1. Granted that Machiavelli’s own historical context is remote, how far does his pattern of contrasts between political ideals and concrete realities apply today?
I don’t believe that Machiavelli’s are far off from todays political ideals. The last couple weeks have been a very good example of this with the elections. There is never any positive competition, it is all very negative and trying to make the other “guy” look bad. Machiavelli talked about the morals of a person being different publicly than they are privately. And that is completely true, no person sitting on capitol hill is the same person in the public than they are with the doors closed and a little money on the table.
2. Sister Juana de la Cruz cuts off her hair to force herself to learn more quickly, although she knows that among young women, “the natural adornment of one’s hair is held in such high esteem.’ Finally, she enters the convent (where woman had their heads shorn). What other works have you read that emphasize the importance of a woman’s hair? Why does it seem to have so much symbolic value in such a range of cultures and times?
I could not think of any other works that emphasizes the importance of womens hair. I could only think of my aunt and grandma that had breast cancer and them telling me their stories of when they first went out without wigs on and how they felt. My grandma wore a wig at all times she said, because the one time she did not wear a wig she felt people pitied her when she went around town. My aunt on the other hand, thought it felt empowering when she showed up at work without hair. She felt free. So its interesting the differences in feelings.
3. Bear in mind that the Aztec warrior’s highest duty is to bring home live captives for sacrifice. Give the Song for Admonishing a careful reading and decide–without researching the entire Cantares Mexicanos–what possible meaning might be assigned to the figurative terms “flower’ and “song.’
I’m not honestly sure what the flower’s could mean. I thought that maybe this song was about getting men more amped for battle. And that the flowers were maybe warriors who have passed? I’m just honestly taking a wild guess. But thats what I felt that I was reading, was a story about trying to get warriors ready for battle, and discussing the warriors who have fell in the battles.
That’s a good point you had for number one regarding Machiavelli writing about a “politician’s” persona privately vs publicly, and I wish I had spoken to that in my post as well!
I like how you incorporated the current election into your post. I also agree with what you think the flowers in the song represent. I think that the song was a representation of the battle they were getting ready for.