamed of him, never abandon him like his mother did. Drago throws down the towel, hugs and protects his son. Rocky misses his son, needs to meet his grandson, and enters into the most important struggle: overcoming his pride. We see Rocky’s fist knocking on the door at Rocky Jr.’s house, and a child opens up. Masculinity reigns in this territory, but without generating conflict or accounting for the invisible femininity. On the contrary, itchooses the assertion of paternity, the visibility of the men that also occupy a place in the home-the men who conquered the fear of their emotions. The feminist theorist Héléne Cixous indicates that feminine writing, thought of as the voice of the mother, should not be exclusively restricted to women. In the movie, we observe various means of employing important images centered on the role of the
mother. Recovery of the feminine within the masculine, the imaginary moment in which there is no separation from the mother, giving a voice to this absent but necessary figure when fathers come in to fill the void. For many generations we have been present while different art forms have transmitted the message that mothers never leave. In Creed II we are given the opposite message: there are no mothers, there are only fathers that will not allow their children to make the same mistakes and who will never walk alone. Creed II bids farewell to Rocky with all the respect and dignity deserved by such a legendary character, it says goodbye to physical and gender-based violence, greeting the new generations that are involved in community life and not afraid of expressing their emotions. It welcomes those who continually feel things, jumping from their seats on the verge of crying during many scenes, especially the end. The Creeds will never fear throwing down the towel; the Dragos will never again run alone; the Balboas will not care if they hit the mat a thousand times, a thousand and one times they will get back up.
Bibliography Seidler, Victor J. (2007). Masculinities: Global Cultures and Intimate Lives. Barcelona: Montesinos Publishing House, essay collection. “A look at Mexico through the World”
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Mª Teresa Mata Massó* *Coordinator of the Online Masters in Mensalus Inclusive Psychotherapy. Teaching psychotherapist at Emotional Intelligence Training (Barcelona, Spain).
Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we´re supposed to be and embracing who we are Brené Brown
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rené Brown is a professor and researcher at the University of Houston and long-time leader inmaking vulnerability visible in the fight against “perfection”. In her book, the Power of Vulnerability, Brown encourages readers to embrace imperfection and curb self-demandingness with the goal of living real personal relationships in a real life. Revealing our vulnerability connects us to others
One of the greatest human fears is not being accepted. Brown discusses the fear of disconnection and the long list of mechanisms people employ to avoid feeling left out. Among them, Brown highlights the need we have to hide the parts of our selves that make us feel ashamed and our desire to alter these elements (I not only hide who I am, I present someone entirely different). People generate beliefs like “if people see something specific in me, I will be rejected” to then present themselves artificially, hiding their pain and anxiety along with rage, sadness and fear. Without a doubt, the prototype of the unreal steals the essence of the individual and incapacitates their authentic self. It appears we have been taught to cover up our suffering and act as though “everything is fine” since
We look to connect, to feel part of, but in order to achieve this we must reveal our true selves. “who wants to be with someone who feels fear, worry or regret?” Furthermore, “what image is generated in the other when they see this?” We look to connect, to feel part of, but in order to achieve this we must reveal our true selves. Frankly, when this occurs we are a step closer to vulnerability. Showing vulnerability is an opportunity to see and be seen, to recognize and be recognized. Vulnerability allows us to listen to what is really happening within us and to share it. Vulnerability is a powerful tool for connecting to others in a satisfactory way.
Journal of Culture and Education
Connecting and feeling deserving
What makes us vulnerable makes us real
The ability to connect to others is intimately related to feeling deserving. People who manifest profound feelings of connection (of belonging or feeling part of) believe they are worthy of love, that they deserve to love themselves and be loved by others. To feel deserving we need to be courageously imperfect and, as we know, this is an eternal struggle (“I have to be the perfect parent”, “I have to be the perfect spouse”, “I have to be the perfect child”, “I have to be the perfect employee”, etc.).
This is a truly revelatory idea: What makes us vulnerable makes us real and beautiful. Vulnerability, while possibly uncomfortable, is not unbearable, but entirely necessary.
Our imperfections free us We are beginning to understand how necessary it is to accept our vulnerability, be authentic and show our true colors. This requires us to leave aside what we think we should be, in order to be who we really are, which is essential for connecting to others. This is the reason why accepting vulnerability and not wanting to be “perfect” connects us. Brown explains it clearly in the following example: “We try to be perfect, and this is dangerous for our children. Let me tell you what we think about children. They are born ready to fight. And when we hold these perfect babies in our arms it is not our job to say: “Look at her, she is perfect, it is my job to keep her perfect… to guarantee that she’ll make the tennis team in 5th grade and get into Yale in 7th”. That is not our job. Our job is to look at the baby and say: “You know what? You are not perfect; you were born to fight and deserve love and belonging.” That is our job. Show me a generation raised this way and all of today’s problems will be gone.
That fact that we express doubt, recognize errors, show exhaustion, fear losing a comfort, feel unimportant at work, get angry at our brother, cry when we are disappointed etc., places us in a realistic and sustainable mindset that saves us from demanding to be something we feel we are not. Again, it allows us to be authentic, to preserve our self-esteem, to recognize and respect our state of being.
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“Don´t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you feel alive and do it.” Let’s allow others to seeour vulnerability in depth. Brown talks about feeling fortunate to be vulnerable because it means being alive: “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you feel alive and do it. Because what the world needs is people who are alive.” Bibliography Brown, Brené. TEDxHouston, “The power of vulnerability”. TED. 2010-06-01.
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Dra. Valeria Leal Ramírez* *Doctor of Communication and Journalism at the University of Santiago de Compostela. Tenured professor in the Communication Sciences Department.
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anguage is the most apparent instrument of adaptation in human beings; and effort to justify the importance of communication in social interactions has little relevance. When we think about the act of communication, we think about social interactions that take place through written or spoken word, that is, we think about verbal communication. Nevertheless, nonverbal language always accompanies verbal conduct.
The meaning attributed to clothing and personal artefacts was broached by M. Roach and J. Eicher (1969); and interest in behavior and eye-communication is attributed to Hess (1975) and Argyle and Cook (1976). Montagu took another view of tactile behavior in 1971.
It is believed that the first mention of nonverbal communication was by Charles Darwin in his 1872 book The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animal. E. Kretscher (1925) and Sheldon (1940), researched personalities and body shape from a psychological perspective, producing three body-types: endomorph (fat), mesomorph (muscular) and ectomorph (thin). D. Efron considered culture to be a conditioning factor in formation of gestures (1941). After the 1950s, research into nonverbal communication intensified, leaving us a more profound scientific and theoretical body of work. In 1952, Ray L. Birdwhistell named elements related to physical movement and gestures “kinesthetic”. In 1959, Stuart Hall undertook research on personal and social space, calling it “proxemics”. And in 1956, Jurgen Reusch and Weldon Kees used the term nonverbal for the first time, in their book Nonverbal Communication, which discussed aspects of the origin, use and codification of human behavior and included much graphic documentation.
“The identification and definition of seven basic universal emotional expressions is attributed to Eakman”.
Journal of Culture and Education
Likewise, in an effort to deepen research on the origins and nature of nonverbal communication, Paul Ekman and W. Friesen (1969) recognized universal expressions, but discussed how the norms governing emotions are socially learned--each culture determines how and when emotions are expressed. The identification and definition of seven basic universal emotional expressions is attributed to Eakman; they include: joy, surprise, sadness, fear, anger, disgust and distain. In turn, A. Mehrabian (1971) researched how interlocutors interpret nonverbal signals during communication.
shed: kinesthetic behavior, physical characteristics, haptics, paralanguage, proxemics, artefacts and environmental factors. The research that contributes to a deeper and wider body of theoretical and scientific work on nonverbal communication is ongoing. Researchers like Fernando Poyatos, Flora Davis, Mark Knapp, Adam Kendon, Allan Pease and others continue to put into evidence one of the most recognized but controversial axioms, “there is no non-behavior, simply put, it is impossible not to behave.”
From this research in varying fields, the channels we currently use for studying behavior were establi-
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Deep breathings: its Benefits and When to use it Raúl J. Alcázar-Olán*
*Doctor in Psychology and Professor of Health Psychology at the National Autonomous University of Mexico Lead research professor in the Health Sciences Department at the Iberoamericana University, Puebla
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reathing is a natural, automatic act that we carry out without realizing it. Nevertheless, people who breathe deeply enjoy greater benefits to their physical and psychological health, as opposed to those who breathe superficially. Deep breathing means slowly filling one’s lungs to capacity with air until both the chest and abdomen move; this movement is the diaphragm, the layer dividing the thorax from the abdomen, pushing downwards towards the abdomen. Hence, deep breathing is also called diaphragmatic breathing. Simply put, if our lungs were balloon, we would fill them to the maximum (inside our chests) with our deep breathing. As a consequence, the saturation of air in the balloon would push down on the abdomen causing it to move.
Deep breathing on its own is not enough for relaxation. It has to be coupled with a relaxed mind, the activity of which can be decreased or “turned off“
Deep breathing on its own is not enough for relaxation. It has to be coupled with a relaxed mind, the activity of which can be decreased or “turned off.” One way to achieve this is by using the mind to observe how the air enters and exits through the nose while breathing deeply. Pay attention to the nasal cavities and notice how the breathing occurs. Some people are unable to relax when breathing deeply; they inhale and exhale, but their mind is focused on their worries and unfinished tasks, which impedes relaxation of the mind. As result, the body is likewise unable to relax. There are many benefits to breathing deeply. For example, there was a group of people who practiced it once a week for ten weeks. Their muscular tension, heart rate and cortisol (stress hormone) levels decreased and their moods improved (Perciavalle and others, in “Neurological Sciences”, 2017, vol. 38). There were also psychological benefits to their practice, like reduced anxiety and stress, the space to think before acting, and finding peaceful solutions and reasonable points-of-view when facing problems. Below we mention a number of places and situations where one can practice deep breathing. The great advantage is that special clothing, music or sophisticated apparatuses are unnecessary for this practice. One only needs the willingness and desire to do try. The benefits are worth the effort in terms of main-
Journal of Culture and Education
The longer and more difficult your day is the more deep breaths you can take--they will bolster your patience and help you think more clearly. taining a relaxed and healthy state during daily life. One very stressful activity is driving a car; to diminish the tension caused by driving we suggest practicing deep breathing on the following occasions: When waiting at a red light, when stuck in traffic, when stopped, when letting a pedestrian cross the road, when picking up your children or other passengers. When facing difficult situations like gridlock or an accident; when observing that others do not use their turn signals or respect traffic signs, when others drive too quickly or too slowly, or are rude to you (make obscene gestures or honk); you can also breathe deeply when a vendor or windshield washer approaches. If you use public transportation, breathe deeply while waiting, after paying your fair, before looking for a place to sit and upon finding it. The longer the bus ride, the more time you will have to breathe deeply. Another place to practice deep breathing is at school or work. For example, when you arrive and greet colleagues and/or authority figures; when you take your seat and prepare your work materials and begin your activities. The longer and more difficult your day is, the more deep breaths you can take-they will bolster your patience and help you think more clearly. If you make a mistake, breathe deeply; if someone corrects you, again. Other opportunities are meetings, decision-making moments and when
receiving instructions. Breaks will be more reparative if you use them to breathe deeply. When leaving work or school, breathe deeply. At home there are three different spaces in which to practice deep breathing. The first is in your bedroom, for example, when waking up, before and after bathing, when looking in the mirror and getting ready, or before falling asleep. Also, you can breathe deeply when carrying out tasks at home like cooking, eating, organizing or cleaning the house, or when sitting down to rest. A third option is when you are with other people, that is, when listening to your partner or children, before and after sharing a meal, while helping with homework, playing with your children, before scolding someone, when receiving guests, or when discussing a difficult issue with your partner. If I were to summarize all of the above in a single phrase, it would be: Breathe deeply all the time. The benefits will be reflected in your physical and mental health and you will be better prepared to face adversity. Right now: take a deep breath.
Bibliography Percivalle, V. (2017). The role of deep breathing on stress. Neurological Sciences, 38 (3), 451- 458.
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Naming the Historic period
before the arrival of Spaniards Carlos Ramos Rosete*
*Master in Philosophy: University of Atemajac Valley (UNIVA). Tenured professor at the Puebla State Popular Autonomous University (UPAEP).
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exican history is commonly divided into the following periods: Pre-Hispanic, Conquest, New Spain, the War of Independence, Mexican Independence, the Reform, the Porfiriato, the Revolution, and Contemporary Mexico.
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There are many names for the period whose chronology covers 3,000 AC to 1519 when Hernan Cortés arrived to the Eastern coast of what is now Mexico, founding Villa Rica de la Verdadera Cruz, now known as Veracruz. The term pre-Hispanic alludes to what existed in this land now called Mexico, a diversity of civilizations including the Olmec, Teotihuacanos, Mexica, etc... prior to Spanish presence. If Hernández de Córdoba’s 1517 journeys along the Mayan coast, now the Yucatan Peninsula, can be taken as a reference point, it would mark the end of the pre-Hispanic period. Another name to designate the above mentioned period is pre-Colombian. This denomination alludes to those who existed on this continent prior to the arrival of Cristopher Columbus on October 12th, 1492. Discussing a pre-Colombian period on a continental scale, encompasses what was known, from the beginning of the XVI century, as the West Indies-differentiating it from the East Indies (Asia); that is, the continent now called America. It is important to recall that Christopher Columbus never
set foot on the land that is now Mexico. Another name for the period is pre-Cortesian. As mentioned, this name arises from when Hernán Cortés landed on our shores to found Veracruz in 1519. Anyone with zeal for indigenous cultures would say that discussing the pre-Hispanic, pre-Columbian, or pre-Cortesian period is Eurocentric and inaccurate. We would have to ask these objectors one question: Is there another name for this period that does not allude to Spanish Europeans? Some people talk about Ancient Mexico. This nomenclature refers to the chronological period prior to the arrival of the Spanish, when many civiliza-
Discussing the pre-Hispanic, pre-Columbian, or pre-Cortesian period is Eurocentric and inaccurate.
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How valid is to assume that Ancient Mexico should include the Olmec, Teotihuacanos, Mexicas and all the Mayan peoples? tions existed that founded and then developed what is now Mexico. But another question arises: How valid is to assume that Ancient Mexico should include the Olmec, Teotihuacanos, Mexicas and all the Mayan peoples? In fact, if we wish to use the term Ancient Mexico to designate the historic period prior to the arrival of the Spaniards, we fall into historic inaccuracy for two reasons: a) The word Mexico is mestizo, with roots in the Náhuatl mexico, “umbilicus of the moon” and what Hernán Cortés wrote down at Méjico –the j would later be changed to an x—which was used to name the capital of New Spain. In the strictest sense, the term New Mexico would better refer to the period known as New Spain, prior to Independence; b) If the goal is to highlight the Mayans, Olmec, Mexicas, etc... as part of Ancient Mexico, we make the mistake of assuming these civilizations formed a single country, which is historically absurd. It would be better to say that these civilizations lived on the same land, were not contemporaries, and inhabited different geographical zones of the country now called Mexico. Thus, there would be a Mayan zone, or
a Náhuatl zone where a variety of different civilizations lived. Some people refer to this period as Mesoamerican. This term, however, refers to a geographical zone comprised of what are now central Mexico, southern Mexico, the Yucatán Peninsula and northern Central America including Guatemala and Belize. Nevertheless, an anachronism is still present because the term includes the presence of Amerigo Vespucci who began charting the West Indies, giving rise to the name America. Additionally, the geographical term Mesoamerican excludes the northern part of what is now Mexico, referred to by anthropologists as Aridoamerica.
Bibliography O´Gorman, Edmundo (2006): The Invention of America: Research into the historical structure of the New World and its sense of destiny. Economic Culture Fund, Mexico
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María Concepción Ortiz Romero* *Masters student in Family Orientation and Development (UPAEP), BA in Psychology (BUAP). Full time RRHH analyst and private practice psychologist .
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It is important, said Jung, that human beings be aware of the presence of the shadow in daily life in order to foster personal growth and change. Prometeo Review, 2001:24
ow do we relate to others? Do we consciously control how we interact with other people? Are we sure that when we “share” words, phrases, ideas and images with other people we aren’t assigning them something personally our own?
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From Carl Gustav Jung’s perspective, every human psyche can be divided in three factors: The I, or the subject’s conscious mind; the personal unconscious, including everything not in the conscious yet not exempt from being there; and finally the collective unconscious, which is the reservoir of our species’ experience, a type of knowledge we have upon birth and all share. We are not really aware of this last factor even though it influences our experiences and behavior, especially how we show our emotions. The contents of the shadow are related to different complexes, and are therefore of a natural, autonomous, emotional nature. Every time an aspect of the shadow appears, there is a conflict that entirely or partially invades our consciousness. It cannot be willfully controlled, is stronger than the “I” and, though it can be repressed, the shadow cannot be erased, it does not disappear. These negative and uncivilized impulses conflict with our idealized self-perception. This is why we tend to negate the existence of our “shadow”—none of us likes to act unacceptably or inadequately. There are different factors in people that modify relationships. The first are expectations. These arise from hoping for something more from another person, but when we meet that person, our thoughts may misinterpret the anticipated results. The second
are motivations, what we want to see in others. The third is mindset, which has a positive or negative impact on how we interpret the behavior of others, both the familiarity and the experience in the stimulus value, which provokes perceptive accentuation, among others. The better we know a person, the more complex and exact our impressions are. The way in which we grasp the outer world is through our five senses, each of them a lens through which to perceive and know the outer world; all sensory input can be called impressions. Hume wrote that impressions are perceptions as they first appear in the mind. Now, within the unconscious collective we can find the well-named and, dare I say, famous archetypical structures, which are nothing more than a tendency to form representations about a basic model; one that can vary constantly, producing awe and bewilderment when they appear in the conscience. The archetype is a part of us that is just beyond our reach, we may think it doesn´t exist. However, there are occasions upon which some archetypes make themselves known, when we are facing certain situations, circumstances or people, and what we perceive (stimuli) in these moments can cause us to act differently than how we normally would. Jung tells us that the archetypes are but typical ways of perceiving and contemplating, experiencing and reacting, of behaving and suffering that replicate life themselves. Knowing this, we can recognize that we form our own archetypes with each experience we have and each emotional tie we make to other people as we get to know them.
Journal of Culture and Education
One of the primary archetypes is the shadow, defined by Jung as “the dark side of the psyche, where unrecognized desires and repressed aspects of our personality reside”. (Jung, 1995: 230) The shadow is mainly composed of unauthorized desires, natural impulses that have been catalogued as uncivilized, morally inferior motivations, fantasies, childhood resentments, fears and injuries produced by the adult or juvenile world--basically anything we are not proud of. Sensitive to others´ perception of us, we present ourselves as friendly, correct, educated and responsible. To achieve this we must reject all elements that seem shameful or reprehensible. Our deep need for acceptance and affection make us adapt to the rules, requirements and laws of our medium. In this way we build, deep within ourselves, a subterranean world of accumulated rejection and repression. Each time an aspect of shadow surfaces, our consciousness is partially or totally invaded by conflict. This causes how we perceive the moment to be modified, generating a misinterpretation of visual, olfactory etc... stimuli. “Perceptual alterations are a wide group of problems that, in different ways, cause the perceptive process to suffer anomalies in some of its phases, and an aberrant or distorted perceptual image is generated” (Jaspers, et. al., 1913). We can say that the perceptual image is distorted when partially mismatched and aberrant when the mismatch is total. A problem occurs when we negate, reject or ignore the negative aspects of our personality. Apparently, we tend to do this because of how hard it is to look face-on at our shadow, accept it and control. But the reality is, that if we don´t do this, our “shadow” becomes the primary source of our disgrace and is powerful enough to dominate us and generate destructive behavior.
head-on. In our dreams we meet the aspects of our personality that we have yet to examine closely. The confrontation between the conscience and the shadow is a therapeutic necessity and, in reality, requisite in any complete psychological method. It is worth going through this process, to reach an agreement with “the other” in us. This is how we can get to know aspects of our nature that we have yet to accept, that no one can show us, that we cannot admit exist. When we learn to recognize and live a little more in our shadow, we become more accessible, more natural and human. We can join a group rather than hover above it, since being human among humans is natural. Definitively, we despise in others exactly that which we have inside of us, but have not dared to accept and change. From now on, before we say we dislike certain people, we should first understand and analyze our own personality.
“We must be accustomed to the idea that the conscience is not “here” and the unconscious is not “there”. Rather the psyche is the sum of the conscious-unconscious.” Carl Jung
The contents of our unconscious are constantly projected onto our surroundings. That is, our human relationships abound with these projections, attributing to others something that is our own, but that we are unconsciously unable to accept as our own. This happens to us because others are a mirror in which we see ourselves reflected. All types of projections cloud our vision of the other; destroy our objectivity and therefore all possibilities of authentic human relationship. However, through our dreams-processes where the unconscious can freely express its contents-the shadow faces us
Bibliography Araiza, M. (2001): Shadow in the Republic of Mexico, Interview with Alfonso Zárate. Prometeo, Quarterly, (29)_, p. 24 - 26. Mureddu, C. & Romero, R. (2001): Personality and its price: the shadow. Prometeo. Quarterly, (29)_, p. 52 - 59.
“A look at Mexico through the World”
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Acknowledgment We would like to thank the following professionals for their contributions to the thirteenth edition of the magazine México Intercultural: Laura Berenice Sánchez Baltasar Doctor in Organization Management, Puebla State Popular University. Research professor at the postgraduate program in Marketing and Administration, research in Digital Marketing. Ericka Ileana Escalante Izeta Master of Health Sciences, specializing in human nutrition: Mexican Institute of Public Health and Doctor of Social Pedagogy: University of Granada. Research Professor and Coordinator of the Masters in Human Development: Puebla Iberoamerican University. Berenice Romero Doctor of Literature: the Pontific Catholic University in Chile. Mexican researcher and CONICYT Grantee (National Science and Research Council, Chile).
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María Teresa Mata Massó Coordinator of the Online Masters in Mensalus Inclusive Psychotherapy. Teaching psychotherapist at Emotional Intelligence Training (Barcelona, Spain).
Valeria Leal Ramírez Doctor of Communication and Journalism at the University of Santiago de Compostela. Tenured professor in the Communication Sciences Department. Raúl J. Alcázar-Olán Doctor in Psychology and Professor of Health Psychology at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Lead research professor in the Health Sciences Department at the Iberoamerican University, Puebla. Carlos Ramos Rosete Master in Philosophy: University of Atemajac Valley (UNIVA). Tenured professor at the Puebla State Popular Autonomous University (UPAEP). María C. Ortiz Romero Masters student in Family Orientation and Development (UPAEP), BA in Psychology (BUAP) Full time HR analyst and private practice psychologist. Laurie Cheryl Sosa Vera Student: Iberoamerican University.
México Intercultural, in alliance with the civil association Entre Culturas Todos Unidos (Among Cultures All Unite) and other educational institutions, foundations and socially responsible businesses, join in the social labor of supporting indigenous education and culture in Mexico by donating and bringing educational workshops to various communities in the Sierra Madre Mountains of Puebla.
Journal of Culture and Education