Tania Bruguera is a performance, installation, and video artist. She was born and grew up in Havana Cuba; and she currently works in New York and Havana. Cuba has the toughest laws regarding freedom of expression. These laws are the reason Tania creates the works she does. Her goal is to attack the control the Cuban government has on communication of the people. She often encourages involvement from her audience. Tania explores outlets for the people of Cuba to express themselves without fear, and she pushed boundaries set by the government of the country she was born in.
To begin, it is necessary to understand the reality of the oppression happening in Cuba. The Cuban government constantly suppresses and terrorizes the independent artists
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It appears that she is not producing her artwork solely for a reaction or personal fame. Tania conveys real, passionate care for anyone suppressed by any type of higher power. Additionally, in another interview, Tania discusses education with Jeannette Petrik, a freelance researcher and writer. Petrik says, “I’d like to understand your take on education.” Bruguera explains, “I consider my work as an educational practice but not as didactic.” (Jeannette Petrik, 2016, n.pg.) Tania’s swift response mainly displays her goal of helping people learn, without any ulterior motive. Making this statement assures a genuine basis for her …show more content…
She creates pieces that allow others to face the fear of oppression and connect with themselves. Works such as Tatlin’s Whisper #6 (Havana Version) exercise that idea, and attempt to bring everyone together. Tania’s driving force is compassion and straightforwardness. She is not afraid of her oppressors and acts with nothing but courage. It may be established that Tania’s practice is successful, or even impactful. All the boundaries placed on Bruguera since birth have been faced with exceptional nerve. While frequently these restraints are still placed on her, she has developed into a powerful figure for others to look to for guidance. Tania Bruguera is understanding of tyranny, and she refuses to let it happen without some outcry. Her art directly opposes this mistreatment, and supports giving the power to the
Dolores Stewart Riccio is an American author that writes cookbooks, poems, and novels in the mystery and thriller genres. Born in Boston and brought in New England most of the settings of her Circle of Five series of noels are set in Pembroke, Massachusetts where she grew up. She was married to Ottone Riccio an author, teacher, and poet best known for the Intimate Art of Writing Poetry. From that first marriage she had two children son, Charles Sundance Anderson and daughter Lucy-Marie Sanel both of whom deem themselves among the Penobscots of Maine. Dolores is Scotch-Irish though she held a traditional Penobscot funeral on Indian Island on Old Town, Maine for her son when she died in 2007. For her cookbooks, she has always preferred to use her married name Dolores Riccio as she credits her Native American husband who was insistent that she try many experimental dishes. Conversely, she uses her maiden name of Dolores Stewart when she is writing her poetry. Not one to abandon either of her heritage or past life she decided to use both of her names when she pivoted to the writing of fiction novels. She has recently moved back to Pinehills in Plymouth the small town that she had always adored growing up as a child in nearby Pembroke. She lives at the Avalon Apartments a pleasant and peaceful apartment complex in town, where
Mariam and Laila are considerate, bold and protective while all their rights as humans are being oppressed. They can be courageous when there is everything to be afraid of, yet they take the risk, because they know it is right. Both will protect when they haven’t been protected from the danger of oppression. Laila and Mariam can be sympathetic in an inconsiderate world. Together, Mariam and Laila exemplify the hidden defiance against oppression, a burning fire counterattacking the darkness.
Rather, it criticizes this culture through its portrayal of women. The narrative is focused on a male and is told by a male, which reflects the male-centered society it is set in. However, when we compare how the narrator views these women to who they really are, the discrepancies act as a critique on the Dominican culture. Yunior, who represents the typical Dominican male, sees women as objects, conquests, when in fact their actions show their resistance to be categorized as such. Beli, whose childhood was filled with male domination by Trujillo and the family she worked for, attempts to gain power through sexuality, the avenue the culture pushes women toward. This backfires, creating a critique of the limited opportunities available for women. La Inca portrays a different side to this, working quietly but in ways that are not socially acceptable through self-employment. Society attempts to cage these women, but they continue to fight against it. Diaz, in an interview, quoted James Baldwin, stating, “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced" (Fassler). He exhibits the misogyny in the system but does not support it, rather critiques it through strong female characters. By drawing attention to the problem, the novel advocates for change. Diaz writes, at the end of part 1, “Nothing more exhilarating… than saving yourself by the simple act of waking”
Delia, in this short story, demonstrates the agency that women have in the face of oppression, and the way they resist sexism and all of its economic and social implications.
Frida Kahlo is known for the most influential Latin American female artist. She is also known as a rebellious feminist. Kahlo was inspired to paint after her near-death bus incident when she was 17. After this horrendous incident that scarred her for life, she went under 35 different operations. These operations caused her extreme pain and she was no longer able to have kids. Kahlo’s art includes self portraits of her emotions, pain, and representations of her life. Frida Kahlo was an original individual, not only in her artwork but also in her
1. The Cuban Revolution was supposed to install a Marxist paradise, lifting all citizens to the same strata and abolishing traditional separations based on class, gender and race. In this brave new utopia, all bodies, regardless of skin tone, would work together to build a prosperous nation, in which all had an equal stake. In reality, however, the revolution was almost immediately co-opted by what Sawyer describes as the Creole elite. Cuba had had a long history of tense racial relations and despite the massive social and economic upheaval brought on by the revolution, this entrenched racism was not erased by the waving of the red flag, only obscured by it.
Rizga shows her understanding of her audience through the use of appeals, reinforcement of thesis, and lead-in to the introduction. Rizga demonstrates strong audience awareness by telling the story of Maria, a Salvadorian girl newly arrived to the United States. Rizga writes about Maria’s struggles in her country as well as the struggles she was faced with upon arriving to the United States, which appeals to the audience’s emotions. Rhee, however, has a very weak appeal, “As a parent, I understand that problem.” Unlike Rhee, Rizga immediately begins her article with Maria being bullied in school for not knowing English.
When we think about society, there is often a stark contrast between the controversy projected in the media that our society faces, and the mellow, safe view we have of our own smaller, more tangible, ‘local’ society. This leads us to believe that our way of life is protected, and our rights secured by that concept of society that has been fabricated and built upon. However, what if society were not what we perceive it to be, and the government chose to exercise its power in an oppressive manner? As a society we would like to think that we are above such cruelty, yet as The Lonely Crossing of Juan Cabrera by J. Joaquin Fraxedas recounts the state of Cuba in the 1990’s, we must also remember that all societies and governments view the individual differently as opposed to the whole. Each group has unique expectations that are enforced upon the individual which extend beyond those expectations that are written. What this book brings to light is the extraordinary repercussions of refusing to meet the demands and expectations of those that lead our governments. When we veer from the path well-trodden and into the ‘wild’ as Juan did, we may not face death quite as often, but the possibility of those we once called our own, persecuting us for our choices is a true and often an incredibly frightening danger.
Originally a dictator ran Cuba: President Fulgencio Batista, who was an ally to the United States. Cuba during this time enjoyed a healthy urban middle class, and its citizens enjoyed some degree of freedom without a police state. Many other countries seemed a lot more likely to revolt, because economically and developmentally, Cuba seemed stable. However, the United States’ role and control of Cuba’s economy started to take its toll on the “peasants”. In 1953, the United States owned many of the major entities, such as 50% of the railroad. Just as much development as there was in the urban areas there was a lack thereof in the rural areas. Not just economically, Cubans started to resent the image of Sin City that Americans gave the country. Cuba was a popular tourist spot where Americans came to behave badly. Castro’s success came from these opposite sides of distaste for the United States, the peasants economically and the middle class socially & nationally. Castro was not originally a socialist; he was a nationalist first. However when he attacks Moncada Barracks, he is arrested and exiled to Mexico City. During this time his failures are turned into “successes” through propaganda. Castro meets with Che Guevara in Mexico City and when he returns, he purges the military of 483 Batista loyalists and enacts land reforms and nationalizes US
When first approaching this work, one feels immediately attracted to its sense of wonder and awe. The bright colors used in the sun draws a viewer in, but the astonishment, fascination, and emotion depicted in the expression on the young woman keeps them intrigued in the painting. It reaches out to those who have worked hard in their life and who look forward to a better future. Even a small event such as a song of a lark gives them hope that there will be a better tomorrow, a thought that can be seen though the countenance by this girl. Although just a collection of oils on a canvas, she is someone who reaches out to people and inspires them to appreciate the small things that, even if only for a short moment, can make the road ahead seem brighter.
To understand fully the implicit meaning and cultural challenges the film presents, a general knowledge of the film’s contents must be presented. The protagonist, Tita, suffers from typical Hispanic cultural oppression. The family rule, a common rule in this culture, was that the youngest daughter is to remain unwed for the duration of her mother’s life, and remain home to care for her. Mama Elena offers her daughter, Tita’s older sister Rosaura, to wed a man named Pedro, who is unknowingly in mutual love with Tita. Tita is forced to bake the cake for the wedding, which contains many tears that she cried during the process. Tita’s bitter tears cause all the wedding guests to become ill after consuming the cake, and Tita discovers she can influence others through her cooking. Throughout the film, Tita’s cooking plays an important role in all the events that transpire.
She takes her situation and beliefs and applies it to the general population explaining “[They] look at veiled women as quite, oppressed creatures” (Ridley 46), Muslim women are stereotyped and viewed by the general population as people with no say about their own lives. Muslim women deal with the judgment from outsiders who are ignorant to their true culture. They are viewed as lower class simply because of what they wear. Cisneros’ essay also included the problems of race, class, gender, and education. She felt that breaking the standards placed on her by her cultural norms it would displease her tradition loving father. He felt that Cisneros should find a husband and not focus on her education so much. Cisneros writes “I am the only daughter in the Mexican family of six sons” (Cisneros 366). This not only exemplifies the internal family issues of being the only female, but also the external problems of the norms placed on women in a Hispanic culture to be an ideal wife. Tan’s essay emphasized the fact that her race, gender, education and up-bringing played a role in people knowing her writing, even though she does not want it to. When informing the readers that her fans would often write not only about her work but also about “… [her] youthful indiscretions, the slings and arrows I suffered as a minority…” (Tan 1), this bothered Tan to an extent because she
...re, Robin D, (2006) Music and Revolution: Cultural Change in Socialist Cuba. University of California Press: New York
Throughout history society has been controlled by men, and because of this women were exposed to some very demanding expectations. A woman was expected to be a wife, a mother, a cook, a maid, and sexually obedient to men. As a form of patriarchal silencing any woman who deviated from these expectations was often a victim of physical, emotional, and social beatings. Creativity and individuality were dirty, sinful and very inappropriate for a respectful woman. By taking away women’s voices, men were able to remove any power that they might have had. In both Alice Walker’s “The Color Purple” and Kate Chopin’s “The Awakening”, we see that there are two types of women who arise from the demands of these expectations. The first is the obedient women, the one who has buckled and succumbed to become an empty emotionless shell. In men’s eyes this type of woman was a sort of “angel” perfect in that she did and acted exactly as what was expected of her. The second type of woman is the “rebel”, the woman who is willing to fight in order to keep her creativity and passion. Patriarchal silencing inspires a bond between those women who are forced into submission and/or those who are too submissive to maintain their individuality, and those women who are able and willing to fight for the ability to be unique.
Tan succeeds in her use of pathos as she manages to make her mother seem helpless. This is quite a feat, as her obvious strengths have already been displayed in situations such as when yelling at the stockbroker. Tan supports her depiction of her mother as a victim by bringing up how people “did not take her seriously, did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.” (37)