Latin America studies: regional history and contemporary issues

¶ … Inca and Spanish ideas regarding the roles of females and males

This paper presents a detailed description and comparison of the Inca and Spanish ideas regarding the roles of females and males. The writer uses examples of similarities and differences to illustrate the point.

TAKING STEPS BACKWARDS

As the world continues to globalize, mankind pats itself on the back and believes that it continues to move in a forward motion. All one has to do is observe the equality of the sexes today to know that the world has come a long way from the old days. However when one studies the history of two cultures, the Spanish and the Incas one discovers that a long ago and forgotten civilization had as much if not more gender equality than has ever happened since without a fight. The Inca society was so far ahead of its time when it came to he roles of men and women that the world has not yet caught up thousands of years later.

The Spanish civilization had many similarities but over all it was far less apt to treat the genders with the same level of respect or position than the Incas did.

In the Inca society women and men were considered of equal importance. It was not uncommon for a women to have as much power or authority as a man in the workplace or the social setting. The Inca woman was considered as intelligent and capable as the man and that was demonstrated many times as the women got involved in ruling others, political styled issues and work needs. The Spanish population however, while treating the women as equals to the men in the area of royalty, it was the only place that they were equal. In other areas such as politics, work or decision making the female spent years oppressed and subservient to the men in their lives.

The Incas were smart to make the female an equal part of the equation. This gave them double the work power when they arrived in the new land and gained the status of the surrounding communities. This was how the Incas built an entire empire and had they done it without the use of the women they may have failed or may have taken much longer to succeed.

There was one area where the Incas and the Spanish were alike. When it came to the Emperor the Queen had power, but a bit less power than her husband the emperor. And their son was given clout just by being a male child. The eldest sister of the emperor however was given the highest role in spiritual leadership that there was, again evening out the roles between the genders and giving the women a fair amount of respect.