Canizares-Esguerra, How to Write the History of the New World

“How to write the history of the New World: Histories, epistemologies and identities in the 18th Century Atlantic world.” By Jorge Canizares-Esguerra

Stanford University Press, 2001

Reading and writing history is difficult. What are the sources? Are they trustworthy? What are they trying to say? Ultimately what will the historian write with these sources? The “dissection” of sources is seen as a “post-modern” invention. In other words it is seen as a present day innovation. Jorge Canizares-Esguerra argues that this type of post-modern critical thinking can be traced back to the 17th century and continued to almost the 19th century. According to the author this critical thinking was not used in Europe but in New World, specifically Latin American and in the construction of their own histories.

Jorge Canizares-Esguerra is a professor of history in the University of Texas-Austin. The book is not an attempt to rewrite the history of the native peoples of Latin America nor is he trying to write a new history of the Spanish colonies. What he wrote, in his own words, was a history of “New World” historiography. Not only the previously written histories but also how the information was obtained and more importantly how it was used over the centuries. The same information was seen differently over the years as different groups, Europeans and Latin Americans, tried to write the history of the New World.

The work is not a simple historiography in that it does not just catalogue the various works written by various historians. The author also relates the epistemological arguments that ensued as sources were questioned on various grounds that ranged from cultural bias to social standing. Initial reports, letters and journals from sailors, friars, conquistadores and Native Americans are seen as primary sources and were initially accepted by European historians. But as times changed new methodologies were created and these types of sources were discredited. The author explains why and how they were used by later historians but in a different direction.

Professor Canizares-Esguerra organizes his book in almost chronological order starting with histories written in the 17th century written by Europeans to the 19th century histories written by Latin Americans. In his Introduction he breaks down each chapter with summaries of its content and his argument regarding that section. Chapter 1 starts his “historical epistemology” as he traces the ideas and concepts on what written history was based on at that time. Chapter 2 deals with the Native American sources and how they lost credibility among European historians. Because of this loss of credibility 17th century historians were advancing their own theories without studying primary source material. Chapter 3 deals with the “Spanish Enlightenment”, specifically his argument that it was Spain, looked as backward by other European nations, that took the lead in the critical study of history and source materials.

Chapter 4 moves back to the New World and “patriotic epistemology”. Specifically the various colonies were writing their own histories and attempted to historically connect themselves with not only their Spanish ancestors but also create a connection with the Native American civilizations. Chapter 5 continues the theme of “patriotic” points of view but also the idea that a non-European view of history was being created in a “Spanish-American” Enlightenment.

For a historian this book is very interesting. It is not written for the casual reader of history and can be daunting to a college undergraduate but on the other hand it is not limited to a Latin American historian. It is a well thought of study of historical writings and where the information for those writings originated. One of the most interesting parts of the book is the various epistemological arguments that supports his thesis. The book is a welcome addition to the study historiography. It not only traces the histories but reminds the historian the importance of the source material.