A Brief Note On Film And Global Politics

Ernesto “Che” Guevara was born on June 14, 1928, in Rosario, Argentina. He came from a wealthy upper-class family but leftist ideas. Most of the family’s wealth came from an inheritance left to Ernesto’s mother. Most of that wealth was lost due to different business ventures that the family invested in. During this time the family moved to several areas of Argentina, eventually settling on a plantation in the jungle region of the country. Very quickly it became obvious to the family that Ernesto could no live in humid jungle conditions due to Ernesto’s severe asthma. Needing to live in a dryer climate due to Ernesto’s condition, the family moved to the city of Cordoba.

Methods: This investigation will describe Che Guevara’s involvement in Latin American independence movements, focusing specifically on his involvement with Fidel Castro’s “26th of July” movement. His actions and words will be analyzed, and his conduct this period of political upheaval will be used as evidence in order to answer the investigative question.

An individual’s discovery is transformative on their perceptions of the world. This is the case for the book ‘The Motorcycle Diaries’ by Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara and Keats’s sonnet “On first looking into Chapman’s Homer”. In this book, we are taken on Che’s journey as he travels Latin America as a young man, before the fame. His diary entries lead the reader into his own eyes, as a typical young man on an adventure, not the revolutionary figure we all associate him with. Through his descriptive entries of the landscape he journeys across, we discover his deeper connection to the land of South America and the love he has for its people. As well as the beautiful things that South America has to

Throughout the 1800s Latin America was trying to catch up with the rest of the Western world, progressing with increased exports, manufacturing, and industrialization. These advances did not stop the internal problems of most Latin nations. With these changes, as in the rest of the world, there was a growth in urban populations and in the middle class, adding another layer in the social structure; which in turn is just another group that will vie for power, and benefits from the government (180-90). This period is characterized with a large amount of wealth being concentrated in the hands of a few, which on paper shows great economic progress in the form of a GDP number, but there was still great wealth disparity. The switch, in Latin America, from conservatives in the early part of the 1800s, to liberals for the latter half, eventually turned to authoritarian governance; the democratic goals liberals set out to achieve were trashed for power and economic benefits, in keeping with previous generations (191).

The struggle for equality in Latin America is a perpetual conflict. This battle began in the fifteenth century when the Spaniards and Portuguese colonized the lands of the Americas. In a book titled: Latin America: an Interpretive History, author Julie A. Charlip states, Latin America has moved from paradise to poverty as a result of historical patterns that have developed over the years” (Charlip and Burns 2002, 1). The constant redundancy of the elites taking advantage of the poor is a plague that haunts the Latin American people to this day. Moreover, the struggles include income inequality, suffrage inequality, land inequality, and the desire for personal and political liberty. Nevertheless,

While still idolized by many, Che was far from a hero or a just man. Through the annals of history there have always been false idols who have abused power. The individuals who lead these great attacks on not only people that they attack but the good of humanity as a whole. Che Guevara was a leader of the Cuban Revolution who still represents hope and anti-oppression for many. Despite his later vile and atrocious acts he is still mistakenly viewed as an icon a facade of what is imagined of him to be. The reality is that he committed evil and impermissible acts “This is a man who banned music, burned books, hated blacks, was an anti-Semite, murdered those who disagreed with

How did the Paramount decision of 1948 change the U.S. film industry? To what degree did the decision alter the way the industry did business?

Ernesto “Che” Guevara was a part of the 26th of July Movement in Cuba. He became a revolutionary leader who inspired many and brought the guerrilla to victory in 1959. He was a part of the eighty-two men who sailed on the Granma from Mexico to Cuba in December of 1956 (Staten 114). The biographical film, Che: Part One directed by Steven Soderbergh, shows the journey of Che and the guerrillas as they attempted to defeat Batista’s military. Che: Part One is not simply just a depiction of Che’s life, but it brings you right into the action of the armed struggle the guerrilla faced. The revolution shaped Che into the leader he became. He started out as a simple doctor who wanted to bring the people of Cuba what they deserved. Che went through changes as the periods of the revolution went on. He grew to be a leader that would bring his people to the victories they achieved. Throughout the portrayal of the revolution, it can be seen how Che changes and adapts based on what situation he is facing and how the movie shows it. The film goes back and forth between the times Che is in Cuba fighting and after he wins the revolution and talks about his experiences.

This chapter will serve to outline the Cuban revolution and its impact on social movements in Latin America and around the world. The two key leaders of the Cuban Revolution was Fidel Castro and Che Guevara. Their rhetoric is still regarded as inspiration to many around the world. This chapter will look at their goals and mobilization of the Cuban Revolution with emphasis on the importance of their discourse. The symbolism of Che Guevara that the revolution brought to the forefront of the imaginations of young people is important to understanding the influence the Cuban Revolution had on future revolutions. The Cuban Revolution and the writings and speeches that it produced are filled with instructions for future movements. It is these

“Nearly overnight, families getting by on barely sixty dollars a month were told that their water bill would average fifteen dollars a month, a 200 percent hike (Chasteen 286).” This hyper inflation trend happened all over Latin America where there were example of people waiting in line for commodities such as bread and the price changing for every minute that passes. Having to pay incredibly high bill in that were unrealistic to pay with their lower wages. Once the short term benefits of Neoliberalism wore out, the long term effects became obvious strongly shown in Latin American society. Inequality in Latin America was incredibly high during this period seeing that the liberal model of politics highly benefits those who recognize the system and puts down those of low skills working low class jobs. In many places over Latin America it is very obvious that such inequality exists where barrios or favelas exist near high class motels for the wealthy--these barriers most likely housing the underpaid maids for the motels. A statistic exists that states 23% of Bolivia's population makes $2 a week. Such an occurrence is common throughout Latin America as the expulsion of labor unions allowed for such employment practices to occur. These were known as informal jobs where people worked in low conditions for low wages with low opportunities and benefits.

According to Lopez (2000), the poverty level in Latin America is far worse in rural areas like Mexico and the Andean countries. Government agencies, organizations and intellectuals across the world have expressed unease about the extreme amounts of poverty in Latin America (Mamalakis, 1996). The exact level of poverty in Latin America can only be projected because of the high number of people living in rural areas. This problem is only exacerbated by the number of countries in the Latin America region. Lopez (2000) projects that over sixty percent of citizens beneath the poverty level live in rural areas across Latin America. Those rural areas are more susceptible to poverty because there is less access to jobs and resources. Whole families, including children, are impoverished because they are forced to live off of the

Although Latin America has faced many social, political, and economic issues within the last three centuries, inequality remains one of the most important, historical, and omnipresent aspects of the region’s culture. As Europeans took over Latin America during the time of colonization, they implemented many elitist social structures that have held strong and are evident today (Harris). Income inequality is the most visible and greatest disparity that the region faces; yet inequality between gender, ethnicities, and education remain strong and significant problems with a necessity for improvement. Inequality of wealth and disparity of power and influence are Latin American’s greatest curses and are at the root of many of the

Ernesto Guevara was, and remains to this day, a very controversial figure. To many he is a beloved demigod, and to others he is a villainous murderer. There seems to be no middle ground when discussing the man known to most people as “Che Guevara”. “The Motorcycle Diaries”, is a movie in which Che Guevara is portrayed as an intelligent, charismatic man that believed in equality for all. The movie suggests that because he is bothered by the oppression and prejudice he witnessed during his travels in South America, he decided to dedicate his life to making a better way for the people. The movie does not tell the entire story of Che Guevara. He was an author, physician, guerilla leader, and a Marxist revolutionary among other things. The topic of discussion is why is Che Guevara loved by some people and hated by others.

In The Motorcycle Diaries, Guevara experienced a number of discoveries during his journey across South America which challenged his understanding of the widespread poverty. From a young age Che lived a relatively happy life; having received his preliminary education and enrolling at the University of Buenos Aires to study medicine. In this sense according to the standard of the culture at the time, his upbringing was one of privilege and wealth. It was only during his journey that he witnessed the abject poverty and serious inequality between the have and have nots, broadening his understanding of the world. For example, in Valparaiso, while talking to swarms of beggars huddling under dark staircases Che writes: “...we plumb the city’s depths,

I decided to write this research paper because we were assigned to find an issue or subject within Latin America to write about. One of the most widely known and influential revolutionary figure in the history of Latin America is Ché Guevara. Ché knew how to use his intelligence and judgment in all the circumstances he encountered taking advantage of each moment as if it was a highly intensive chess game he was sincerely