In Response to Leah's Blog 3

I really love how you took the initiative to look up more about the instruments. I'm also a very big fan of music (I play the viola) and enjoyed reading about the vihuela. The transformation of the instrument is pretty awesome to read about and the video of the guy playing blew my mind. He was strumming so quickly!

When reading this passage it also caught my eyes because to me it displayed how across the world and time periods, people have always found freedom in writing music. Music also encompasses some of the characteristics of the formation of a nation. A simple line that demonstrated this to me was "The peasants have their own songs." (pg. 63) This serves also to show that they have their own way of life. They have their own culture that even further separates them from the others. This is the culture that Sarmiento needs to preserve if he desires Argentina to be unique from other nations.The music also served to create a community. Singing a chorus, or hearing the history of one's nation in a song, is something that cause people to gather and unite. I thought it was really interesting to see these two characteristics of a nation are brought to life through music.

Blog 3: The Color Red

So I’d like to begin by saying that I finally figured out how to change the background of my blog. I have been confused for a while now and major props to all of you who found out how in the first two seconds after making yours.

Colors have been used in many other literary works as symbols. I have always found this strategy to be fascinating because description of color is such a staple of writing in the first place and it is interesting to see when authors use it to their advantage. One of my favorite examples is the green light from The Great Gatsby. If you are unfamiliar with the book, a very summarized version is that a man named Gatsby lives across a small stretch of water from his old sweetheart Daisy who is now married. At the end of Daisy’s dock there is a green light that is constantly blinking and visible from Gatsby’s house. To Gatsby the light represents hope that one day they will be reunited. He reaches toward it in the introduction of the story (as well as in the movie) because it serves almost as a guide to Daisy. One the whole, the light also represents the American dream because that is what Daisy is to Gatsby. This is but one example of many that authors have used to make their point. I bring colors up because I saw a similar use in “The Slaughter House.”

One of the comments that Stark made during his lecture was that Rosa's supporters wore red as a way of displaying their support. This caught my attention because of the subtle dominance of red within Echeverría's short story. My question is whether or not he used the color symbolically as a literary technique or if it is a coincidence?

I personally believe that the constant descriptions of blood at the slaughterhouse has another purpose beyond showing how uncivilized the Federalists are. Red often symbolizes anger, death, blood, aggression, violence, and impurities. The slaughter house seems to be one of the places in which the Restorer (Rosa) has the most power. It seems to fit in perfectly that his power lies in a place where the most red would be found for the people have made the color and the Restorer into one entity. Therefore, when Echeverría describes the blood in the streets, the “long streams of blood spurting from every artery” of the child’s severed trunk, and that of the death of the bull, he is putting all the blame on the Restorer. It serves to make his point that where the Restorer reigns, only death and violence with prevail.

In Response to Grace's Blog 2 (sorrynotsorry I made this whole post about Disney)

I absolutely love all the connections that Grace found in the Disney songs. I find the ones from the Little Mermaid to be particularly interesting because of the premise of the sequel. I'm not positive of a specific song that demonstrates my point so I apologize for deviating from that theme. In the second movie though Ariel's daughter is barred from going into the ocean by her parents and a huge stone wall as a form of protection. She remains unaware of her mermaid heritage. I find this to be be strikingly similar to the general mindset of the elites: Europeanize the colonies and barbarians and strike their culture from the land because their traditions endanger the idea of progress. Yet, as we see when the wall is removed by the end of the movie, it is those traditions and culture that help a nation distinguish itself from others.

Back on track with the songs, there is another one that I would like to add to the list because I believe it demonstrates Sarmiento's argument concerning "barbarians" in his first chapter. It is "Savages" seen in Pocahontas when the Europeans land in the America's looking for gold. Some lines that stick out to me are "Barely even human" and "better off dead." This is the same vibe I got from Sarmiento regarding the role of the indigenous in forming a nation. He later mentions how the gauchos and settlers could become useful if they were reformed but has yet to mention anything positive concerning the indigenous.

Blog 2: Sarmiento and the Gauchos

Sarmiento's first chapter confused me. As I was reading it, I kept trying to find a piece of evidence that he wasn't entirely biased or that his use of the words savages and barbarians were to make a point concerning the misconceptions of that time period when examining the indigenous. I finally realized that he was actually very much biased against the natives and in favor of a European way of life. His idea of progress was modeled  after the United States and European nations. He believed that one must own land to see progress, that they must trade with foreign countries, and utilize the environment. Sarmiento saw the influence of the indigenous peoples to be “suffocating” the idea of progress and the life of settlers to be “primitive” and “unchanging.” My question is thus;  Why then did Sarmiento acknowledge that barbarianism “is not without its attractions” in the last paragraph of his first chapter? Doesn’t this counteract his earlier arguments?

In my view, he destroys his earlier argument in this last paragraph because he almost speaks of the gaucho way of life with type of reverence or respect.  Sarmiento often refers to the lazy life that the gauchos lead through the earlier portion of his argument though. The only explanation that I have been able to come up with is that he is acknowledging the functionality of the gaucho way of life so that he can later demonstrate how they may be reformed so that progress may occur. Perhaps he is attempting to say that with some encouragement from the elites, the wayward settlers may be Europeanized. This is the only explanation I have been able to come up with and am eager to hear how you all interpreted this section.  

Blog #1 Why I choose Latin American Civilization and Literature

Hi team! I have never done a blog before so this may be a bit interesting.  I am a double Spanish and secondary education major with a psychology minor. In high school I had the craziest Spanish teacher on this planet for three of my five years of Spanish. Her positive and exciting teaching style me fall in love with the language and want to teach it myself. I plan on studying abroad for (fingers crossed) a full year in one or more Latin American countries. I not only hope to get a much better grasp on Spanish but also learn much more about the culture found there. One of my greatest dreams is to travel the world. It is my goal to be able to teach in 3^rd world countries for a few years following my graduation at Grand Valley. Taking Latin American Civilization and Literature seemed to be the best fit as an honors sequence for me and all my aspirations. I have struggled with history throughout my entire education and was very apprehensive in selecting this course. Thankfully, the enthusiasm of Stark and Serrata as well as the material being that of something I actually care about, has made the class enjoyable.  I love being challenged and this course has definitely done so for me. A side note about me is that, as you have probably noticed, I love debating but honestly in the end I am cool with every person having their own opinion. I just love the challenge. I'm really looking forward to this next semester with you all!