Central American History

Paper Summary:

This paper takes a look at the historical, economic, social, and political forces that contributed to the governments that exist in Central America today. The paper discusses the influence of the colonial period, the influence of agrarian aspects of the Central American economies, the influence of liberal and social reform movements, and the influence of U.S economic policies on the political independence and development of the countries of Central America.

From the Paper:

"The five different countries of Central America; Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, have a history of different political regimes based on similar political ideology. All of these nations share a colonial heritage but have separate paths toward independence. They share a basic foundation of liberal political beliefs that have developed in very divergent ways. Guatemala and El Salvador established a military-authoritarianism through radical liberalism, Costa Rica a progressive democracy through reformist liberalism and traditional-authoritarianism was the structure of choice in Honduras and Nicaragua after liberalism was tried and failed (Mahoney 221)."

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