Cuba in the American Imagination: Metaphor and the Imperial Ethos (Caravan Book)

For More Than Two Hundred Often Turbulent Years, Americans Have Imagined And Described Cuba And Its Relationship To The United States By Conjuring Up A Variety Of Striking Images - Cuba As A Woman, A Neighbor, A Ripe Fruit, A Child Learning To Ride A Bicycle. One Of The Foremost Historians Of Cuba, Louis A. Perez Jr. Offers A Revealing History Of These Metaphorical And Depictive Motifs And Discovers The Powerful Motives Behind Such Characterizations Of The Island. Perez Analyzes The Dominant Images And Their Political Effectiveness As They Have Persisted And Changed Since The Early Nineteenth Century. Drawing On Texts And Visual Images Produced By Americans Ranging From Government Officials, Policy Makers, And Journalists To Travelers, Tourists, Poets, And Lyricists, Perez Argues That Metaphor Was Central To The U.s. Imperial Project As A Way Of Transforming The Pursuit Of National Self-interest Into The Lofty, Disinterested Purpose Of Moral Duty. With Particular Focus On The Pivotal Eras Of The War Of 1898 And The 1959 Cuban Revolution, Perez Demonstrates That These Descriptions Served The Foreign Policy Interests Of The United States. As Charged And Coded Modes Of Persuasion And Mediation, These Images Sanctioned And Sustained The Moral Logic Of U.s. Power Over Cuba. Perez Further Argues That The Metaphors In Service To America's Imperial Impulses Over Cuba Were Subsequently Projected Over The World At Large.--jacket. Introduction: The Idea Of Cuba -- Metaphor Between Motive And Meaning -- Imagining Self-interest -- Metaphor As Paradigm -- On Gratitude As Moral Currency Of Empire -- Shifting Metaphors, Changing Meanings: Representing Revolution -- Through The Prism Of Metaphor: Accommodation To Empire. Louis A. Pérez, Jr. A Caravan Book--t.p. Verso. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [275]-325) And Index. "For more than two hundred often turbulent years, Americans have imagined and described Cuba and its relationship to the United States by conjuring up a variety of striking images - Cuba as a woman, a neighbor, a ripe fruit, a child learning to ride a bicycle. One of the foremost historians of Cuba, Louis A. Perez Jr. offers a revealing history of these metaphorical and depictive motifs and discovers the powerful motives behind such characterizations of the island." "Perez analyzes the dominant images and their political effectiveness as they have persisted and changed since the early nineteenth century. Drawing on texts and visual images produced by Americans ranging from government officials, policy makers, and journalists to travelers, tourists, poets, and lyricists, Perez argues that metaphor was central to the U.S. imperial project as a way of transforming the pursuit of national self-interest into the lofty, disinterested purpose of moral duty. With particular focus on the pivotal eras of the war of 1898 and the 1959 Cuban revolution, Perez demonstrates that these descriptions served the foreign policy interests of the United States. As charged and coded modes of persuasion and mediation, these images sanctioned and sustained the moral logic of U.S. power over Cuba. Perez further argues that the metaphors in service to America's imperial impulses over Cuba were subsequently projected over the world at large."--BOOK JACKET For more than two hundred years, Americans have imagined and described Cuba and its relationship to the United States by conjuring up a variety of striking images--Cuba as a woman, a neighbor, a ripe fruit, a child learning to ride a bicycle. Louis A. Perez Jr. offers a revealing history of these metaphorical and depictive motifs and discovers the powerful motives behind such characterizations of the island as they have persisted and changed since the early nineteenth century. Drawing on texts and visual images produced by Americans ranging from government officials, policy makers, and journalists to travelers, tourists, poets, and lyricists, Perez argues that these charged and coded images of persuasion and mediation were in service to America's imperial impulses over Cuba. Contents......Page 10 Acknowledgments......Page 12 Introduction: The Idea of Cuba......Page 16 1 Metaphor between Motive and Meaning......Page 27 2 Imagining Self-Interest......Page 39 3 Metaphor as Paradigm......Page 110 4 On Gratitude as Moral Currency of Empire......Page 190 5 Shifting Metaphors, Changing Meanings: Representing Revolution......Page 244 6 Through the Prism of Metaphor: Accommodation to Empire......Page 272 Notes......Page 290 C......Page 342 G......Page 343 L......Page 344 M......Page 345 R......Page 346 V......Page 347 Z......Page 348 For more than two hundred often turbulent years, Americans have imagined and described Cuba and its relationship to the United States by conjuring up a variety of striking images--Cuba as a woman, a neighbor, a ripe fruit, a child learning to ride a bicycle. One of the foremost historians of Cuba, Louis A. Pérez Jr. offers a revealing history of these metaphorical and depictive motifs and discovers the powerful motives behind such characterizations of the island Hoe de buitenlandse politiek van de VS bepalend was voor de veranderende beeldvorming over Cuba, ook voor die in de rest van de westerse wereld. NL-ZmNBD