Abstract In the book, "Why Peron Came to Power", editor Joseph Barager states in the introduction that the intention of the book is to argue that Juan Domingo Peron was not responsible for "all the ills and misfortunes" that afflicted Argentina following WWII. This paper reviews the book, which is a collection of contributions by 21 authors, all of whom contribute short essays on pivotal periods and events leading up to and into the Peron era.
From the Paper "Barager's book about the Peronist Revolution resulted from his own personal interest, which led him to receive a ?Doherty Foundation Fellowship,? allowing him to study the Peron phenomenon; and, he also was awarded a "Penfield Traveling Scholarship" (from the University of Pennsylvania), which paid his way to live, study, research and write in Argentina from 1949 to 1950. Barager's style is straight-forward, and matter-of-fact; he does not launch into a great deal of opinion, but rather, he tries to objectively cover the voluminous material in a non-opinionated style. The scope of the material covered in the book begins in the early 1800s in Argentina, into and partly through the 1960s."
Abstract This paper discusses how both Juan Domingo Peron of Argentina and Getulio Vargas of Brazil were very influential people in the evolution of their nations and their region as a whole. It looks at how both of them were highly popular leaders in their time and enjoyed almost godlike status in their nations. It analyzes how both men took power when their countries were suffering from recession, unemployment, and economic hardship. It also shows how, due to the very different nature of the two nations and the time at which they took control of them, the two leaders were very different.
From the Paper "Vargas? regime was largely uncontested during the twenty four years of his rule. This is largely due to the fact that his power within Brazil was absolute, and no one could contemplate opposing him. Furthermore, Vargas always held out the possibility of making a deal with the opposition to include them in his administration, which was a powerful sop designed to keep people faithful to him. On the other hand, Peron's regime lasted less than ten years, and was followed by a coup that saw him toppled and sent into exile."
Abstract This paper discusses how the family in the story "Aguantado" by Junot Diaz is poor and living on the outskirts of a city and how the main issue for the family is the absence of the father. It examines how the idea of absence is increased by the way the story is told, with the narrator observing the comings and goings of others and always being outside of decision-making, in effect paralleling the role of his country, Santo Domingo, in its relationship with the US.
From the Paper "The story takes place with minimal description and little clear shaping of the narrative. It unfolds in a series of incidents that come to be related around the central issue of the missing father. The narrator notes at the beginning that he has not had a father for many years, yet the idea of the father clearly affects him greatly. He mentions his father often and relates the fortunes of the family to the missing father, also suggesting that the fortunes would improve if the father returned. When he wants so badly to know what letter was delivered and what was in the letter, he seems to suspect even before he is told that the letter comes from his father. The family seems to be suspended in time to a degree, waiting for the father to return, and unable to move forward very much until he does."
An analysis of Rafael Trujillo's exercising of military power and economic monopoly in the Dominican Republic combined with United States compliance to the proliferation of dictatorship from 1930 until 1961.
Abstract This paper first provides a brief history of U.S. relations with the Dominican Republic (1869-1930) and the establishment of the Dominican National Guard by the United States. It examines the U.S. endorsement of Trujillo and Trujillo's subsequent military rise and the election of 1930. The structure and impact of the Dominican Army is analyzed along with the Dominican economy and American investments and Trujillo's economic monopoly.
From the Paper "From 1930 until 1961, a ruthless dictator named Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina ruled the Dominican Republic. As a result of his actions as dictator, Trujillo can be accurately described as an ambitious, corrupt, intelligent megalomaniac. In order to maintain absolute control for thirty-one years, Trujillo ran his administration with efficiency and expediency. Trujillo ascended to power in the Dominican Republic through military accomplishment in the Dominican National Guard, an army established by the United States in 1916, during Marine occupation. Throughout Trujillo's dictatorship, the United States continued as a willing participant, both diplomatically and politically. Once securely in a position of power, Trujillo used several tactics in order to maintain his status until his rule as dictator ended with his assassination in 1961. These tactics included the establishment of a single-party state, forced intellectual and educational conformity, and the regular use of a secret police. However, of all the tactics used by the dictator himself, the most effective means of control were his use of both ruthless military power and economic monopoly on the domestic population. Trujillo's methods of gaining and retaining absolute power in the Dominican Republic, coupled with United States influence during his regime, resulted in the proliferation of his dictatorship from 1930 until 1961."
Abstract The writer of this paper presents the reader with a overview of the book's content and meaning. The true tale of the life of Quiroga and the events of the Argentina revolution are also discussed in this review with reference to the book.
From the Paper The authors of literary works often use their words to convey meaning or a lesson. The author uses ideas and creates the scenario in which the reader can feel that he or she has become a part of the story or time frame in the book. It is not unusual for a reader to close a good book with a sense of longing for the story to continue. This is the case in Domingo Faustino Sarmiento's; Facundo : Or, Civilization and Barbarism."
Abstract This paper is an in-depth analysis of the "dollarizing" of Argentina's economy. It describes the affects of the Convertibility Plan aimed at ending the soaring inflation in the late 80s and reorganizing the national economy. The plan replaced the Argentine peso with the U.S. dollar in the hope of eliminating the peso-dollar exchange-rate risk, lowering interest rates and stimulating economic growth. The author gives a brief overview of the economy of Argentina and its history and describes the continuous protests and national strike since 1996. The paper also looks at the "social costs" of the economic success in Argentina.
From the Paper "The "dollarizing" of Argentina's economy was the product of the genius of Domingo Cavallo, finance minister of former President Carlos Saul Menem, under a Convertibility Plan aimed at putting the country's chillingly soaring inflation in the late 80s to a sudden stop (Mark Falcoff) and then saving and re-ordering the economy as a whole. No more Argentinean money to be printed than there were dollars in circulation ? a radical measure, which worked. But it also created more trouble by raising prices above those of the United States and resulted in slow capital inflows and high unemployment rate (17% in 1997) and the consequent overthrow of President Menem after 10 years of rule.
The Convertibility Plan replaced the Argentine peso with the US dollar in the hope of eliminating the peso-dollar exchange-rate risk, lowering interest rates and stimulating economic growth (Hanke & Schuler 1999) The one-on-one rate (1 Argentine peso to US$1) induced currency stability and helped achieve free-market reforms and high growth, but this streak of genius ?proved to be more a manipulation than miracle, because it came the price of selling off national industries, services and resources (Looksmart).? These resources included airlines, telephones, railroads, subways, roads, even the control of the petroleum industry. The Plan stabilized the currency all right, but eventually damaged export trade "by shoring up the peso" (Looksmart) ?
Abstract This paper discusses the book, "The Meanings of Macho: Being a Man in Mexico City" by anthropologist Matthew Gutmann. The paper presents Gutmann's theory that the stereotype of the Macho Man is merely an image that distorts the truth and renders the society incapable of helping the Mexican society change. The paper provides a chapter by chapter summary and a critical review of the book.
From the Paper "Matthew Gutmann is an anthropologist who writes books turning his experiences and knowledge into phrases that teach a lesson that cannot be ignored. As a Professor of Anthropology at Brown University he is familiar with the gender bias inherent in society and it is this gender role that he discusses in his books. Before writing The Meanings of Macho: Being a Man in Mexico City, Gutmann lived for a year in the town of Colonia Santo Domingo. His reason for staying there was that he wanted to experience first hand the community culture and norm so as to understand the social dynamics that created the 'Macho Man'."
Abstract This paper examines how, in June 1943, Juan Domingo Peron suddenly burst onto the Argentine political scene as the new "strongman" behind the military junta that took power and how, although previously unknown, he was to become the pivot around which Argentina's power struggles would revolve for the next three decades. It looks at how Peron represented himself as a leader for the common people, how his administration-embezzled funds, stole from the workers ,and how, with the help of his wife, Eva Peron, who became a spiritual symbol for the nation, he reigned over Argentina until after her death. His government was overthrown by a military coup in 1955.
From the Paper "The rise of Juan Peron was as Vadney put it a "lucky break". As a result of the coup in 1943, ?few of the officers involved had any better ideas about how to manage the new political classes that had been forming over the last several decades. However, one among their number did. This was Juan Peron.? As a member of the War Department, Peron was in a position to influence appointments in the army and thus to increase his personal following among the officer corps. In addition, the Labor Department provided an opportunity to cultivate the masses, mainly by intervening in strikes to win settlements favorable to the working class and by co-opting the trade union leadership."
Abstract This paper provides five brief essays on a number of different aspects of Latin America and its revolutionary history, including essays on: Simon Bolivar, Domingo Sarmiento, and Juan Manuel de Rosas; Emiliano Zapata; the political uses of history in independence and post-independence writings; the idea of race in Latin America; and, the way revolution has functioned as a concept in Latin American history.
From the Paper "Essay One The independence achieved in Latin America freed nations from colonial rule.Despite this freedom there were many similarities between the colonial and post-independence eras in terms of goals rhetoric ..."
