{"product_id":"cuba-before-castro-9780761872139","title":"Cuba before Castro","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAlthough much has been written about Cuba after Castro, relatively little has been written about Cuba before Castro. The political reality of Castro's Revolution has created a historical void about this period, paying insufficient attention to an important century before 1959. Cuba has become a political punching bag, between supporters and critics of Castro and the Revolution, making it difficult to understand real life in Cuba because of the disproportionate preoccupation with, and monopoly of, the political reality on the island. In spite of some attempts, it continues to be easier and perceived as more pressing, to write about politics rather than the reality that Cubans experienced in their daily lives their sufferings and celebrations, successes and failures, lives and deaths, and beliefs and disbeliefs. Going for and against the avalanche of information about the political authenticity in and out of Cuba, most Cubans have tended to forget that Cuba is much larger than the percei\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn this partly biographical and partly philosophical work, Jorge Gracia, who is the current Samuel P. Capen Chair and SUNY Distinguished Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Literature University at Buffalo, provides us with an autobiographical account of his youth in Cuba prior and right after the Cuban Revolution. His is an unmatching riveting and revealing account of his life that can explain his love with philosophy, history and Hispanic\/Latino culture in general. Gracia applies his personal experiences to shed light on the emerging field of Latin American philosophy broadly construed in the USA. I do not know of any other living philosopher who has contributed as much and who has helped as many young philosophers in the said field. With his broad background in the history of philosophy, especially Medieval and Latin American philosophy, Gracia has given us an exemplary account of how relevant philosophy could be for exploring challenging issues related to culture, ethnicity, and race. In sum, I think that unquestionably Jorge Gracia can be considered the living dean of Latin American philosophy in North America. -- Vicente Medina, professor of philosophy, Seton Hall University\u003cbr\u003eThis book is of tremendous testimonial, historical and intellectual significance. Dr. Jorge Gracia, one of the most (if not the most) prominent Hispanic philosophers in the U.S. in the second half of the 20\u003csup\u003eth\u003c\/sup\u003e Century and in the 21\u003csup\u003est\u003c\/sup\u003e Century, looks back at Cuba before Castro and before his migration to the U.S. Professor Gracia’s exquisite prose elegantly uses autobiographical and historical techniques to weave together a narrative that paints a complex and intriguing picture of family life, cultural life, and intellectual and socio-political life in Cuba before Castro. This is a must-read for anyone interested in Cuba, Latin American culture, and the life and thought of influential intellectuals such as Professor Gracia who have shaped Latin American thought in the 20\u003csup\u003eth\u003c\/sup\u003e Century and beyond. -- José Medina, Walter Dill Scott Professor of Philosophy, Northwestern University\u003cbr\u003eJorge Gracia’s Cuba before Castro: A Century of Family Memoirs is a walk back into the time before Cuba became synonymous with Fidel and a memory chronicle of what happened in the aftermath of the 1959 Cuban Revolution. Gracia’s quirky family epitomized the diverse European immigrants who came to pre-Castro Cuba looking for prosperity and new business opportunities. Successful after initial struggles, these mixed European immigrants formed a significant segment of Cuban society and it was their descendants who fled Cuba and arrived in the U.S. and Canada as refugees in the 1960s and ongoing. These new North Americans became a force within their communities of settlements. In Gracia’s case, his academic interests as philosopher, art collector, and avid traveler have combined to produce a biographical, yet analytical, retrospective analysis of his life. His assessment of his life as a Cuban, as a refugee, as a philosopher and as the founder, with his wife, Norma, of a Gracia family, living in Canada and the United States, provides personal and academic perspectives on the experience of escape from a fascist regime, establishing a new life and prospering in a new world of possibilities provided by exile. This book will be of interest to anyone who shares these experiences, as well as to a range of individuals who work in academic disciplines where human experience is the subject of interest. Written in a lively and personal style, Gracia’s memoir is an invitation to share in his life as he recounts its many passages to the present. -- Lynette Bosch, professor of art history, SUNY Geneseo\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePreface \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e1. Names and Identity. What’s in a Name? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e2. “Je Suis Française!” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e3. Escaping Mexican Wrath \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e4. The Jesuits Stole My Inheritance \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e5. Poetry, Spirits, and Flair \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e6. Treasure Trove for Christmas \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e7. Promising Future Comes to Naught \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e8. Una Señora Muy Aseñorada \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e9. Unexpected Success \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e10. The Storyteller \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e11. Bedroom Suite for a Pompadour \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e12. “¡España Es Nuestra Madre Patria!” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e13. Better Marry Than Burn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e14. The Marquis’ Mistress \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e15. Ruined by a Hurricane and Resentment Against Spaniards \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e16. Tears from a “Bileless Dove” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e17. Murdered by the Guardia Civil \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e18. La Dolorosa’s Miracle \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e19. Promising Beginning and Sad End \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e20. Is Having to Work Punishment for Sin? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e21. Broken Promise \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e22. A Twenty-Five Year Engagement \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e23. Romance on a Scale \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e24. “Te Voy a Capar” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e25. A Gentleman Farmer at Heart \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e26. Running Away from Home \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e27. A Boy’s Best Friends \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e28. A Bad Dream Comes True \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e29. Rebel with a Cause \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e30. A Philosophy of Underwear \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e31. End of Paradise \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e32. The Bully \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e33. First Holy Communion \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e34. Summers at the Beach \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e35. Yearly Audit and Crocodile Tears \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e36. Lean Years \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e37. Written in the Stars \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e38. A Night to Forget \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e39. The Refuge of Faith \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e40. The Consolation of Giving \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e41. An Interim Abode \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e42. Long Journey Into Darkness \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e43. Bicycles Are For Boys \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e44. Nena’s Insistent Gay Suitor \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e45. Looking for Domestic Help \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e46. María “Picadillo” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e47. “¡Yo soy muy macho!” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e48. Teenager in Havana \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e49. The Club \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e50. Another Call \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e51. The Cursed Plantation \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e52. Sugar and Slavery \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e53. “El Marañon Aprieta la Boca”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e54. “I Believe in God” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e55. Building Up the Spirit \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e56. First Cracks of the Faith \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e57. Brother Balloon \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e58. “¿Y Tu Abuela, Dónde Está?” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e59. “Mens Sana in Corpore Sano” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e60. “De Eso No Se Habla” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e61. Two Years of Terror \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e62. A Beach House at Last \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e63. Love and Prejudice \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e64. Quest for Freedom\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e65. School for Toy Soldiers \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e66. A Teacher Who Could Not Teach \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e67. “I’ve Got Wheels!” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e68. Playground of the Caribbean \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e69. Chaperones \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e70. Puppy Love \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e71. Graduation and a Prom of Sorts \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e72. Starved for Culture\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e73. Recreating the Garden of Eden\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e74. From Hope to Despair \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e75. The University of Havana \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e76. Alea Iacta Est \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e77. The Bay of Pigs and a Police State \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAcknowledgments\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAbout the Author\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Hamilton Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51037895721303,"sku":"9780761872139","price":27.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780761872139.jpg?v=1750938066","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/cuba-before-castro-9780761872139","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}