Contact Zones: Guaman Poma An Incan Man

A contact zone is defined as “social spaces where cultures meet, clash, and grapple with each other, often in contexts of highly asymmetrical relations of power, such as colonialism, slavery, or their aftermaths as they are lived out in many parts of the world today.”(Pratt) The definition makes it sound like a very advanced concept but in actuality it happens in everyday life. You come in contact with something new everyday, from meeting someone to accidently grabbing barbeque sauce when you always grab ketchup. Some contact zones may have a more influential role in our lives than others. In Pratt’s essay she discusses how her children learned how to write and read by buying and collecting baseball cards and how Guaman Poma an Incan man whose life drastically changed when the spanish came to South America. Pratt proves that contact zones exist and that some may have a positive or negative consequence.
Pratt’s first example of a contact zone is one that affected her personally too. Her children enjoyed collecting baseball cards to the point where they started trading, drawing and even reading them. They enjoyed learning life skills by playing with baseball cards rather than in a classroom. Their contact zone started
I was not into baseball cards though, I traded pokemon cards. I remember going to school with cards trying to trade. I did not learn how to read or write but the cards taught me the value of a dollar. I had to learn how to conserve my allowance but also feed my obsession of pokemon cards. My parents told me I could spend my money but could not ask for more if I used it all. This taught me how to prioritize my money. At the time I was frustrated because I wanted to buy all the pokemon cards in the world, but now I look back and I thank my parents for helping me learn how to save my money. That contact zone had a positive effect on me just like it did on Pratt’s