Cuban Counterpoints: The Legacy of Fernando Ortiz (Bildner Western Hemisphere Studies) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0739109685 ISBN 13: 9780739109687

Publisher: Lexington Books, 2004

Synopsis

While Fernando Ortiz's contribution to our understanding of Cuba and Latin America more generally has been widely recognized since the 1940s, recently there has been renewed interest in this scholar and activist who made lasting contributions to a staggering array of fields. This book is the first work in English to reassess Ortiz's vast intellectual universe. Essays in this volume analyze and celebrate his contribution to scholarship in Cuban history, the social sciences―notably anthropology―and law, religion and national identity, literature, and music. Presenting Ortiz's seminal thinking, including his profoundly influential concept of 'transculturation', Cuban Counterpoints explores the bold new perspectives that he brought to bear on Cuban society. Much of his most challenging and provocative thinking―which embraced simultaneity, conflict, inherent contradiction and hybridity―has remarkable relevance for current debates about Latin America's complex and evolving societies.

About this title

About the Author:

Mauricio A. Font is Professor of Sociology at Queens College and the Graduate Center. He also serves as Director of the Bildner Center for Western Hemisphere Studies. Alfonso W. Quiroz is Professor of History at Baruch College.

Review:

This volume is a compelling encounter with the many personas of Fernando Ortiz―anthropologist, lawyer, politician, humanist, and, perhaps most important, Cuban visionary. Ortiz's multidisciplinary contributions are approached with respect, affection, critical consciousness, and a welcome playfulness rarely seen in academic anthologies. Whether you are already familiar with the huge corpus left by Ortiz or discovering him for the first time, let this volume be your guide to the exuberance of Ortiz's legacy, which is not only a gift to Cuba but to our globalized world, struggling with ever more pathos to figure out why culture still matters. (Ruth Behar, University of Michigan)

This interesting collection of essays . . . highlights how relevant Ortiz's writings are to understanding contemporary as well as historical trends in the Americas. (Susan Eckstein, Boston University)

About this edition

• Publisher: Lexington Books
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0739109685
• ISBN 13: 9780739109687
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 316
• Editor: Font Mauricio A., Quiroz Alfonso W.