A vigorous, detailed history of Mexican politics, concentrating on
the 19th and 20th centuries, and more particularly on the men who
have contested for control of the nation. Journalist and historian
Kxauze, convinced that the nature of Mexican political life and
identity have been greatly shaped by a longstanding cult of the
all-powerful leader, focuses on the dominant personalities on the
national scene, from the great liberator Benito Jufirez (who led
the resistance to French occupation forces in the 1860s) up to
Ernesto Zedillo, elected to the presidency in 1994. His narrative
has pace and color, and his analysis of dictators and heroes seems
generally shrewd and persuasive (if a bit impressionistic). Those
looking for a history of Mexico's turbulent national politics will
find this a useful introduction. But readers expecting details on
the impact of politics on Mexico's social and cultural life, on its
diverse regions, and on its self-image, will likely be
disappointed. (Kirkus Reviews)
The concentration of power in the caudillo (leader) is as much a formative element of Mexican culture and politics as the historical legacy of the Aztec emperors, Cortez, the Spanish Crown, the Mother Church and the mixing of the Spanish and Indian population into a mestizo culture. Krauze shows how history becomes biography during the century of caudillos from the insurgent priests in 1810 to Porfirio and the Revolution in 1910. The Revolutionary era, ending in 1940, was dominated by the lives of seven presidents -- Madero, Zapata, Villa, Carranza, Obregon, Calles and Cardenas. Since 1940, the dominant power of the presidency has continued through years of boom and bust and crisis. A major question for the modern state, with today's president Zedillo, is whether that power can be decentralized, to end the cycles of history as biographies of power.
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