Mariategui: Feudalism and The Commons

Reading Blog 6

Reading Mariategui’s chapter “The Problem of the Indian,” I was most drawn to reflect on feudalism and the form it took, the hacienda, under Spanish colonization. Mariategui states on page 23 of the latinfundista (the feudal lord) that “the written law is powerless against his authority, which is supported by custom and habit.” Mariategui is essentially describing how legal and administrative reforms cannot fix the ‘Indian problem’, because it “is rooted in the land tenure system of our economy” (22). As I lack extensive knowledge on the historical progression of the hacienda system in Peru, Mariategui’s chapter draws me instead to consider what I know of feudalism in other areas of the world (don’t worry Jon, I am coming back to Peru, just trust the process). 

Largely, feudalism is most associated with Medieval Europe, although it existed in various forms across Asia as well. Feudalism as a system involves the structuring of society around relationships to the land, where the owner is at the top and the workers, or serfs, are at the bottom, tied to the land through a tennant style relationship to the Lord (or whatever they were called) in exchange for their labour and service. Feudalism eventually became less common across Europe post-Middle Ages, as new economic, political and social systems were formed. The reason I went on this tangent was really just to reiterate that feudalism sucks.

Thinking about feualism as the precursor to capitalism and then eventually communism, and considering Mariategui was writing in the early 20th century, I wonder what Peru’s current economic system more closely resembles? Perhaps it really is a combination, with the Indigenous socialism remaining in smaller forms in highland communities. Thinking about Incan communism, I am drawn to think about the concept of The Commons, and what that looked like for Indigenous communities in the Andes pre-Conquest, during colonization, soon after Independence, and now. The Commons refers to something (often both tangible and intangible) that is shared, or common, among a whole community or even society. The Commons can refer to land, resources, knowledge, etc. It is an interactive space, ever growing and changing, and a vital centre for community building and sharing. I wonder how/what form The Commons takes in Andean communities now?

In Chinchero, the weaving shop we went to appeared to be a Common space for the women working/living there. They all seemed to be taking part in both the business and residential side of the building; there were young children running around, and it wasn’t clear who their mother(s) were, because all of the women seemed to be taking on the caretaker position. I am wondering about child-rearing as part of The Commons, as the colloquial phrase “it takes a village” comes from a very real practice that has become less ~common~ due to the mainstream nature of the nuclear family dynamic, particularly in the West and Western-colonized areas.

Anyways, that’s my tangent. Jon has said to me that he is okay with rants, and this certainly counts as one.

Caroline