Breakout Room Discussion
Pick one of the questions and have an open discussion, making sure everybody has an opportunity to speak and express ideas.
Analyze The Motorcycle Diaries as a narrative of Latin American identity and solidarity.
Examine Latin America’s socio-economic and political realities in the mid-20th century as depicted in the film.
Discuss the role of travel and witnessing in shaping Ernesto “Che” Guevara’s revolutionary consciousness.
General Question
Use the chatbox to respond:
How can we connect the film with a more extensive history of anticolonial independence and revolutions in the region during the 19th and 20th centuries?
Brewer’s Overview
The Nature and Persistence of Revolutionary Violence in Latin America
Latin American history is marked by frequent revolutions, often accompanied by violence, as a means to achieve political and social change. The wars for independence in the early 19th century exemplify this revolutionary fervor, with widespread political and social upheaval leading to the loss of thousands of lives. Marginalized communities such as Indigenous people and Afro-descendent (free and enslaved) had a complex engagement with the independence wars.
Some fought for the Revolutionary Creoles, some with the Spaniards, and others escaped to remote areas, forming self-sustainable maroon communities far from cities and government centers. The promise of personal freedom was the primary consideration for these historically subjugated groups.
Distinction Between Political and Social Revolutions
Political revolutions aim to transform political systems while maintaining societal structures, often initiated by elites like the Creoles in Latin America. In contrast, social revolutions involve grassroots movements that fundamentally change a nation’s economic and cultural infrastructure, are bloodier, and typically arise when political revolutions fail or become unstable.
The Escalation and Social Impact of Independence Movements
Initially driven by Creoles seeking political control from the Peninsulars, the independence movements quickly evolved into broader social revolutions as marginalized groups, including Indians, Africans, and Castas, rose to demand freedom from systemic cultural, economic, and political oppression. This resulted in widespread destruction and significant societal transformation, highlighting the bottom-up nature of these social revolutions.
The Post-Independence Revolutionary Period
Latin Americans fought hard for their freedom from Iberian control. Between 1810 and 1825, the colonies won victories, set up governments, and divided into new countries. But independence did not fix all of their problems. Some of these areas continued to struggle for years. They discovered that even though they had fought for their freedom from political and economic oppression by Spain and Portugal, they were fettered by many of the same political and financial problems that they had endured under colonialism, such as governmental corruption, racial inequality, and economic exploitation. And so the revolutions continued. Latin American peoples believed that if they continued to fight, they would one day find that elusive freedom they sought (Brewer, 95).
Understanding the Principal Factors of the Cuban Revolution
Instructions:
Re-read Brewer’s discussion on the Cuban Revolution (Pages 96-97). Write down three takeaways.
Who Was Ernesto “Che” Guevara?
Considering the debates and controversies concerning Guevara’s legacy, what does the film try to communicate? How does the film’s tone change as Guevara and Granado detach themselves from their middle to upper-class backdrop?
In-class Written Reflection
Pick one of the following sequences from the film and reflect on the symbolism of it concerning the socio-political realities of the region:
a. the encounter with the mining couple
b. working in the leper colony
c. Guevara’s swim across the river during his birthday.
- Connect the sequence/theme to broader socio-political issues in Latin America at the time.
- Discuss how the scene contributes to Guevara’s evolving worldview.
- Relate the themes in the film to readings from the course.
Reflecting on Revolutionary Latinoamerica Through Music
Residente’s “This Is Not America”
How do you interpret the images of the music video?
For those who speak Spanish how does Residente’s and Ibeyi’s lyrics complement those images?