From Liberal To Revolutionary Oaxaca: The View From The South, Mexico, 1867-1911 [Paperback]

Francie R. Chassen-Lopez (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 30, 2005

From Liberal to Revolutionary Oaxaca aims at finally setting Mexican history free of stereotypes about the southern state of Oaxaca, long portrayed as a traditional and backward society resistant to the forces of modernization and marginal to the Revolution. Chassen-Lopez challenges this view of Oaxaca as a negative mirror image of modern Mexico, presenting in its place a much more complex reality. Her analysis of the confrontations between Mexican liberals' modernizing projects and Oaxacan society, especially indigenous communal villages, reveals not only conflicts but also growing linkages and dependencies. She portrays them as engaging with and transforming each other in an ongoing process of contestation, negotiation, and compromise. The book is organized into three parts. The first examines Oaxaca's infrastructure and economy, addressing whether its native sons, Presidents Benito Juarez and Porfirio Diaz, neglected their own state in the drive toward Mexico's modernization. The second part looks at the society, critically examining claims that the indigenous people of Oaxaca acted as an obstacle to progress. The final part connects the economic and social transformations in Oaxaca with the state's changing political culture and power relationships and reinserts Oaxaca into the larger dynamics of the Mexican Revolution. By linking developments at the local, state, and national levels throughout and making frequent comparisons with developments in other states, Chassen-Lopez compels a reassessment not only of Oaxacan history but also of Mexican history in general during this period.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This is a critical, seminal work on Mexican history.... One of the greatest strengths of the book is its debunking of myths and poorly documented claims that permeate writing about Oaxaca. --Howard Campbell, University of Texas at El Paso

The book represents many years of remarkable excavations in local, state, and national archives. No other regional history of any other Mexican state exhibits this thorough a survey of sources. The book is encyclopedic in its coverage. --Mark Wasserman, Rutgers University

From the Publisher

"This is a critical, seminal work on Mexican history. The author argues that we need to rethink Mexican history through an analysis of the indigenous South that has previously been portrayed as backward and reactionary. The book is an encyclopedic overview of a key period in Oaxaca history; it is without peer for the 19th century. One of the greatest strengths of the book is its debunking of myths and poorly documented claims that permeate writing about Oaxaca."—Howard Campbell, University of Texas at El Paso --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 608 pages
• Publisher: Pennsylvania State Univ Pr (March 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0271025123
• ISBN-13: 978-0271025124
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,074,368 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful overview, January 16, 2011

By 

Barbara B. Lopez "urbanNative" (SF, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: From Liberal To Revolutionary Oaxaca: The View From The South, Mexico, 1867-1911 (Paperback)

An opus and sweeping history of one of Mexico's most fascinating states-Oaxaca. To understand modern-day Oaxaca, one needs to see that the roots of rebellion and social discord/discourse over a century ago.