Soviet Influence On Cuban Culture 1961 1987

This book examines the ways in which the Cuban-Soviet relationship was expressed in the cultural sphere between 1961 and 1987. It specifically focuses on the theater and the visual arts to analyze the ways in which the culture became a means of asserting the Cuban Revolution’s independence.

This book examines the ways in which the Cuban-Soviet relationship was expressed in the cultural sphere between 1961 and 1987. It specifically focuses on the theater and the visual arts to analyze the ways in which the culture became a means of asserting the Cuban Revolution's independence.

No country in Latin America has escaped the symbolic influence of the United States to the extent that Revolutionary Cuba has. This resistance meant that for approximately three decades the Soviet Union had an invitation to intervene in practically all Cuban spheres. With sixteen essays by renowned writers and artists, Caviar with Rum: Cuba-USSR and the Post-Soviet Experience is the first book of its kind to bring to life how and why the Soviet period is revisited these days and what this means for creative production and the future of geopolitics.

The Soviet Union and Cuba (1987) examines the thesis that Cuba acted as an extension of Soviet foreign policy or surrogate of the USSR in the Third World. The Soviet-Cuban link is assessed in four conflicts: Angola, Ethiopia, Grenada and Nicaragua. It is shown that Cuba is largely an autonomous actor in international relations, and that bilateral influence flows in both directions. Thus Western reaction to Cuban and Soviet activity in the Third World is often based on misperceptions.

Authorities in postrevolutionary Cuba worked to establish a binary society in which citizens were either patriots or traitors. This all-or-nothing approach reflected in the familiar slogan “patria o muerte” (fatherland or death) has recently been challenged in protests that have adopted the theme song “patria y vida” (fatherland and life), a collaboration by exiles that, predictably, has been banned in Cuba itself. Lillian Guerra excavates the rise of a Soviet-advised Communist culture controlled by state institutions and the creation of a multidimensional system of state security whose functions embedded themselves into daily activities and individual consciousness and reinforced these binaries. But despite public performance of patriotism, the life experience of many Cubans was somewhere in between. Guerra explores these in-between spaces and looks at Cuban citizens’ complicity with authoritarianism, leaders’ exploitation of an earnest anti-imperialist nationalism, and the duality of an existence that contains elements of both support and betrayal of a nation and of an ideology.

This work is a completely new Historical Dictionary for Cuba (the first since 1988). It gives a comprehensive and detailed coverage and analysis of all of the key elements, factors, biographies, narratives, and treaties in Cuban history from the 1400s to the present day, with an emphasis on the decades after 1959. Historical Dictionary of Cuba, Third Edition contains a chronology, an introduction, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has more than 1.000 cross-referenced entries on important personalities as well as aspects of the country’s politics, economy, foreign relations, religion, and culture. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Cuba.

Cuban International Relations at 60 brings together the perspectives of leading experts and the personal accounts of two ambassadors to examine Cuba’s global engagement and foreign policy since January 1959 by focusing on the island’s key international relationships and issues. Thisbook’s first section focuseson Havana’s complex relationship with Washington and its second section concentrates on Cuba’s other key relationships with consideration also being given to Cuba's external trade and investment sectors and the possibility of the island becoming a future petro-power. Throughout this study due attention is given to the role of history and Cuban nationalism in the formation of the island’s unique foreign policy. This book’s examination and reflection on Cuba as an actor on the international arena for the 60 years of the revolutionary period highlights the multifaceted and complex reasons for the island’s global engagement. It concludes that Cuba’s global presence since January 1959 has been remarkable for a Caribbean island, is unparalleled, and is likely to continue for the foreseeable future. Scholars of international relations, Latin American studies, and political science n will find this book particularly interesting.

Few island nations have stirred the soul like Cuba. From Hemingway's intoxicating Havana to Ry Cooder's Buena Vista Social Club, outsiders have persistently been fascinated by Cuba for its music (jazz to rumba), its rich literature, its art and dance (danzón to mambo) and perhaps above all for its bold experiment of a socialist revolution in action. Antoni Kapcia shows how the thaw in relations between Cuba and the USA now makes a fresh appraisal of the country and its modern history essential. He authoritatively explores the 'essence' of the Cuban revolution, revealing it to be a maverick phenomenon tied not so much to socialism or Communism for their own sakes but instead to an idealistic vision of postcolonial nationalism. Reassessing the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, the author examines the central personalities: not just the famous trio of Che Guevara, Fidel and Raúl Castro in shaping the ideas of the revolution but, still further back, the visionary ideology of José Martí. Kapcia's book reflects on the future of the revolution as aúl nd his government began to cede power to a new generation.

Social and Solidarity Economy in Cuba examines the role of Social and Solidarity Economics (SSE) amidst national change in Cuba. Depicting both challenges and opportunities, this book makes a strong and sustained case for solidary and socially responsible practices in Cuba.