Creativity In The Aztec Culture

The Aztecs had one of the most distinctive and intelligent cultures of its time. Aztecs were very educated. They studied the stars and created an accurate calendar. Creativity was another key aspect in Aztec life. Many statues and paintings that displayed their imagination were found where they used to live. Poetry was also found at their cities. Aztec poetry was written for ceremonies and common life, about important themes relevant to the Central American civilization, and by wise men and the wealthy. The Aztecs believed that creativity had a divine nature. In their mythology, Ometeotl, the creator of the universe, became a god through artistry. The Aztec people believed that the arts imitated the deity and that life was only an illusion; only divinity was real (“Aztec Poetry”). If poetry was divine in nature, then it would make the creator immortal.
Poetry in the Aztec civilization was called flower and song, two metaphors for art and symbolism. There were two types of poetry: religious and secular (Curl). Religious poets dedicated entire pieces to one god. Secular poems were for …show more content…
Flower and song combined spiritual and worldly themes. Poets often wrote about deep philosophical themes, such as death. Other themes included in poetry were war, love, friendship, and fame. Poets also wrote about historical events (Brinton). Many poems praised great leaders and memorable battles (Curl). Types of poems were split up according to their themes, for instance there were spring songs, which were light and spiritual, and orphan songs, or sad poems. Aztec poems had a different style from those written in Europe. Poems included common metaphors and synonyms and used imagery. Flower and song used rhyme, but had no fixed rhyme scheme or meter (Curl). They consisted of stanzas but there was no constant line and stanza length (Curl). The stanzas of the poems were often defined by repetitive meaningless