Author Description

The conflict between a people's determination to preserve their socio-cultural identity and the aspiration toward technological progress and knowledge has become common in the age of globalization. One people that has remarkably kept a balance between tradition and progress are the Mazahuas of Central Mexico, one the numerous groups of contemporary Mexican Indians. Purgatory and Utopia, now available in paperback, describes how the Mazahuas, although fully bilingual, have preserved their cultural identity and some of their ancient social institutions, while at the same time modifying their lifestyles, in a gradual, natural way, due to their proximity to powerful Western infl uences."