1. |
Focus Question: How has Latin American nations attempted
to end its dependence upon foreign investment? |
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Before WW II, Latin America had been economically dependent upon which
foreign countries? When did Latin America become an arena for US and Soviet confrontation? Who financed attempts to expand the industrial base and agricultural production and what were the results? What is the underlying character of Latin American economies?
What is the single most dominant social characteristic of Latin America?
The Latin American middle class has tended to support what type of political
institution? why? How has the roles of the military and Roman
Catholic church changed in the postwar period? How has Latin America changed since the 1980s? |
| 2. |
Focus Question: How successful have revolutionary challenges to the status quo been in Latin America? |
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In what countries
of L.A. have major attempts to create genuinely revolutionary change taken
place? What did they have in common? How did the U.S. react to these
changes?
What was the attitude of the Cuban Revolution toward an industrial economic
model of development? What is Cuba's primary agricultural product?
Why didn't Cuba attained economic independence? What has accounted for the shortage of everyday
consumer goods in Cuba? What role has Cuba played in international
communism since 1959? What goal did the U.S. pursue in L.A. by supporting
authoritarian governments? |
| 3. |
Focus Question: How have various countries attempted
to address internal social and political discontent? |
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Which country had been the most enduring model of parliamentary democracy
in L.A. until the 1970s? What did Salvador Allende attempt to do
in Chile? What was the attitude of the middle class and the US government? By whom was he overthrown, and how was Chile ruled for the next 15 years? How did the Somoza family manage to rule Nicaragua for so long? How did Sandinista rule come to an end in Nicaragua? What was the result of the Argentine
government's attempt to seize the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) from Britain?
What tactic did the
Argentine military use to repress social dissension? How democratic is Argentine today? In Brazil, what
type of economic development did the military opt for after 1964?
What is perhaps the single most important national problem facing the Brazilian
government? What fear has prompted so many members of the middle
class in both Brazil and Argentine to support repressive authoritarian
governments? What was the single most important economy development in
Mexico between 1977-1983? How faithful has the Mexican government been to the promises of the 1911 revolution? What was Carlos Salinas' economic
policy in Mexico? What were the result? |
| 4. |
Focus Question: What are the sources of hope and discouragement
for a true process of global democratization? |
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What are the most striking features of Latin American history over
the last four decades? What type of governments did most of Latin
Ameria have from the late 1940s through the 1970s? Which nation is
the largest democracy in the world? What factors have help contribute
to the rise of democratic governments throughout the world? What
antidemocratic pressures continue to assault the process of democratization,
especially in the Eastern Europe? |