The Human Tradition in Mexico

The Human Tradition in Mexico is a book of real-life stories of Mexicans throughout more than 250 years of the country's history. This text does not focus on presidents, generals, and other well-known figures, but rather on the ordinary individuals who faced challenges common to all Mexicans of their generation. Editor Jeffrey M. Pilcher uses these vignettes to explore three significant themes: nationalism and globalization, modernization and its effects on ordinary people, and the struggle for the self. Exploring these pivotal topics, this book personalizes abstract, and sometimes baffling, generalizations on social history by providing fascinating and accessible mini-biographies that will appeal to undergraduate students. In The Human Tradition in Mexico, readers will explore the story of a Mexican Romeo and Juliet, gain insight into the Mexican version of Woodstock, learn to make a fine, aged tequila, and meet the 'apostle of the enchilada.' These essays, written by a talented group of specialists, will show how each individual contributed to the forging of the Mexican identity as the country went from a struggling new nation to a modern republic trying to find its place in an increasingly globalized culture. This book will enlighten and entertain readers with its colorful and engaging narratives of Mexicans throughout the country's rich past.