Silence Of Argentina By Jacobo Timerman Essay

For this unit, I decided to read Kafka’s “In the Penal Colony.” The author, Franz Kafka, was an early 20th century middle-class Jew who lived in Prague and wrote mostly in German. The present short story, published in 1919, refers to an unnamed penal colony somewhere in the tropics and focuses on four characters: the commander of the camp, an invited foreign dignitary, a guard, and a victim. The story revolves a twisted idea of justice, where the punishment does not fit the crime, and the condemned does not know neither the charge nor the nature of his punishment. Indeed, justice seems completely irrelevant to the commander who is only fascinated with the torturing as an art and science; the apotheosis of the latter represented with the torturing machine that resembles a CNC router that inscribes the accusation on the skin of the condemned who then dies slowly from bleeding.

What I hope to do in this paper is to show that many of the philosophies Enrique Dussel writes about in his book Twenty Theses on Politics, have a direct correlation to what has become to be known as Argentina’s ‘Dirty War,’ with a particular interest on the struggle of the people, the ignorance towards them and the idea that they did not exist to their capturers’ except as ‘things at the disposal of the powerful.’ (TTP pg. 79). Their reaction to this type of oppression, after years of detention, torture and death, touches upon Dussel’s idea of the irruption of the collective conscious of a community that breaks the hold of the oppressor and ignites into a collective dissent.

When we think about society there is often a stark contrast between the controversy projected in our media about the issues that our society faces and the mellow, safe view we have of our own smaller, more tangible ‘local’ society. This leads us to believe that our way of life is protected and our rights secured by that concept of society that has been fabricated and built upon during the course of our short lives. However, what if society were not what we perceive it to be, and the government chose to exercise its power in an oppressive manner? As a society we would like to think that we ourselves are above such cruelty, yet as The Lonely Crossing of Juan Cabrera recounts the state of Cuba in the 1990’s so must we remember that all societies and governments view the individual differently as opposed to the whole. Each group has unique expectations that are enforced upon the individual goes beyond those expectations. The individual can very quickly find their rose glasses view of their society cracking before their very eyes as the reality of taking such a rise comes into view.

Imagining Argentina is a novel written by Lawrence Thornton, which is set in the era of the late 1970s of Argentina, during the dirty war. The dirty war came into effect when a military junta had taken power by force, shortly after the former president was removed. The main cause of the dirty war was to suppress the people of Argentina who are on the side of left wing politically. Anyone suspected or even related to the side of left-wing would have a green falcon visit their home or wherever they are, and will be kidnapped and tortured, becoming known to the people as the “disappeared”. Although thousands of Argentinians have disappeared through the years of the dirty war, their identity has not disappeared, through the power a name holds. Carlos Rueda, the protagonist, believes names to be much more than just a name. A name holds a person's uniqueness; their personality; their identity; and their story. Carlos is gifted with an imagination, which can predict the fate of the “disappeared” through the power these names hold. Although identity is a key theme, the overall message revolves around imagination. Throughout Imagining Argentina the use of imagination is always present. Thornton provides a powerful message which is imagination being our strongest tool; our reality. Imagination helps us through times of desperation and despair. The human mind is stronger than any physical force. Our power to imagine helps us stay strong, it helps us identify as humans. Imagination

During the movie No, the general environment in Chile was both repressive and free. This can be seen through multiple examples throughout the movie, however, for the purpose of this report, I will focus on two examples. The first example I will consider is the raid on the rally for No in which Renee’s wife was arrested. The second example I will consider that illustrates the freedom within Chile was the ability for the No campaign to even occur. I will then conclude with how this parallels to the democratization of Chile in being both free and repressive.

In the early days of mid-December in 1981, the Salvadoran military slaughtered hundreds of men, women, and children who they believed were accessories to the left-wing guerrilla group that was waging war against the government. Mark Danner, in the book The Massacre at El Mozote, addresses the bloodbath through the stories of survivors and guerrilla members that witnessed it as well as questioning government officials from both the El Salvadoran and the United States government. During that time period, there were numerous insurgencies that were challenging the power of the state in Latin America through propaganda and violent methods. The governments gave their militaries and elite armed forces complete autonomy when it came to

Though more than likely unintended, this movie “The Secret in Their Eyes” directed by Campanella gave me feelings of dread and despair the likes of which of have felt few other times in my life and left me with a relief and further acceptance of my dependence on God. First though I will discuss the local political themes expressed in the movie. As a foreign observer unaware of Argentina’s history or political climate, I was unable to pick up on the local subtleties of the film. Which after some digging perfectly matched up with fall into political violence proceeding the death of Argentine president Juan Peron. After the investigator’s that had a false confession beat out of a couple of suspects are reprimanded and punished the corruption and increasing moral decay mirrors that which faced Argentina. During this time of political violence and oppression as well as the “dirty” wars former criminals such as the murderer in the movie were pardoned and employed by the security service. The theme of gazing which is very prevalent throughout the movie. Another theme I will address is the beating down of and the undermining of machismo. Lastly past the political and societal themes I will discuss the impression this movie left on me.

The struggle against a totalitarian government is unsurprisingly a frequent theme in dystopian literature. Almost by definition the genre is set in a futuristic society characterized by extreme oppression and despondence. Malevolent autocrats at the helms of totalitarian governments have, throughout our history, been responsible for innumerable travesties. This young century alone has witnessed the evil of Bashar al-Assad, Omar Bashir, and Saddam Hussein. Probing only slightly deeper into our collective memory, we are acquainted with the reigns of Idi Amin, Pol Pot, Mao Zedong, Josef Stalin, Hideki Tojo, Francisco Franco, and (of course) Adolf Hitler. The last hundred years have undeniably been bloody, and it is therefore only natural that

This ultimately undermines Colonel Lanser’s preconception that a newly oppressed group of previously non-violent, free people would ever resort to violence. For a democratic society, rebellion to forced labor was inevitable. To oppress a society where freedom has been around forever, it seems they will do anything to maintain that freedom. In addition to the direct, physical consequences of Colonel Lanser’s takeover method, there is also an indirect, psychological

Evita Peron was a woman who was loved all throughout Argentina. Her death had a large effect throughout the whole country. After she died, Domingo Tellechea, was in charge of making her body presentable for the country. According to a BBC article, her body probably stayed in a van parked on the streets of the capital, behind a cinema screen in Buenos Aires and inside the city's waterworks. However, she was stored in military offices. In 1957, her body was taken to Italy and buried in a Milan cemetery under a false name. Her next stop would be Spain. The Peronist Party wanted to look for peace, so they decided the body of Eva would be brought to her widower in Spain. So, her body was driven across Europe, and deliver to John Peron.

Throughout the ensuing paper we will dive into a country of rich heritage, beautiful landscape, and an extraordinary people with a very promising future. Chile is the longest country in the world geographically speaking with a majority of the population residing in the central region, specifically Santiago, the capital, and Viña del Mar. The official language is Spanish, although in some regions a couple of other languages are still prevalent.

The country of Chile is located in western South America. The conditions vary with the mountains, deserts, and beaches.

Globalization in Argentina has affected the country in numerous ways. There are many positives and negatives. Until 1999 globalization seemed to be the reason the country was so prosperous. Pope John Paul II stated, “From the ethical point of view, can be positive or negative. In fact, there is an economic globalization which brings some positive consequences, as the phenomenon of efficiency and increased production and, with the development of relations between countries in economic, can strengthen the process of unity among peoples and make a better service to the human family. However, if globalization is ruled merely by the laws of the market applied to suit the powerful, leads to negative consequences. Such, for example, the

Argentinian culture is a mixture of many other cultures and it has been largely influenced by Spanish colonialism and immigrants from all around the world and mostly from Europe. Buenos Aires is the capital city of Argentina. The city is also known as the cultural capital and it represents political, economic and cultural heart of the country. Argentinian culture is spreaded in lots of areas from dance to language and it has very unique sides which makes the culture extremely interesting.

Problem: In Uruguay, a rightist military government ruled from 1973-1985. Their regime was characterized by repression and censorship. To prevent “threats” from leftist organizations, the military junta (governing body) utilized arrests, torture, and disappearances. In fact, during this period of time, Uruguay had the most political prisoners per capita in the world. These thousands of people were brutally tortured, a process that included beatings, the use of electricity on genitals, and the injection of painful drugs. Some of these prisoners were disappeared, meaning that the government arrested them and they were never seen again. Freedom of speech and press was severely restricted, leaving the impression that there were no problems