Armature of Conquest

• Introduction; Part I. The Discourse of Mythification; 1. Christopher Columbus and the definition of America as booty; 2. Hernan Cortes and the creation of the model conqueror; Part II. Demythification and Questioning: 3. From failure to demythification; 4. The models in crisis; Part III. A Literary Expression of the Unfolding of a New Consciousness: 5. Alonso de Ercilla and the development of a Spanish American Consciousness; Notes; Index.

"Of all the books inspired by the Columbian quincentenary, this is easily one of the most challenging. Bodmer uses early Spanish chronicles to take the reader on a journey of exploration. . . . A richly detailed analytical history of the gradual awakening of a critical consciousness concerning accepted versions of the discovery and conquest of America."—Canadian Journal of History "A quite splendid book."—Journal of Latin American Studies