The Perennial Wanderer


Book Description

Experienced in 65 countries, the author offers a unique perspective on the world. Currently a resident in central Africa, "The Perennial Wanderer" is his contribution to readers' broader view of the world, particularly since the terrible events of 9-11.




The Perennial Wanderer


Book Description

Many authors, in satisfying the reading public's insatiable need for escapist literature, invest much time and energy. Don't get me wrong - I read that literature all the time myself. Why not? It is usually entertaining, if not suspenseful. In The Perennial Wanderer, however, it is my intent to demonstrate that life is indeed stranger than fiction, and I, not unlike the escapist writers, have invested much time and energy in bringing these life experiences to the reader. After working in so many countries - including war torn and conflictive countries such as Viet Nam, Colombia, Per, Mozambique, Sudan and El Salvador - I have seen more than my share of violence, murder, mayhem, public corruption and chicanery. And none of my observations have taken place as a military man ... my military experience, by the way, was in the peacetime Air Force in the beautiful Hawaiian Islands. About a decade ago - at the time of the FMLN communist rebel final offensive in El Salvador, at which time I was taken hostage - some friends in the State Department Mobile Security Team observed that Clint Eastwood should star in a movie about me. I do not think that Mr. Eastwood would now be interested. Besides, as noted: Life really is stranger than fiction.







Gringos Get Rich


Book Description

Documents counterimperialism in Chilean music since the 1960s Gringos Get Rich: Anti-Americanism in Chilean Music examines anti-Americanism in Latin America as manifested in Chilean music in recent history. From a folk-based movement in the 1960s and early 1970s to underground punk rock groups during the Pinochet regime, to socially conscious hip-hop artists of postdictatorship Chile, Chilean music has followed several left-leaning transnational musical trends to grapple with Chile's fluctuating relationship with the United States. Eunice Rojas's innovative analysis introduces US readers to a wide swath of Chilean musicians and their powerful protest songs and provides a representative and long view of the negative influences of the United States in Latin America. Much of the criticism of the United States in Chile's music centers on the perception of the United States as a heavy-handed source of capitalist imperialism that is exploitative of and threatening to Chile's poor and working-class public and to Chilean cultural independence and integrity. Rojas incorporates Antonio Gramsci's theories about the difficulties of struggles for cultural power within elitist capitalist systems to explore anti-Americanism and anti-capitalist music. Ultimately, Rojas shows how the music from various genres, time periods, and political systems attempts to act as a counterhegemonic alternative to Chile's political, cultural, and economic status quo. Rojas's insight is timely as a political trend toward the right continues in the Americas. There is also increased interest in and acceptance of popular song lyrics as literary texts. The book will appeal to Latin Americanists, ethnomusicologists, scholars of popular culture and international relations, students, and general readers.




The Princeton Handbook of World Poetries


Book Description

An authoritative and comprehensive guide to poetry throughout the world The Princeton Handbook of World Poetries—drawn from the latest edition of the acclaimed Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics—provides a comprehensive and authoritative survey of the history and practice of poetry in more than 100 major regional, national, and diasporic literatures and language traditions around the globe. With more than 165 entries, the book combines broad overviews and focused accounts to give extensive coverage of poetic traditions throughout the world. For students, teachers, researchers, poets, and other readers, it supplies a one-of-a-kind resource, offering in-depth treatment of Indo-European poetries (all the major Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, and Romance languages, and others); ancient Middle Eastern poetries (Hebrew, Persian, Sumerian, and Assyro-Babylonian); subcontinental Indian poetries (Bengali, Hindi, Marathi, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Urdu, and more); Asian and Pacific poetries (Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Mongolian, Nepalese, Thai, and Tibetan); Spanish American poetries (those of Mexico, Peru, Argentina, Chile, and many other Latin American countries); indigenous American poetries (Guaraní, Inuit, and Navajo); and African poetries (those of Ethiopia, Somalia, South Africa, and other countries, and including African languages, English, French, and Portuguese). Complete with an introduction by the editors, this is an essential volume for anyone interested in understanding poetry in an international context. Drawn from the latest edition of the acclaimed Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics Provides more than 165 authoritative entries on poetry in more than 100 regional, national, and diasporic literatures and language traditions throughout the world Features extensive coverage of non-Western poetic traditions Includes an introduction, bibliographies, cross-references, and a general index