Jan
20
Week 2 Readings: The People
Posted by: Brian | January 20, 2009 | Comments Off on Week 2 Readings: The People
This week’s readings have to do with different interpretations of “the people”, as expressed by Eva Perón and then Jorge Luis Borges. The two have opposing views of what the people are, and of Perón’s government. Eva Perón’s text is very emotional and dramatic, and it seems like she has a great and genuine love for the people. She considers the people to be the ordinary citizens—the workers, the women, and the exploited. She talks a lot about how when people reach high places in society, then get “dizzy”, overwhelmed with the glamour and the status, but she never let herself get absorbed into this life, and always remained one with the people. She talks about how the government, the military, and the clergy exploit the people, and how the “enemies” of the people are deceitful. She focuses a great portion of her message on condemning the enemies of her husband, and on praising Perón’s greatness as a leader. Although Perón and his ideals are something that she is obviously passionate about, I think she goes too far in her praise of him, as it almost seems like she is blindly following him. The fact that her and her husband’s presidency was labeled a dictatorship by many shows that maybe she actually was not fully in touch with the people, or serving them the way she describes herself as doing. Besides this, there are a lot of things I liked about Eva Perón’s text. I like how she talked about love and hatred, how she never knows which one she is feeling, and that indifference is the worst thing. Passion (whether it is in the form of love or hate) is what stirs the hearts of the people and causes them to stand up for their ideals. I also really liked what she said about how religion should be used to “lift the heads of the people” not used as a tool of oppression to make the people bow. I think her opposition to the corruption of the Church, but her embracement of religion (or spirituality in general) is something that many, including me, can relate to.
Borges’ text had an opposing view to Eva Perón’s text, calling Perón’s presidency as the “Monster”. Borges tells talks about the people revolting against Perón…or at least that’s what I think he is talking about, as I couldn’t really understand what was really going on in the story. I found the part where they stone the Jewish man to death was kind of shocking, especially because I don’t really know why they did that. I am guessing that if they did have a reason for stoning him, it was because he was a supporter of Perón. Judging by this text, Eva Perón would not really be one with the people, as she repeatedly claims she is in My Message if the people are so extremely opposed to her Perón. The two readings seem to be to be on opposite ends of the spectrum, both expressing very extreme views of Perón.
Jan
20
Week 2 Readings: The People
Posted by: Brian | January 20, 2009 | Comments Off on Week 2 Readings: The People
This week’s readings have to do with different interpretations of “the people”, as expressed by Eva Perón and then Jorge Luis Borges. The two have opposing views of what the people are, and of Perón’s government. Eva Perón’s text is very emotional and dramatic, and it seems like she has a great and genuine love for the people. She considers the people to be the ordinary citizens—the workers, the women, and the exploited. She talks a lot about how when people reach high places in society, then get “dizzy”, overwhelmed with the glamour and the status, but she never let herself get absorbed into this life, and always remained one with the people. She talks about how the government, the military, and the clergy exploit the people, and how the “enemies” of the people are deceitful. She focuses a great portion of her message on condemning the enemies of her husband, and on praising Perón’s greatness as a leader. Although Perón and his ideals are something that she is obviously passionate about, I think she goes too far in her praise of him, as it almost seems like she is blindly following him. The fact that her and her husband’s presidency was labeled a dictatorship by many shows that maybe she actually was not fully in touch with the people, or serving them the way she describes herself as doing. Besides this, there are a lot of things I liked about Eva Perón’s text. I like how she talked about love and hatred, how she never knows which one she is feeling, and that indifference is the worst thing. Passion (whether it is in the form of love or hate) is what stirs the hearts of the people and causes them to stand up for their ideals. I also really liked what she said about how religion should be used to “lift the heads of the people” not used as a tool of oppression to make the people bow. I think her opposition to the corruption of the Church, but her embracement of religion (or spirituality in general) is something that many, including me, can relate to.
Borges’ text had an opposing view to Eva Perón’s text, calling Perón’s presidency as the “Monster”. Borges tells talks about the people revolting against Perón…or at least that’s what I think he is talking about, as I couldn’t really understand what was really going on in the story. I found the part where they stone the Jewish man to death was kind of shocking, especially because I don’t really know why they did that. I am guessing that if they did have a reason for stoning him, it was because he was a supporter of Perón. Judging by this text, Eva Perón would not really be one with the people, as she repeatedly claims she is in My Message if the people are so extremely opposed to her Perón. The two readings seem to be to be on opposite ends of the spectrum, both expressing very extreme views of Perón.
