Conrad and Demarest discuss the overall ideology of the Aztec and Inca empires, but seem to focus on religion, as that permeates much of what people did on a day-to-day basis. In particular, Conrad and Demarest repeatedly discuss the Andean cults of the dead, and how much of what they did, such as deceased Emperors retaining their property, revolved around this religious ideology.
Conversely, Stern deals more closely with matters such as the Andean social ideology. In particular, he mentions that concepts of justice, retribution and wrong doing were highly dependent on one's relationships in the Andean world (8). Furthermore, he explains that all aspects of Andean life were dominated by religion, thus creating a rivalry among the gods (13). This concept would have undoubtedly seemed completely alien to the Spanish Conquistadors, thus possibly helping to explain why they were so eager to destroy what they saw after getting a chance to actually look at it.. Stern also talks about how cultural fragmentation worsened as Imperial policy changed (22). To this end, I think that Stern does a better job discussing how ideologies overlapped in the Aztec world.
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