ColonialLivesoffersarichvarietyofarchivaldocumentsintranslationwhichbringtolifethepoliticalandeconomicworkingsofLatinAmericancoloniesduring300yearsofSpanishrule,aswellastheday-to-daylivesofthecolonies’inhabitants.IntendedtocomplementtextbookssuchasBurkholderandJohnson’sColonialLatinAmericabypresentingstudentswithprimarysources--therawmaterialsonwhichthefactsinothertextbooksarebased--thisreaderstrivestoillustratetheimpactofissuessuchasrace,class,gender,sexuality,cultureandreligioninthedailylivesofbothnativesandcolonistsalike.Theconcerns,strugglesandperspectivesoftheinhabitantsofcolonialLatinAmericaarereflectedintranscriptsofcivilandcriminalcourtcases,administrativereviews,ecclesiasticalinvestigations,Inquisitiontrials,wills,andletterstheeditorshaveincludedinthisreader.Eachdocumentisprefacedbyanintroductionthatplacesitinthesocialandpoliticalcontextoftheperiod.Thebookalsoincludesaglossaryoftermsandlistsofsuggestedfurtherreadings.Mostuniquely,thebookoffershelpfulthematiccross-referencingsectionsandanindexofthemeswhichallowinstructorstoeasilyadaptthebooktotheircoursesandtoassignreadingsaccordingtothecriteriaoftheirownspecificcurriculums.
