The Origins of the Cuban Revolution Reconsidered (Envisioning Cuba)

Analyzing The Crucial Period Of The Cuban Revolution From 1959 To 1961, Samuel Farber Challenges Dominant Scholarly And Popular Views Of The Revolution's Sources, Shape, And Historical Trajectory. Unlike Many Observers, Who Treat Cuba's Revolutionary Leaders As Having Merely Reacted To U.s. Policies Or Domestic Socioeconomic Conditions, Farber Shows That Revolutionary Leaders, While Acting Under Serious Constraints, Were Nevertheless Autonomous Agents Pursuing Their Own Independent Ideological Visions, Although Not Necessarily According To A Master Plan. Exploring How Historical Conflicts Between U.s. And Cuban Interests Colored The Reactions Of Both Nations' Leaders After The Overthrow Of Fulgencio Batista, Farber Argues That The Structure Of Cuba's Economy And Politics In The First Half Of The Twentieth Century Made The Island Ripe For Radical Social And Economic Change, And The Ascendant Soviet Union Was On Hand To Provide Early Assistance. Taking Advantage Of Recently Declassified U.s. And Soviet Documents As Well As Biographical And Narrative Literature From Cuba, Farber Focuses On Three Key Years To Explain How The Cuban Rebellion Rapidly Evolved From A Multiclass, Antidictatorial Movement Into A Full-fledged Social Revolution. Introduction -- The Prerevolutionary Economy : Progress Or Stagnation? -- Fidel Castro And The Cuban Populist Tradition -- U.s. Policy And The Cuban Revolution -- The Driving Force Of The Cuban Revolution : From Above Or From Below? -- The Role Of The Soviet Union And The Cuban Communists -- Epilogue. Samuel Farber. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 173-202) And Index. CONTENTS......Page 6 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS......Page 8 CHRONOLOGY: MAJOR EVENTS IN CUBAN HISTORY, 1868–1961......Page 10 INTRODUCTION......Page 16 ONE: The Prerevolutionary Economy: Progress or Stagnation?......Page 22 TWO: Fidel Castro and the Cuban Populist Tradition......Page 49 THREE: U.S. Policy and the Cuban Revolution......Page 84 FOUR: The Driving Force of the Cuban Revolution: From Above or From Below?......Page 127 FIVE: The Role of the Soviet Union and the Cuban Communists......Page 152 EPILOGUE......Page 182 NOTES......Page 188 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 212 B......Page 218 C......Page 219 E......Page 221 J......Page 222 M......Page 223 R......Page 224 T......Page 225 V......Page 226 Z......Page 227