Abstract
Why did Zinacantan Indians of Chiapas, Mexico, resist efforts to teach girls to speak Spanish and to learn to read? Since, after a very few years of education, an Indian leaves school and books forever, leaving very little place in adult life for a literate person, what kind of books could full this vacuum? These and similar problems were the concern of part of the research reflected in this paper, and they are discussed from the standpoint of the social relations which exist both within Zinacantan society, and without, as it faces the ladino world. Something of the nature of culture change and the communication of social relations between cultures provides the framework for the discussion of these problems in directed culture change.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.