nterest to literary scholars as well as historians, ethnographers, and historians. Dowling focuses on the evaluative techniques of Cabeza de Vaca and its intertextual importance and concludes by reasserting the place of Cabeza de Vaca's account as historical record.
- Fellner, Astrid M. "Performing Cultural Memory: Scenarios of Colonial Encounter in the Writings of John Smith, Cabeza de Vaca, and Jacques Cartier." Transnational American Memories: Media and Cultural Memory. Ed. Udo J. Hebel. Berlin: de Gruyter, 2009.
- Fellner analyzes the conquest of the Americas from a performance related perspective. Touching on mysterious figures like the infamous Don Luis, Opechancanough, and Powhatan, and treating these historical figures like characters, Fellner delves into the inconsistencies and confusion inducing portions of American history. He advocates that this "notion of performance. . . . makes visible" the elements of American history that are already there, but otherwise overlooked. By examining one "scene" of Cabeza de Vaca's journey across the southern United States in which the men happened upon mysterious dead bodies, Fellner draws out the implications of what he calls the "performative practices" of American history. He also uses the scenario to highlight the value of knowledge over the value of gold -- a notion that Cabeza de Vaca seemingly begins to understand but perhaps not fully.
- Gomez-Galisteo, Carmen. "The Conquistador Who Wrote a Captivity Narrative: Cabeza de Vaca's Naufragios as a Captivity Narrative." Americana: E-Journal of American Studies in Hungary 4.2 (2008): n.p.
- Gomez-Galisteo highlights the ways in which Cabeza de Vaca's "official report" on his conquest that he sent to Spain is really more of a captivity narrative. Explaining the technical elements of captivity narratives, Gomez-Galisteo analyzes the religious and moral content of Cabeza de Vaca's work. He compares Cabeza de Vaca's captivity narrative to those of Puritans, highlighting the differences and ultimately concluding that Cabeza de Vaca's report is, in fact, a captivity narrative specific to Spanish Catholic culture and standards.
- Goodman, Nan. "Mercantilism and Cultural Difference in Cabeza de Vaca's 'Relacion'." Early American Literature 40.2 (2005): 229-50.
- Although Goodman views Cabeza de Vaca as a kind of "renaissance man" for his unusually realistic and sympathetic texts, she argues such praises may elicit overly compassionate sentiments from unfamiliar readers. He is a human, not a legend. His writings clearly exemplify a man who still considers himself separate from the "Others," making exaggerated felicitation superfluous and misleading. Goodman disputes fellow scholars' claims that Cabeza de Vaca was an early ethnographer. Rather, he states de Vaca was simply an observer, not a scientist. Keeping the time of publication in mind during analysis of La Relación places the subject matter in the correct context. His attempts at accommodation and appeasement are still wildly unconventional in contrast to Spanish imperialism and mercantilism. However, if mercantilism is such an important factor in explaining the goals of The Conquest, then perhaps Cabeza de Vaca's works should also be viewed in such light. Goodman's focus lies in the interpretation of La Relación as a description of native trade, market productivity, and population density. He claims his investigation still centers on studying hybridity, only now utilizing Cabeza de Vaca's cultural handbook to scrutinize the relationship between political agendas, mercantilism, and social objectives, and their effects on Cabeza de Vaca's identity.
- Hallenbeck, Clive. Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca: The Journey and Route of the First European to Cross the Continent of North America, 1534-1536. Glendale: Arthur H.Clarke, 1940.
- Hallenbeck's book includes a paraphrase of Cabeza de Vaca's narrative and a detailed analysis of the possible routes of Cabeza de Vaca's journey on foot from Florida to Mexico. The book includes maps and chapters devoted to Cabeza de Vaca's routes through 