The Argentina Reader: History, Culture, Politics (The Latin America Readers)

Description

Excessively European, refreshingly European, not as European as it looks, struggling to overcome a delusion that it is European. Argentina—in all its complexity—has often been obscured by variations of the "like Europe and not like the rest of Latin America" cliché. The Argentina Reader deliberately breaks from that viewpoint. This essential introduction to Argentina’s history, culture, and society provides a richer, more comprehensive look at one of the most paradoxical of Latin American nations: a nation that used to be among the richest in the world, with the largest middle class in Latin America, yet one that entered the twenty-first century with its economy in shambles and its citizenry seething with frustration. This diverse collection brings together songs, articles, comic strips, scholarly essays, poems, and short stories. Most pieces are by Argentines. More than forty of the texts have never before appeared in English. The Argentina Reader contains photographs from Argentina’s National Archives and images of artwork by some of the country’s most talented painters and sculptors. Many selections deal with the history of indigenous Argentines, workers, women, blacks, and other groups often ignored in descriptions of the country. At the same time, the book includes excerpts by or about such major political figures as José de San Martín and Juan Perón. Pieces from literary and social figures virtually unknown in the United States appear alongside those by more well-known writers such as Jorge Luis Borges, Ricardo Piglia, and Julio Cortázar. The Argentina Reader covers the Spanish colonial regime; the years of nation building following Argentina’s independence from Spain in 1810; and the sweeping progress of economic growth and cultural change that made Argentina, by the turn of the twentieth century, the most modern country in Latin America. The bulk of the collection focuses on the twentieth century: on the popular movements that enabled Peronism and the revolutionary dreams of the 1960s and 1970s; on the dictatorship from 1976 to 1983 and the accompanying culture of terror and resistance; and, finally, on the contradictory and disconcerting tendencies unleashed by the principles of neoliberalism and the new global economy. The book also includes a list of suggestions for further reading. The Argentina Reader is an invaluable resource for those interested in learning about Argentine history and culture, whether in the classroom or in preparation for travel in Argentina. Review: Fascinating background on politics and history of Argentina - Visiting Argentina I found this book very helpful in providing a variety of perspectives on the history and politics of the nation. The country has some very clear "eposides" and specific topics that define it - colonisation, immigration, popular uprisings, police brutality, economic crisies etc and each is described by different articles with different approaches including firsthand accounts and more objective academic studies. You can dip in an read the areas that are of interest to you and skip the bits that aren't making it very accessible despite its length. Highly rcommended. Review: PERFECT INTRODUCTION TO ARGENTINA - The Argentina Reader is one of the Latin American Reader series, and like the whole series is amazing with the detail and various articles, including fiction, poetry and of course Politics. For anyone interested in Latin America, should get the whole series. Well produced, in either hardback or paperback, and well worth the money spent. But if you are only interested in Argentina you could not do better than this Reader.