Reinterpreting the Banana Republic: Region and State in Honduras, 1870-1972 - Softcover

Euraque, Dario A.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 080784604X ISBN 13: 9780807846049

Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press, 1997

Synopsis

In this new analysis of Honduran social and political development, Dar degreeso Euraque explains why Honduras escaped the pattern of revolution and civil wars suffered by its neighbors Guatemala, El Salvador, and Nicaragua. Within this comparative framework, he challenges the traditional Banana Republic 'theory' and its assumption that multinational corporations completely controlled state formation in Central America. Instead, he demonstrates how local society in Honduras's North Coast banana-exporting region influenced national political development. According to Euraque, the reformism of the 1970s, which prevented social and political polarization in the 1980s, originated in the local politics of San Pedro Sula and other cities along the North Coast. Moreover, Euraque shows that by the 1960s, the banana-growing areas had become bastions of liberalism, led by local capitalists and organized workers. This regional political culture directly influenced events at the national level, argues Euraque. Specifically, the military coup of 1972 drew its ideology and civilian leaders from the North Coast, and as a result, the new regime was able to successfully channel popular unrest into state-sponsored reform projects. Based on long-ignored sources in Honduran and American archives and on interviews, the book signals a major reinterpretation of modern Honduran history.

About this title

Review

A new interpretation of modern Honduran history.

"American Historical Review"

"[Shows] that the Caribbean coast, typically considered an enclave, had direct and influential ties to the rest of the country.

"Latin American Research Review""

"Euraque defeats on its own turf the Banana Republic thesis, which has been so prominent in Honduran historiography.

Robert G. Williams, author of "States and Social Evolution""

ÝShows¨ that the Caribbean coast, typically considered an enclave, had direct and influential ties to the rest of the country.

"Latin American Research Review"

Euraque defeats on its own turf the Banana Republic thesis, which has been so prominent in Honduran historiography.

Robert G. Williams, author of "States and Social Evolution"

A meaningful contribution to the literature on Honduras.

"Choice"

[Shows] that the Caribbean coast, typically considered an enclave, had direct and influential ties to the rest of the country.

"Latin American Research Review"

Synopsis

This analysis of Honduran social and political development explains why Honduras escaped the pattern of revolution and civil wars suffered by its neighbours, Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua. The author challenges traditional Banana Republic theory within this comparative framework.

Edition details

• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 080784604X
• ISBN 13: 9780807846049
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 270