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peer-reviewed, This thesis discusses the relationship between memory and history in contemporary Cuba, within the framework of cultural studies, as represented in three books by Amir Valle: Habana Babilonia, Santuario de sombras and Las palabras y los muertos. In the aftermath of the Cuban revolution, history and memory became instruments in the construction of a collective revolutionary identity that took a definite downturn during the 90s. The present study aims to illustrate, how Valle’s fiction and nonfiction narratives problematize these changes, and project the embodiment of memory in Cuba. Drawing on a variety of theoretical frameworks that range from memory studies, history and hermeneutics to deconstructionism, I analyse three core elements in these works: Valle’s portrayal of marginality as a way to challenge centre-periphery relationships, his use of testimony in rescuing alternative histories and the deconstruction of the official discourse that is present in his literature. This textual and extra-textual analysis reveals the process of counter memory, as well as the transformation of the social frameworks of memory and the shifting of landmarks through which Cuban society remembers. This unveils supressed polyphonic identities and leads to the emergence of a besieged memory, and new sites of memory which are evolving, distant from the official discourse, and in resonance with the nation’s cultural diversity. This thesis proves the problematic relationship between memory and history, and how it’s dynamic has become altered on the island. I hope this research will contribute to enrich the interdisciplinary approach in recent Cuban history and offer new insights within the field of Cultural Studies.

peer-reviewed, This thesis discusses the relationship between memory and history in contemporary Cuba, within the framework of cultural studies, as represented in three books by Amir Valle: Habana Babilonia, Santuario de sombras and Las palabras y los muertos. In the aftermath of the Cuban revolution, history and memory became instruments in the construction of a collective revolutionary identity that took a definite downturn during the 90s. The present study aims to illustrate, how Valle’s fiction and nonfiction narratives problematize these changes, and project the embodiment of memory in Cuba. Drawing on a variety of theoretical frameworks that range from memory studies, history and hermeneutics to deconstructionism, I analyse three core elements in these works: Valle’s portrayal of marginality as a way to challenge centre-periphery relationships, his use of testimony in rescuing alternative histories and the deconstruction of the official discourse that is present in his literature. This textual and extra-textual analysis reveals the process of counter memory, as well as the transformation of the social frameworks of memory and the shifting of landmarks through which Cuban society remembers. This unveils supressed polyphonic identities and leads to the emergence of a besieged memory, and new sites of memory which are evolving, distant from the official discourse, and in resonance with the nation’s cultural diversity. This thesis proves the problematic relationship between memory and history, and how it’s dynamic has become altered on the island. I hope this research will contribute to enrich the interdisciplinary approach in recent Cuban history and offer new insights within the field of Cultural Studies.

The intention of this thesis is to explore the factors that led to the success of two Latin American revolutions in Cuba (1959) and the Sandinista Revolution in Nicaragua (1979). While insurgent movements have proliferated in Latin America since the Spanish conquest, these are the only two that, in the post-World War II era, have taken power by overthrowing the incumbent regimes by force of arms. Understanding the most prominent factors that led to the success of these revolutions will aid in identifying the potential for success of current and future insurgents. This thesis hypothesizes that the four critical factors that contributed to the success of the Cuban and Nicaraguan revolutions are leadership (strategy), popular support (the ability of the insurgents to assemble a popular constituency for their message and program), external factors (degree of support in the international environment), and military impact (the personalistic, repressive, corrupt, and unprofessional armed forces). In other words, an analysis of these four factors as they relate to both revolutions will provide the best critical approaches to explain success., http://archive.org/details/successfulinsurg1094541397, Outstanding Thesis, Major, United States Air Force, Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.

Cuba’s post-1960 political and economic relationship with the USSR has long been debated, especially the extent to which the connection shaped the Cuban Revolution. Consequently, readings of the occasionally conflictive relationship between Cuba’s state authorities and its cultural world have often relied on stereotypes inherited from Western interpretations of the USSR or the 1948-89 Socialist Bloc; such readings assuming that cultural policy was clearly defined and enforced by Soviet-style apparatchiks or Castro. While perhaps understandable for 1971-6, when the National Cultural Council (CNC) was led by ex-members of the pre-1959 communist party, recent research suggests that we look beyond the surface to see that ‘policy’ was often empirically formed and constantly challenged. Yet, perhaps due to those common assumptions, little has been written about real Soviet influence on Cuban culture, and different sub-periods during the 30-year Cuban-Soviet alliance have largely been ignored. This thesis seeks to address this oversight in the scholarship of Cuba and the USSR by examining the Soviet influence on Cuban culture, specifically the theatre and the visual arts, between 1961 and 1986. It interrogates the ways in which culture was linked to the political priorities and nation building goals of the revolutionary leadership and how these differed from, or coincided with, the aims of the Soviet government. In doing so, it analyses the way in which culture and cultural interactions between the two countries were organised. Using evidence from materials (magazines, pamphlets, work plans, declarations) gathered from archival work in Havana and Moscow, and supported by interviews with Cuban artists and intellectuals, this study establishes that culture acted as a discursive space in which deliberations about the nature of the Cuban Revolution could take place in a way that they could not in other spheres. It also concludes that, throughout the period studied, the USSR oc

This thesis analyzes the counterinsurgency efforts of the second Batista regime of Cuba, 1952-1958, using the “Sword Model,” developed by Max G. Manwaring and John T. Fishel. The “Sword Model” is a paradigm developed to predict the probability of success of insurgencies by evaluating seven major criteria which are referred to as “dimensions.” The thesis concludes that all seven dimensions were detrimental to the longevity of the Batista regime. The major contributors to Batista's failure were his lack of legitimacy and poor unity of effort within the government as well as between Cuba and the major intervening power, the United States. Weak democratic traditions in Cuban society and a biased international news media exacerbated the crisis. Based on the research conducted, it is believed that the “Sword Model” would have accurately predicted the outcome of the second Batista regime were it available during the 1950's. The “Sword Model” is therefore a viable tool in evaluating insurgencies.