Argentina: A Global Studies Handbook (Global Studies: Latin America & the Caribbean)

374 Pages·2008·4.42 MB·English

by  Todd L. Edwards

ARGENTINA
A Global Studies Handbook
Other Titles in
ABC-CLIO’s
GLOBAL STUDIES: LATIN AMERICA
& THE CARIBBEAN
Series
Brazil, Todd L. Edwards
Chile, Lisa M. Edwards
Costa Rica, Meg Tyler Mitchell and Scott Pentzer
Cuba, Ted A. Henken
Mexico, James D. Huck, Jr.
GLOBAL STUDIES: LATIN AMERICA
& THE CARIBBEAN
ARGENTINA
A Global Studies Handbook
Todd L. Edwards
Santa Barbara, California (cid:127) Denver, Colorado (cid:127) Oxford, England
Copyright © 2008 by ABC-CLIO, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other-
wise, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review, without
prior permission in writing from the publishers.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Edwards, Todd L.
Argentina : a global studies handbook / Todd L. Edwards.
p. cm. — (ABC-CLIO’s global studies. Latin America and the
Caribbean)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-85109-986-3(hard copy : alk. paper) —
ISBN 978-1-85109-987-0(ebook)
1. Argentina—Handbooks, manuals, etc. I. Title.
F2808.5.E39 2008
982—dc22 2007031368
12 11 10 09 08 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Production Editor Kristine Swift
Editorial Assistant Sara Springer
Production Manager Don Schmidt
Media Editor Katherine Jackson
Media Resources Coordinator Ellen Brenna Dougherty
Media Resources Manager Caroline Price
File Management Coordinator Paula Gerard
ABC-CLIO, Inc.
130 Cremona Drive, P.O. Box 1911
Santa Barbara, California 93116-1911
This book is also available on the World Wide Web as an ebook.
Visit www.abc-clio.com for details.
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Manufactured in the United States of America
Contents
Series Editor’s Foreword ix
Preface xiii
Maps xix
PART ONE: NARRATIVE SECTION 1
Chapter One: Geography and History 3
The Physical Setting 3
Argentina’s Ignominious Discovery 6
Spanish Exploration and Conquest 10
A Note on the Indigenous Population 11
The Early Communities of Argentina 14
Buenos Aires in Early Colonial Argentina 16
The Bourbon Reforms 19
Buenos Aires and the Bourbon Reforms 20
Collapse of Colonial Authority and Independence 22
Unitarios and Federalists 25
Juan Manuel de Rosas (1829–1845) 27
A New Constitution 30
The Liberal Era (1880–1916) 33
The Decline of the Liberal Era (1916–1930) 36
The Military Removes Yrigoyen 37
Juan Domingo Perón and the Rise of Populism 39
Military Stewardship 43
Bureaucratic Authoritarianism 45
Perón’s Return to Power 47
Military Rule 48
The Falklands War 50
Transition to Democracy 51
v
vi Contents
Menem’s Departure and the Collapse of the Peso 55
Néstor Kirchner 58
Cristina Fernández de Kirchner 59
References 60
Chapter Two: The Argentine Economy 61
Introduction 61
Growth and Development 64
The Historical Setting: Argentina’s Colonial Economy 65
Buenos Aires and the Rural Economy 68
The Saladero 69
Independence and Entry into the World Economy 71
Argentina’s Post-Independence Economy 72
The Rise of Sheep Raising (and the Transition
to the Golden Age) 76
Argentina’s Golden Age (1870–1914) 78
Stalled Progress (1914–1930) 83
The Move to Industrialization 86
Perón and the Economy 87
Military Stewardship 92
Bureaucratic Authoritarianism I 94
Perón’s Return 96
Bureaucratic Authoritarianism II 98
The Economy and the Transition to Democracy 100
The Reform Administration of Carlos Menem 103
Fernando de la Rúa and the Collapse of
Convertibility 108
Néstor Kirchner 112
Cristina Fernández de Kirchner 116
References 117
Chapter Three: Politics and Government 119
Introduction 119
The Historical Backdrop 122
The Early Growth of Buenos Aires 123
The Bourbon Reforms (1702–1800) 124
Contents vii
Collapse of Colonial Authority and the Move
to Independence 126
Unitarios versus Federales (1812–1829) 130
The Rosas Dictatorship (1829–1852) 132
Confederation and Constitution (1852–1862) 134
The Argentine Republic 135
The Generation of 1880 and the Era of
Liberal Rule 138
Military Coup 140
Perón and Peronism 142
Military Stewardship 147
Bureaucratic Authoritarianism I (1966–1973) 150
Perón’s Brief Return 153
Bureaucratic Authoritarianism II (1976–1983) 155
The Falklands War (and the End of Military Rule) 158
Transition to Democracy 160
Carlos Menem 162
Fernando de la Rúa 166
Political Crisis 169
Néstor Kirchner 171
Cristina Fernández de Kirchner 175
A Note on Argentina’s Foreign Policy 175
References 179
Chapter Four: Society and Culture 181
Introduction 181
Population in Argentina: Historical Background 185
Peninsulares and Criollos 185
Indigenous Populations 186
African Slaves 187
Argentine Race and Ethnicity, Continued 188
Waves of European Immigration 192
Religion 199
Roman Catholicism 199
Judaism 203
Protestantism 204
viii Contents
Argentine Spanish 206
Social Customs in Argentina 207
The National Identity 208
Food and Drink 215
Argentine Arts, Literature, and Cinema 219
Art 219
Music 224
Literature 228
Cinema 242
Print Media and Broadcasting 244
Selected Themes of Modern Argentine Life 249
Poverty and Slums 249
Sports 251
Holidays 253
Women in Argentina 254
Education 257
References 260
PARTTWO: REFERENCE SECTION 263
Key Events in Argentine History 265
Significant People, Places, and Events 285
Argentina-Related Organizations 315
Business and Economic Resources 315
Cultural Exchanges and Educational Resources 316
Government Resources 317
News Resources 318
Tourism Resources 319
Annotated Bibliography 321
General Works 321
Geography and History 323
The Economy 325
Politics and Government 327
Society and Culture 328
Index 331
About the Author 351
Series Editor’s Foreword
In a world in which borders are blurring and cultures are
blending at a dizzying pace, becoming more globally aware and
knowledgeable is imperative. This is especially true regarding
one’s immediate neighbors, where the links are most intense
and most profound. For this very pragmatic reason, knowing
more about Latin America is especially relevant to us in the
United States. Yet outside of such a practical consideration,
Latin America is a fascinating region of the world on its own
terms, and it is worth the time and energy to get to know the
region better simply as a matter of intellectual curiosity. By
providing a readable and engaging introduction to a represen-
tative selection of the region’s countries, this series hopes to
engage readers and nurture their curiosity in the region and
its people.
One thing that this series will make abundantly clear is
that Latin America is not a homogeneous region. For example,
its population is remarkably diverse. Indigenous peoples are
spread throughout the region, even constituting the majority
of populations in countries where the largest of the region’s
magnificent pre-Columbian civilizations were centered.
Descendents of the Iberian European colonizers continue to
dominate the region’s political and economic landscape,
although recently arrived immigrant populations from Europe
and Asia have made significant inroads in the economic, polit-
ical, and cultural life of the countries of the region. The cen-
trality of Latin America to the Atlantic slave trade network
brought hundreds of thousands of Africans to the region to
labor in the plantations. The African cultural legacy is partic-
ularly relevant to modern Brazil and the Gulf-Caribbean
countries. And the process of racial mixture, or miscegena-
tion, that occurred freely and consistently over the past
ix