title: Moral justification of anatomical dissection and conquest in the Spanish Chronicles of the Indies.
abstract: Three cases of dissections of dead bodies are included in the Spanish Chronicles of the Indies. By reporting on these advanced medico-scientific practices, the chroniclers appear to be confirming the superiority of the conquistadors over the natives and justifying the conquest. However, they problematize this supposed superiority by framing the events in complex scenarios that resound of some of the controversies surrounding dissection in the period. This contradictory treatment of dissection can be interpreted as a manifestation of the conquistadors' anxiety around being physically identical to the natives except for a fragile, skin-deep veneer of civilized behaviour.
authors.affiliation: Department of French, Spanish and Italian, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg R3T2N2, Canada. Electronic address: Enrique_Fernandez@umanitoba.ca.
authors.forename: Enrique
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fernandez
mesh_terms: D026688:Bioethical Issues / Q000266:history*; D017691:Caribbean Region; D002835:Christianity / Q000266:history / Q000523:psychology; D004210:Dissection / Q000941:ethics / Q000266:history*; D049669:History, 16th Century; D006805:Human Experimentation / Q000941:ethics / Q000266:history*; D006801:Humans; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000266:history / Q000523:psychology; D063505:Racism / Q000941:ethics / Q000266:history* / Q000523:psychology*; D012070:Religion and Science; D012933:Social Identification; D013030:Spain