20th-Century Latin American Revolutions

3 units

Latin America has been described as one of the most revolutionary regions of the world in the twentieth century. It experienced four major social revolutions and gave rise to many consequential guerrilla movements. This course uses theories of revolution and a social science historical approach to elucidate the causes, processes, outcomes, and implications of revolutions in Mexico (1910), Bolivia (1952), Cuba (1959), and Nicaragua (1979). It also analyzes late 20th century revolutionary guerrilla movements in El Salvador and Peru. Why peasants, university students, and women formed key social bases of support for revolutionary movements and how revolutions were institutionalized and consolidated will receive special attention.