Papers by Alejandro Quintana
Americas, 2018
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Pancho Villa
Providing both an analysis of the Mexican Revolution and a compelling story of the notorious Panc... more Providing both an analysis of the Mexican Revolution and a compelling story of the notorious Pancho Villa, this book describes this historical period from the perspective of its most iconic figure. Doroteo Arangoâmuch better known as "Pancho Villa"âwas one of the revolutionary generals during Mexico's turbulent times in the early 1900s. Villa was a train robber, a cattle thief, and a murderer, yet today he is revered by Mexicans and Americans for his accomplishments, and roads and neighborhoods in Mexico bear his name. Pancho Villa: A Biography provides a compelling life story full of adventure, the events of which helped define the course of modern Mexico. Through the lens of Villa's personal experience, author Alejandro Quintana offers an appealing, accessible interpretation of the complex turn of events that define the violence, confusion, chaos, and transformation in Mexico between 1910 and 1923. Organized chronologically, the book details the social tensio...
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The Americas
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Journal of Social History, 2017
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The Americas
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Hispanic American Historical Review, 2011
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Teaching and Learning Together in Higher Education, 2014
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The Americas, 2019
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The Americas
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Originally in Nueva Crónica (Spanish Version), 2014
This essay is a reflection on the essence and utility of History. Using as analytical focus the G... more This essay is a reflection on the essence and utility of History. Using as analytical focus the Grito de Dolores in Mexico (a symbolic act believed by many to have sparked the independence process in Mexico), it argues that, considering the numerous perspectives derived from a single historical event, history is a product of imagination based on interpretations of historical records and, as such, depends of the author's circumstances and the group that she represents. Thus, there is no History as a true, unique, and holistic narrative but only stories of History. This does not mean, however, that these stories are false or lack utility.
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This essay is a reflection on the essence and utility of History. Using as an
analytical focus t... more This essay is a reflection on the essence and utility of History. Using as an
analytical focus the Grito de Dolores in Mexico, it argues that, considering all
interpretations derived from a historical event, history is a product of imagination
based on interpretations of historical records and, as such, depends of the
author´s circumstances and and the group he represents. Thus, there is no
history as a true, unique, and holistic narrative but only histories of history. This
does not mean that these histories are false or lack of utility.
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History: Reviews of New Books, 2012
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Book Reviews by Alejandro Quintana
New Mexico Historical Review, 2019
Book Review of Orozco: The Life and Death of a Mexican Revolutionary. By Raymond Caballero. (Norm... more Book Review of Orozco: The Life and Death of a Mexican Revolutionary. By Raymond Caballero. (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2017
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The Americas, 2019
Book review of the book Heroes, Martyrs and Political Messiahs in Revolutionary Cuba, 1946-1958. ... more Book review of the book Heroes, Martyrs and Political Messiahs in Revolutionary Cuba, 1946-1958. By Lillian Guerra. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2018.
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Images of the exploitation and violence committed against rural communities are very powerful for... more Images of the exploitation and violence committed against rural communities are very powerful for anyone learning about the Mexican Revolution. Despite claims made for decades by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) that democracy and social justice had replaced the authoritarianism and injustices that caused the revolution, Mexicans increasingly disbelieved. Protests against the authoritarian nature of the one-party state grew as the twentieth century advanced. Regardless, most Mexicans knew little about these instances of defiance because the state was able to divide and co-opt protest groups and manipulate the media into looking the other way. Gladys McCormick's incisive book emphasizes the role played by rural communities in inspiring resistance against the one-party state. The resolution of people from the countryside and the ideals of their leaders, she argues, eventually permeated the consciousness of urban protest groups, who then became the better-known protesters and martyrs resisting the authoritarian Mexican state, as epitomized in the 1968 Tlatelolco massacre. McCormick's work traces the story of rural resistance against the PRI to challenge the idea of a pax priísta. Instead, she asserts, " Mexico's authoritarianism was more violent than previously assumed and began much earlier than the 1960s " (5). McCormick places resistance against the one-party state as a continuation of the long militant history of rural communities. Her work focuses on 65 communities in two sugar cooperatives at the heart of the Zapatista lands in the states of Puebla and Morelos. She follows their dealings with local, state, and national authorities from the beginnings of Cardenismo in the mid 1930s to the assassination of a community leader in 1962. McCormick shows incisively how the PRI quickly shifted its focus from the needs of rural Mexico to the development and application of mechanisms of repression against these communities, so as to favor modernization and centralized power. Her work is especially compelling because she does not analyze faceless peasant movements but instead humanizes resistance. Complementing her archival sources with interviews, she makes vivid the experiences of community leaders, particularly those of the brothers Porfirio, Rubén, and Antonio Jaramillo. She analyzes the causes and effects of their different responses to state-sponsored corruption, clientelism, and intimidation. The results allow her to expose the importance of individual resilience, principles, and fears in shaping history. Her approach casts a light on the capacity of the state to co-opt resistance and maintain the appearance of a peaceful Mexico. The Jaramillo brothers are the thread that guides McCormick's narrative of resistance, intimidation, and cooptation in the sugar cooperatives of Zacatepec, Morelos, and
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Papers by Alejandro Quintana
analytical focus the Grito de Dolores in Mexico, it argues that, considering all
interpretations derived from a historical event, history is a product of imagination
based on interpretations of historical records and, as such, depends of the
author´s circumstances and and the group he represents. Thus, there is no
history as a true, unique, and holistic narrative but only histories of history. This
does not mean that these histories are false or lack of utility.
Book Reviews by Alejandro Quintana
analytical focus the Grito de Dolores in Mexico, it argues that, considering all
interpretations derived from a historical event, history is a product of imagination
based on interpretations of historical records and, as such, depends of the
author´s circumstances and and the group he represents. Thus, there is no
history as a true, unique, and holistic narrative but only histories of history. This
does not mean that these histories are false or lack of utility.