∇
troperville

∇
tools

∇
toys

Must be Monday. New podcast! Just click on the fancy logo below.

SubpagesLiterature
Main
YMMV

main index

Narrative

Genre

Media

Topical Tropes

Other Categories

random

Subpages:

Literature: Popol Vuh

The Popol Vuh (meaning "Book of the People"), written by an anonymous Indian, is the most complete piece of Mesoamerican narrative that survives to this day. It narrates the beliefs of the Quich� (K'iche'), one of the most successful of the tribes that descended from the Maya, living in what is today Guatemala.

Important to note about the Popol Vuh (and included in most versions as a preamble) is the story of the book itself. It was written after the Conquest, by an already converted Indian (who kept his ancient beliefs hidden), as a way to preserve his culture. It was later found and translated several times, sadly losing some of its wonder in the process.

The first part recounts the creation of the universe. Tepeu and Gucumatz (Quich� version of Quetzalcoatl/Kukulc�n, Tepeu is more widely disputed but some equate him to the Aztec Tezcatlipoca) create the trinity god Hurac�n, who creates the earth and everything on it. In order to have someone to praise them, the first race of men is created out of wood, but the gods soon find out they can't think and destroy them with a flood. Then the narration gets distracted and follows the adventures of twin folk heroes Hunahp� and Ixbalanqu� as they cause (on orders from Hurac�n) the downfall of the proud demon/god/primitive man (again, interpretations vary) Vucub-Caquix, who pretended to be the real sun, followed by an account of the murder of the two sons of Vucub-Caquix, Zipacn� and Cabrac�n, also by the hands of the twins; the first one due to his (kinda justified) murder of a group of 400 young men that became Motz, aka the stars, and the second one for shaking mountains and general douchebaggery.

The second part tells the saga of Hun-Hunahp�, father of the heroic twins of the first part, and his brother Vucub-Hunahp�, as they are tricked and killed by the Thirteen Lords of Xibalb�, the Maya version of the underworld. The story then tells of how Ixquic, daughter of one of the Lords, becomes pregnant via the tree that had grown over Hun-Hunahp�'s corpse and gives birth to Hunahp� and Ixbalanqu�, who eventually defeat the Lords of Xibalb� in retaliation, after which they become the sun and the moon.

The third part of the story goes back to Tepeu and Gucumatz, who finally manage to create the first four men out of corn, and the first four women later. The story then tells the division of the first tribes and their lineages. At the end of the chapter the author explains the necessity of human sacrifice for the Quich�, in honor of their patron god of fire Tohil (who happens to have a lot of similarities to the Aztec god Huitzilopochtli, though some believe this is a coincidence).

The fourth part deals with the struggles of the Quich� with the other tribes, the lineage of their rulers and of the cult of Tohil. At the end, a certain noteworthy event known as the Spanish Conquest happens and the Quich� meet their doom. Cue one of the most depressing endings in the history of humanity:

"And this was the life of the Quich�, because no longer can be seen [the book of the Popol Vuh]

which the kings had in older times, for it has disappeared.

In this manner, then, all the people of the Quich�, which is now called Santa Cruz, came to an end."

Tropes found in this work include:

Ambiguously Human: it is never specified what Vucub-Caquix and his sons really are, same with Hunahp� and Ixbalanqu� and most characters.
Arc Number: the Quich� really liked the number 2. They loved it almost as much as they loved the number 4.
Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence: Hunahp� and Ixbalanqu�, as well as the 400 young men.
Badass: Hunahp� and Ixbalanqu�. Going to the underworld with nothing but a slingshot.
Blue and Orange Morality: not as prevalent as with the Aztecs, but the Quich� still made their share of human sacrifices.
Dark Is Not Evil: interestingly, the Lords of Xibalb� are associated with darkness and play an antagonistic role, but they aren't as explicitly evil as Vucub-Caquix. This is because they represent death and illness, hence they are hateful but never killed, as opposed to the punishment of Vucub-Caquix and sons.
Disproportionate Retribution: the 400 young men decide to kill Zipacn� after he helps them moving a log. It is widely believed that they really did it because he helped with a condescending attitude but that's still pretty extreme.
Downer Ending: the Quich� civilization is conquered and most of their beliefs are forgotten after they are converted.
Evil Is Petty: Vucub-Caquix and sons.
Hijacked By Jesus: not as prevalent as one may think for an Indian work post-conquest, but some similarities are jarring. Women are created while men sleep, the mother of the hero is a virgin, etc.
Loads and Loads of Characters: counting all the secondary gods, the gods that helped in the different creations of humans and the lineages you get quite the list.
- Don't forget the animals!
Rule of Three: if you count their first attempt trying to make animals into talking, thinking and praising them, Tepeu and Gucumatz do not succeed into making real humans until their third time.
Single-Minded Twins: Hunahp� and Ixbalanqu� could easily be one single person, as well as many of the many duos that appear in story.
Those Two Guys: rare heroic example in Hunahp� and Ixbalanqu�. Also notable in that pretty much every single charater is part of a duo, including the fathers, the mentors, and the gods. Even most of the Lords of Xibalb� are described in duos.
You Killed My Father: Hunahp� and Ixbalanqu� to the Thirteen Lords of Xibalb�.