Seminar Student: Zhixiao Zhang (Enya Zhang) Seminar Leader: Natalia Wojcik A Brief History of Latin America through Dance Uniform and Unique: Early Colonization’s Impact on Latin America’s Modern Status Even till now, Latin America has been too much shrouded in representing nouns. On one hand, people lament its factual economic backwardness and failure to achieve real republicanism, assuming it to be chaotic and corruptive; on the other hand, the vigorous Cha-cha and Salsa with their enthusiastic movements take the world by fervor, and Shakira’s Latin Rock has crowned her with Grammy Awards two times. The question is: Do these seemingly contrasting political and cultural perceptions of Latin America truly contradict each other? When examined …show more content…
For one, the lasting legacy of feudalism continued as liberalism and conservatism strived to prove each other unworthy, and Caudillo powers gave military elements to newly-pronounced governments. The shifts between dictatorship and civilian government were frequent and often fierce, and the “criteria” of ruling legitimacy fell heavily on the economic performance of a state, which often fluctuated due to the state’s economic dependency on basic, raw material exports to Europe. In the Caudillo era of several states including 1858-1863 Venezuela, Mexico under Santa Anna, and early Peru years, leaders became military dictators, and civil rebellions flamed. To this extent, a military seed had been planted in Latin America, which, according to Alfred Stepan, may have given some clue to the 1960s tide of New Professionalism also aimed at internal security as well as military politicization. The political and economic instability greatly disturbed the development of life quality in Latin America as a …show more content…
As put by Julian Ventura, Mexican Ambassador to China in the interview Latin America Culture Lands in China, “Once the window of language [China’s interest in Spanish] opens, the other window to social context opens too.” The adaption of folk dances brings about stage plays and local recreational dancing facilities in various countries. The process of early colonization has had its cultural implications in modern Latin America culture expansion and communication. As China comes into economic partnerships with Latin American states, cultural integration has facilitated the process into a deeper, more stable one. Culture, though affected by political dynamics, should wind through political issues and reach other cultures to gain long-term understanding of the essence that lies in Latin America: originality and