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In this thesis, I examine how, during the twentieth century, the Lacandons, an ethnic subgroup of the Mayas came to be considered the " purest " of the indigenous groups living in Chiapas, the southeasternmost state of Mexico. As the development of ethnic tourism continues to intensify, a conception of culture that emphasizes timeless traditions and continuity with the past is concurrently increasing. I intend to demonstrate that this essentialization of the lacandon culture imposes constraints within which individuals must operate. However, while the ways in which they define and represent themselves for tourists, anthropologists, and other visiting foreigners reveals the pervasiveness of this essentialization, it is also argued that through these encounters, the Lacandons negotiate a space in which they articulate their subjectivities as they meet visitors' expectations.