Latin America In The 20th Century

American attitudes towards Latin America can be summed up as an extension of larger global directives, and the exclusion of foreign powers in the region. This was highlighted especially during the Cold War as US involvement was essentially in competition with the USSR. Latin America was therefore a mere pawn in the larger context of US-Soviet competition for global dominance. The actions and methods used are also characterized by the lack of an international authority, or an atmosphere of inter-state anarchy, which shaped their calculations in the endeavor to increase their influence over Latin America. When one analyzes the situation, it seems only rational that the United States treated its southern neighbors so, due to the geographical

Cuba, unlike other Latin American countries, gained its independence from the Spanish domination near the turn of the 19th century and fell directly under American control. In 1895, Cuba was preparing itself for a third offensive against the Spanish, but in 1898 the United States declared war on Spain following the exaggeration of abuse by the Spanish Army against the Cuban people. The reason for the United States to go to war with Spain over Cuba was because the U.S. businesses had invested heavily in Cuban agriculture, mining, utilities etc. as well as the explosion of the battleship Maine. The explosion was heavily reported by U.S. newspaper as the deeds of the Spanish Army prompting Congress to go to war to avenge

Latin America is important to the United States economy and politics, but why should we care about it? The United States has supported several authoritarian regimes that have swiped through Latin American countries. The United States’ main goal regarding Latin American politics is to fight and prevent communism from taking over the region. Additionally, Latin American countries contribute to the American economy through its numerous resources and exports.

Mexico is a country between the North America and Central America. Its known for its beaches and distinct landscapes made up of mountains, deserts,deserts, and jungles. Ancient ruins like the Mayan City of Chichén Itzá and Teotihuacán are seen scattered throughout the nation. Although Mexico is stereotyped as a poor farm based area, Mexican society maintains an extreme wealth and poverty all throughout. On one hand you have your landowners and investors and rural/urban poor on the other. However, in spite the adversities, Mexico has economic and political influence in Latin America.Mexico resides on one of Earth’s tectonic plates. Which is a fragment of the “Ring of Fire,” active volcanism takes place there. One of its highest volcanic mountains

Instability was most prominent during the 19th century throughout the countries making up Latin America. Many of the countries underwent violence to become independent from Spain and Portugal, however the promise of a better way of life often fell short. One of the most significant impacts on the people of Latin America during this time was the economic changes which occurred. Wars led to the crumbling of political power and the breaking up of countries in respect to their resources, including the people of the region and the assets available to them. The creation of independent countries meant that the countries as a group could no longer trade without tariffs being levied, however it did free them colonial taxes.

Chile, formally known as the republic of Chile, is located stretching along the western lower edge of South America. It fits in between the Pacific Ocean (on its left), Andes mountains (on its right) and sits just below peru. Chile takes up a total surface area of 756,096 square km, which is 4.2% of South America. This makes it the 38th largest country in the world. Due to an estimation based of a census in 2002 the 2015 population of Chile is 18 000 000. With the estimated majority (43.2%) being 25-54 years of age. Since the change to democracy in 1989 Chile has been a hub of imigration as apposed to being a country of emigration before the change.

In today’s American society we live in a questionable economy due to inflation and as we watched unemployment rise in 2008, we wondered if it would get better? If one looks at the past to the downfall of Latin America in the late 1970’s - 1980’s it is detrimental to keep a sustainable economic flow in order to just survive. During these years one of the countries which fell during potential growth was Mexico and it has never truly recovered. Could this happen in the US? And if so, would we ever recover?

Distinguishing cultures from one another has become increasingly difficult as various societies continue to intertwine and share their aspects of popular life. Constant exposure to US and other world cultures has changed the cultures of Latin American countries somewhat, but much of society remains unchanged. Moving to the United States from Latin America alters life a great deal, and keeping touch with one’s original culture may sometimes seem unimportant or simply impossible, but those who remain Latino instead of becoming “Americanized” are those who care the most for and have the strongest tie to the culture.

The history of modern Latin America begins after the Second World War when the economic changes wrought by the war, namely the shift towards manufacturing and urbanization, produced political and diplomatic changes across the Americas. The end of the war led to increased imports from the West, reducing the competitiveness of Latin American industry. Additionally, falling crop prices led to increasing urbanization. The result of these economic and demographic shifts was the rise of a populist movement throughout Latin America.

Latin America has had a very complex history since being colonized by Spain, aside from Brazil, to its current sociopolitical movements. Unfortunately, Latin America’s cultural progression did not spread and blossom as fast as other countries because they were colonized by the retrograded country of Spain. Due to the general conservatism in Iberian culture, Spain being the cause of that, Latin America did not follow the steps towards modernity, unlike French colonized countries. After the colonization period, Latin America spent its time conserving Spanish culture. The Iberian Peninsula culture did not have the same opening into the modernity that France had. It wasn’t until the 1880’s through the 1910’s that ‘modernismo’, an anti-nationalist literary movement, arose within Latin America itself, making it a homegrown movement. Modernismo was the rejuvenation of the Spanish language and its literature. Modernismo’s literature boom allowed for the growth of other literature movements including that magical realism movement. Influenced by the European surrealism movement, authors such as Alejo Carpentier and Miguel Ángel Asturias started writing magical realism in the 1920’s and 30’s. magical realism reached it’s peak in Latin America in the 1940’s through 1950’s. During this era, political ideologies such as communism and socialism rose. Marxism was a major contribution and was widely studied by the educated citizens of Latin America. There are many parallels between Marxist

We can related this article to our class because it shows the hegemony and global relationship between the United States and Latin America. The involvement of United States throughout Latin America was to prove its power over the Soviet Union during the cold war. It was also a way of ensuring the protection of its economically and political power in Latin America. Therefore when communism started gaining massive support in El Salvador, the United States called for its US train salvadoran army to eliminate the supporters. As the author of our reading, “The Hegemony of U.S Economic Doctrines in Latin America” states “ When Latin America strayed from the path of virtue, they have been reminded to get back on the straight and narrow by the United

Both works also fictionally challenge the character of the United States. A character filled with hubris; there are many occurrences of the public misconstruing the ideals of the country. Such as the beginning of Vonnegut’s piece when the narrator reads aloud that information, regarding the bombing of Dresden is confidential. This upsets the wife of one of Pilgrim’s war acquaintances who professes her disapproval with war stating, ‘You’ll pretend you were men instead of babies, and you will be played in the movies by Frank Sinatra and John Wayne or some of those other glamorous, war-loving, dirty old men.’ Hiding terrible acts from the public or modifying the information is an issue with American culture. Maja Zehfuss weighs in on the secrecy by saying, ‘Nothing

Latin America is filled with environmental, agricultural and culturally rich countries but unfortunately it is also the place where the majority of the countries have high levels of poverty and social inequalities. Latin America is the place where we find many natural wonders like the Amazon rainforest, the Andes, the Iguazu Falls and many other natural resources. However, the economic situation is one of the poorest in the world. According to the article, The Politics of Economic adjustment policy in Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico: Experiences in the 1980’s and challenges for the future, and in, Latin American countries underwent the worst economic recession during the 1980’s. The distribution of incomes after the 1940’s was a radical change because there was a huge gap between poverty level and the elite members of society. After that point in history it has continued the same way up until contemporary times. The considerable difference in the income inequality and the high poverty rates is what interested me and in particularly during the 70’s and 80’s, which is known as “la decada perdida” or the lost decade. The lost decade was a time of economic austerity in many countries in Latin America and this is why I became interested in this topic. As a result, I interviewed my grandfather, Jose Gomez, who lived in Mexico during those harsh times of crisis that were affecting many Latin American countries during the 1970’s and 1980’s.

The development of Mexico has undergone a lot of issues that have especially occurred during the 20th century. In order for a nation to succeed in the world market it is vital that they are prosperous in the political and economical portion of their nation. This has been an issue for Mexico and can be partially blamed on the leadership as well as the revolutions and wars that have plagued their country. In more detail the leadership of Diaz, the revolution and both World Wars, and the corruption of the Mexican government parties have all been detrimental factors that has stalled the progression of the nation in the early 20th century before the reconstruction that occurred after the Mexican revolution.

Latin America is filled with countries that have such great richness in environmental, agricultural and cultural goods but unfortunately it is also the place where the majority of the countries have high levels of poverty and social inequalities. Latin America is the place where we find many natural wonders like the Amazon rainforest, the Andes, the Iguazu Falls and many other natural resources. However, the economic situation is one of the poorest in the world. According to the article, The Politics of Economic adjustment policy in Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico: Experiences in the 1980’s and challenges for the future, Latin American countries underwent the worst economic recession during the 1980’s. The distribution of incomes after the