Representaciones y publicaciones sobre el gaucho argentino en la década del treinta. Entre la identidad nacional, el campo literario y las estrategias comerciales*

 

Matías Emiliano Casas[1]

CONICET

Reception: 09/03/2015

Evaluation: 11/03/2015

Approval: 05/05/2015

Research and Innovation Article.

 

Resumen

 

Durante década del treinta, en Argentina, se recuperaron con intensidad las preocupaciones por definir el “ser nacional” y consolidar una identidad que se veía “amenazada” por la afluencia de inmigrantes y corrientes ideológicas foráneas. En ese contexto, la figura del gaucho convocó el interés de distintas publicaciones que reconocían en la evocación del campesino de la pampa, la referencia simbólica para la “argentinidad”. En este artículo se estudia la composición y circulación del imaginario gauchesco en los años previos a la intervención gubernamental sobre esas temáticas. Se focaliza, entonces, en la constitución y expansión del campo literario bonaerense a partir de las publicaciones periódicas que se ocuparon –con diferente densidad- de proponer sus definiciones sobre el “gaucho” y la “tradición”. En ese relevamiento se destaca el uso comercial que diversas empresas emplearon para expandir o legitimar sus productos en los nuevos mercados.

 

Palabras clave: Argentina, Gaucho, publicaciones periódicas, consumo de masas

 

Representations and publications on the Argentinian gaucho in the thirties. Between national identity, the literary field and business strategies.

 

Abstract

 

During the thirties, in Argentina, there was a rising concern for defining the “national being” and consolidating an identity that considered itself to be threatened by mass immigration and foreign ideological currents. In this context, the profile of the gaucho was utilized by several publications which acknowledged the evocation of country people from la pampa as the symbolic reference of an “essence of Argentina”. This article studies the composition and circulation of the gaucho imaginary, in the years prior to governmental intervention in these topics. Focus is made upon the constitution and the expansion of literature in Buenos Aires through periodical publications which, in different measures, proposed definitions for “gaucho” and “tradition”. In this study, stress is made upon the marketing approach applied by several businesses to expand and legitimize their products in new markets.

Key words: Argentina, gaucho, periodical publications, mass consumption

 

 

Representações e publicações sobre o gaúcho argentino na década de trinta. Entre a identidade nacional, o campo literário e as estratégias comerciais

 

Resumo

 

Durante a década de trinta, na Argentina, retomaram-se com intensidade as preocupações em definir a identidade nacional e consolidar uma identidade que se via ameaçada pelo fluxo de imigrantes e correntes ideológicas estrangeiras. Neste contexto, a figura do gaúcho chamou a atenção de várias publicações que reconheciam na evocação de camponês dos pampas, a referência simbólica à "argentinidade". Neste artigo discute-se a composição e circulação do imaginário gaúcho nos anos que antecederam a intervenção do governo sobre estes temas. Focaliza-se, então, na criação e expansão do campo literário de Buenos Aires a partir dos jornais que se ocuparam – com diferente densidade - em propor diferentes definições sobre "gaúcho" e "tradição". Nesta pesquisa se destaca o uso comercial que diversas empresas usaram para expandir e legitimar os seus produtos em novos mercados.

 

Palavras-chave: Argentina, Gaucho, jornais, consumo de massa

 

Représentations et publications sur le gaucho argentin dans la décennie de 1930. Entre l’identité nationale, le champ littéraire et les stratégies commerciales

 

Résumé

 

En Argentine pendant la décennie de 1930 a eut lieu une réappropriation émotive de l’intérêt pour définir l’ « être national » et consolider une identité tenu « menacée » par l’afflux d’immigrants et de courants idéologiques étrangères. Dans ce contexte, la figure du gaucho a provoqué l’intérêt de différentes publications qui ont trouvé dans l’évocation du paysan des pampas, la référence symbolique de l’ « argentinidad ». Dans cet article nous étudierons la construction et la circulation de l’idée de gaucho durant les années qui ont précédé l’intervention gouvernementale sur ce sujet. Le texte se focalise dans la constitution et l’expansion du champ littéraire de Buenos Aires à partir des publications périodiques qui ont proposés définitions du « gaucho » et de la « tradition ». La célébration du gaucho a été lié aussi a son utilisation commerciale par certains entreprises qui se sont servi de cette figure pour diffuser ou légitimer leurs produits sur les nouveaux marchés.

 

Mots clés: Argentine - Gaucho - Publications périodiques - Consommation de masses

 

 

1. Introduction

The beginning of the 1930s was characterized by an environment marked by economic crisis, which resounded on a global level from October 1929, and also by the political crisis manifested in the coup d’état that ousted President Hipólito Yrigoyen on September 6th, 1930[2]. In the economic aspect, due to the Wall Street Crash, Argentina’s exports plummeted and there was a setback with regard to American investment, processes which generated great inflation, more unemployment and a salary decrease. To a certain extent, the defeat of the governing party in the parliamentary election in March 1930 showed the social discontent, in economic terms. The armed forces who took control of the government, in those first years, dedicated themselves to “restoring order” by intensifying social intervention. The disarticulation of the unions, the persecution and deportation of anarchists and communists –some were even shot- revived the hostility towards foreign activists. In the months following the coup, a Special Division of Fight against Communism was created in the core of the Federal Police. In addition, at different times of the decade, Law N° 4,144 was applied, better known as the Residence Law, which had been enacted at the beginning of the century and allowed the government to expel foreigners who disturbed the public order without a prior trial[3]. In this context, the circulation of the gaucho imaginary as a reference of what was autochthonous and Argentinian increased throughout that period. However, the figure of the gaucho, far from achieving a single characterization, experienced diverse attributions of meaning.

 

The present article delves into the dynamic and the uses of the figure of the gaucho and the rural tradition in the strenuous efforts to crystalize the Argentine national identity. To make intelligible the appropriations of the government experienced from the end of the 30s, an analysis of the previous period is carried out, in which the topics related to life in the countryside in Buenos Aires emerged in diverse discursive registers without the intervention of the state. In this sense, a corpus of periodical publications on varied topics will be analyzed, which referred to the gaucho with different interests. Whether it was to elaborate analytical interpretations on productions of gaucho literature or to use his image for the commercialization of new products, the figure of the gaucho revitalized his presence in the graphic media. It is considered that said circulation not only evidenced the identification of the gaucho with “being Argentinian,” but also put into perspective new representations linked with the process of modernization and consumption.

 

2. The imaginary of the gaucho world and the expansion of periodical publications

 

The philosopher Cornelius Castoriadis introduced the concept of a social imaginary to account for the ways in which modern societies conceived of their components[4]. It is from that conception that the members of a society can identify as part of it and acknowledge the otherness. In line with Castoriadis, social imaginaries experience a process of incessant creation with regard to products of the collective imagination and suffer variations that are closely related with sociopolitical and economic transformations[5]. The concept turns out to be fundamental to making intelligible the power structures and the symbolic links that are traced between institutions and their members. Bronislaw Baczko, for his part, acknowledges social imaginaries as spaces and, at the same time, objects of conflict; that is to say, their reproduction accounts for social conflicts and their constitution is inserted in that dynamic inherent to disputes[6]. Throughout the 30s, the gaucho imaginary, understood from a sociological perspective as an engine that creates reality, took place without the direct intervention of the institutions that regulated the social structure[7]. It was supported by the literary baggage that had been produced since the previous century and from the circulation of diverse topics on countryside life which emerged in different publications. Until its official appropriation by the government of the city of Buenos Aires, at the end of the decade, the definitions on the gaucho and his world were limited to civil participation. Edgar Morin contributes with the concept of the “aestheticization of what is real” to indicate the function of what is imaginary[8]. In this point, those who evoked the romantic figure of the gaucho intended to transcend the real and objective conditions that a countryside, which was very different from what they imagined in their writing, presented to them.

 

The gaucho and the countryside traditions were some of the elements of significant presence in periodical publications under literary narrations, riddles, comics, pastimes and ads. To analyze the scope of their circulation permits, not only the reconstruction of the constitution of said imaginary for the period, but also the recognition of the present lack of clarity that was used in the successive years, attending to different interests. The figure of the gaucho in the 30s was neither exempt from contradictions nor diverse interpretations. The presence of the components of the gaucho imaginary could be traced in the most varied publications and their appearance also responded to different interests, such as selling a consumption product or legitimizing the position of a newspaper.

 

The cultural field, towards the 1930s, had experienced an intense growth with regard to the means of circulating ideas. Actually, the process of modernization of the mass media made up a wide spectrum regarding the possibilities of dissemination. As Paula Bruno points out by approaching the reconfiguration of the intellectual field, throughout the first three decades of the 20th century, a number of cultural magazines emerged, which were characterized for bringing together “intellectual constellations”, generating spaces of sociability which widely transcended the written pages[9]. Periodical publications constituted a mechanism of intervention that had an influence on different aspects of socio-cultural life. In fact, the thematic universe of the circulating magazines was wide and varied, which accounted for the expansion and diversification of the readership. Although, as Beatriz Sarlo points out, the quantitative variables do not determine in themselves the incidence of the publications in cultural transformations They reveal their scope, at least in their commercialization[10]. In this sense, by way of example, the Martín Fierro magazine, specialized in literary and artistic critique, published 14,000 copies every fortnight, after it appeared in the second half of the1920s[11]. Although that number represented a significant figure for the intellectuals who directed the publication, itwas substantially lower than the number of magazines that dealt with varied topics, such as El Hogar from Haynes editorial. In 1924, it reported a print run of more than 100,000 copies per week, or Caras y Caretas, which had reached that figure in 1907[12].

 

The growth in graphic media was not exclusive to magazines, newspapers of massive print runs and also zonal periodicals experienced a noticeable expansion. El Día from La Plata –the capital of the province of Buenos Aires-, was a representative example of said process, having by the mid-1930s a regular edition of more than 30,000 copies[13]. To a lesser extent, the gaucho area of San Antonio de Areco – a municipality linked to the tradition from the novel by Ricardo Güiraldes, Don Segundo Sombra- also showed an increase and diversification with regard to the written press. El Sol newspaper, from that locality, appealed to the gaucho imaginary from the perspective of identity. Thus, it reaffirmed its traditionalist condition by including verses from Martín Fierro, in the header of its pages; for example: “But no one need feel offended, as I don't trouble anyone. And if I sing in the way I do because I think it's right that I should – it's not to do evil to anyone, but to do everyone good.[14].”  The selection of the verses of the periodical was not by chance, it was supported in the complainant characteristic of the poem by José Hernández, and in the supposed authenticity of the voice of the gauchos, to question the political and economic practices of the countryside. In that specific case, the attitude of the editor of the periodical was also fundamental, who had been characterized by announcing a series of proclamations in favor of the tradition and vindication of the gaucho. The person responsible for the newspaper was Federico Oberti, who developed a vast journalistic and literary career. From 1957, he participated for more than two decades in La Prensa newspaper and collaborated in different publications. His writings were characterized by intending to consolidate the category of San Antonio de Areco, his locality of origin, as the “capital of traditionalism[15].”

 

Not only periodicals dealt with countryside life and reproduced the gaucho imaginary. In the 30s, academic institutions also highlighted diverse topics in their publications or conferences. The Instituto de Literatura Argentina (Institute of Argentinian Literature) from the Universidad de Buenos Aires -under the direction of Ricardo Rojas- published the version of Juan Moreira dramatized by the Scoti-Podestá company in 1886. Musicologist Carlos Vega, technician for the study of folklore in that institution, argued in the prologue that the institute had resolved said publication for the importance attributed to that show, which was the basis for a series of plays that maintained its characteristics and environment. José Podestá, who represented the protagonist of Gutierrez’ novel, had donated to the institute the original manuscript of the first spoken performance when Juan Moreira went from being a pantomime to a dialogued representation[16].

 

In the Academia Argentina de Letras (Argentine Academy of the Arts), the gaucho and his customs were also present in the study of literary works. On the 10 November, 1937, the institution received Eleuterio Tiscornia as a member, a professor of literature whose best-known work had been his philological study on Martín Fierro, published in 1930[17]. The welcome speech was given by Atilio Chiáppori, the former director of the National Museum of Fine Arts, who took advantage of the date –it was the 100th anniversary of the birth of José Hernández- to develop concepts about the poem and the gaucho[18]. By way of introduction to the studies carried out by Tiscornia, Chiáppori went through the poem Martín Fierro, focusing in the silences and vindications of the Argentinian arts[19]. Eleuterio Tiscornia based his presentation on the life of Jose Hernández and, from there on, he evoked several definitions about the gaucho. In particular, the second part of the poem was read by the philologist as “the assimilation of the gaucho to regular and democratic life. A return to shared work and to peace among brothers.” For that, he affirmed: “Martín Fierro penetrated in the consciousness of the contemporary gaucho because they felt identified with his destiny and he generated the admiration of the following generations because of the fecund ideal of being disciplined in the love of men and directing energies to common happiness reaches us all[20].” Thus, Tiscornia presented a “model gaucho” in what would represent a recurrent typification during the late 1930s.

 

3. The diversification of the gaucho: his appearance in very distinct magazines

 

Periodical publications reproduced the gaucho imaginary from different perspectives. Contemporary French author, Paul Valery, gave testimony to the growth and diversification of the magazines that were edited in Buenos Aires: “Magazines play a very important role in literary and scientific life […] the writer takes chances; they can slip in a cheeky page, they test their strength and, above all, they survey the sensitivity of their contemporaries. With interest, I have confirmed that there is no shortage of them in Buenos Aires[21].”  Valery particularly valued Sur magazine, founded in 1931 by Victoria Ocampo, for its universal spirit. In fact, the group of intellectuals that expressed themselves through its pages was characterized by a recurrent concern for the development of European literature. The magazine, published every three months in its early stages, had an external council formed of renowned authors, such as Waldo Frank and Drieu La Rochelle[22].

 

Thus, this characteristic did not restrict it from covering problems of the local literature. In 1931, they published a study by Borges on Martín Fierro. The five full pages of the analysis focus on highlighting the three main errors in which the literary critique supposedly incurred when assessing the poem written by Hernández: “the condescending admiration, the gross and unlimited complements, and the historical or philological digression[23].” Although his object of analysis was the linguistic topics, from them Borges put into perspective certain points of disagreement with those who “revered the traditional.” For example, the writer maintained that the ethics of the gaucho Fierro was to be inferred from his actions more than from his “witty devices[24].” Apart from the outline on Borges’ literary critique, which recovered concepts of the figure of the gaucho, the interests of the magazine prevented it from dealing with those topics again. Actually, for the period 1931-1937, only 3 articles re-examined gaucho-related topics, always from a literary perspective, by covering the work of Ricardo Güiraldes[25].

 

A visible contrast, with regard to the dissemination of the gaucho imaginary, was marked by Nativa magazine. This monthly publication was founded at the end of 1923 with a print run of 6 thousand copies for its first issue[26]. It was directed by a referent of folklore and Argentinian traditionalism, Julio Díaz Usandivaras. He was in charge of the editorials that were published in the first pages of the magazine and promoted the dissemination of literary and folkloric works, not only from the magazine but also through different compilations[27]. The magazine experienced a rapid growth during its first years: when it celebrated its third anniversary, the participation of more than three hundred agents and correspondents from all around the country and more than two thousand subscribers[28] was highlighted. In Nativa, the allusions to the gaucho and tradition were a common denominator, in fact, they constituted its leitmotiv. In 1926, for example, an article was published which intended to vindicate the figure of the gaucho before those who denigrated it. In those pages, there was a noticeable simplification which, unarguably, associated the man who lived in the countryside with the figure of the gaucho. In this way, the deeds of the latter, and his exploits were spread all over the southern cone of the continent “in the name of the fatherland[29].”

 

Nativa magazine represented a fundamental channel for the dissemination of traditionalism. In its pages, there were no intellectuals who were recognized internationally -as was the case of Sur, - on the contrary, regional writers who dedicated themselves to revisiting topics related to the countryside in their stories found a space there. At the same time, they managed to spread the traditional practices of different institutions. These characteristics turned it into a functional tool for this work, as its publications as well as the essays of its editor, will be mentioned again further on. In the 1930s, there were always articles on these topics. Images, illustrations, poems, riddles, jokes, the biographies of folk singers, traditionalist groups, creole stories, and even the formation of a “countryside publishing house” made of the magazine a reservoir of what was meant to be evoked as genuine elements of the “national tradition.” In most of the period studied, the publication was maintained without subsidies from the national governments, an element which was highlighted to prioritize its efforts to disseminate Argentine traditionalisms[30]. That indominable pursuit was shown in the number of articles on gaucho-related topics that were published every year[31].

 

The difference in the number of articles on the topic in some issues is not connected with a change of perspective of the magazine with regard to the figure of the gaucho and tradition, it is related to a particular dynamic that the magazine acquired from its first years in the market. In fact, most of its monthly editions took a municipality of the country -which was visited by a correspondent- and multiple peculiarities of the area were covered, dedicating, on occasions, most of the pages to that presentation only[32].

 

Although Nativa constituted a flag for traditionalism and, as such, it was easy to suppose the recurrent attention to the figure of the gaucho in its pages, other publications -specialized on other topics- also highlighted -to a different degree- gaucho-related topics. Para Ti magazine, of Atlántida publishing house, is a pertinent example. In 1922, the publication was founded and it was put on the market promoting the specialization process of the readership. By the decision of the publishing house, the new magazine was targeted at the female population, adapting its topics, as its slogan indicated to “all that matters to women[33].” It was not among Para Ti’s objectives to launch traditionalist claims or to lead a redeeming crusade for the gaucho. However, in an article published at the end of the 1930s, the magazine used his figure to foster the drinking of mate, a practice that was not only presented as an “autochthonous” element of rural life, but also as a habit with “unarguable benefits for the health.” In order to promote the consumption of yerba mate, the article was accompanied by a picture of a gaucho, the foot of which read: “the man of the countryside, who eats meat and drinks mate, reaches old age in a perfect state of health and lucidity[34].” Although this did not constitute a significant channel of dissemination for the gaucho imaginary, the fact that it is mentioned in a magazine for women is justified in that this shows the expansion and diversification of the topic in the years prior to the instauration of Tradition Day[35].

 

4. The use of the gaucho in advertisements: the conquest of new consumers

 

The use of the figure of the gaucho for the commercialisation of products also contributed to the circulation of countryside themes. The field of advertising in the 1930s was going through two processes that corresponded to the international socio-economic context and its repercussions on the domestic market. That is, from the end of the 19th century, according to studies by Fernando Rocchi, the city of Buenos Aires had started to walk a gradual path towards the formation of a society of massive consumption that expanded the demand for products and stimulated national industry as it was eager for supplies[36]. One of the processes that subsidized the expansion of consumption products in Buenos Aires was the injection of American capital and products, which from the panorama of the First World War not only expanded their production, but also their strategies to publicize them and commercialize them[37]. That characteristic, more evident in the 1920s, was conjugated with the setback of imports and the development of domestic industry, which led to the economic crisis of 1930[38]. Thus, the advertising world was marked by the interaction between products and foreign strategies with the intention of exacerbating the consumption of national products. Whether it was to introduce modern needs of consumption – such as the use of the automobile or photography – or to revitalize domestic industry, the profile of the gaucho was presented as an appealing resource for advertising. The implicit message that his presence implies seems to invoke, firstly, an effective process of the assimilation of the new product, whereas, secondly, his figure was used as a “confirmation” of the national character of the products advertised.

 

 In this context, the images of chinas (the female companion of the gaucho) and gauchos were still used to promote products that were not directly related with rural life[39]. Alcoluz Comalumbra offered a variety that went from batteries and flashlights to washing powder. All the offers and the quality of the products were intended to be legitimized from the association of the brand with that which was gaucho-related: “Every article that carries our gaucho brand is a purchase that you must make with the security of knowing that you are investing your money in a useful, safe and guaranteed way[40].” In that sense, the mark of the brand seemed to guarantee the reliability of the product. The term “gaucho” was, then, linked to good quality and the right way for things to work.

 

With reference to culinary tastes, the incorporation of mustard sauce to the dietary habits of the Argentinian was fostered by the importation of the product, popularly known as Savora. The English brand “J. & J. Colman Limited” had its company in the country and the advertisements which appeared in periodical publications at the end of the 20s and beginning of the 30s showed the efforts to consolidate the consumption of the new dressing. In one of its advertisements, a supposed dialog was reproduced between the sheriff who said in a concerned voice: “Now they want to spoil the broth” and the bartender recommended its use: “I’ve just tried it. That’s how the criollos treat us when one teaches them how to eat a bit better” and the gaucho, who was gladly assimilating the new dressing said: “Take it easy. I am a gaucho and I do not complain about the gringos when they are of this kind. The only thing I am sorry about is that my parents and grandparents went to the other world without trying such nice sauce as Savora[41].” As was presumable, the interests of the brand in gaining new consumers did not look exclusively for the gaucho of the countryside, other adverts showed that their process of expansion was quick to take multiple paths[42].

 

Other transformations fostered by modernization in the countryside had their correlation in different publications. The company Kodak promoted in its advertisements the massification of the use of pictures[43]. In that context, to call for their use by people from the countryside was part of the advertising strategy. To present their model of verichrome film, the following picture was used:

 

Image 1.

Source: Caras y Caretas, 26 March, 1932, 98.

 

The advertisement had a title that read: “Aquí en el campo no dan ganas de escribir…por eso te mando ésta foto.” (Here, in the countryside, one does not feel like writing…for that reason, I am sending you this picture”). The image presents a gaucho with his horse, posing in front of his cottage. The footage reads: “Míralo a Nicasio. Duro como un roble y bueno como el mejor. ¡Es todo un gaucho chapado a la antigua[44]!” (Look at Nicasio. As strong as an ox and as good as he gets. He is a real, old-style gaucho!)

 

 

 

In that same line, towards the end of the 30s, the oil company Texaco hired Florencio Molina Campos, so his images would promote, with signs in the Argentinian roads, some of its products. The works of the artist fostered the use of the automobile, the use of Mobil oil for the engine, to the detriment of the horse. One of the ads was called: Modern gaucho, and showed a gaucho driving a car and carrying his horse in a trailer.

 

 

 

Image 2.

Source: Ignacio Gutiérrez Saldivar, Molina Campos, (Buenos Aires: Zurbaran

                         Ediciones, 1996), 108

 

Image 3.

Source: Ignacio Gutiérrez Saldivar, Molina Campos, (Buenos Aires: Zurbaran

                         Ediciones, 1996), 109

 

The advertisements of the aperitif “Pineral” incorporated gaucho-related images to foster its consumption: “Hasta prontinto, mi prienda / que soy un gaucho cabal / y pa´que usté me comprienda / güeno como el PINERAL” (See you soon, my friend/ that I am a rational gaucho/and so that you understand/I am as good as Pineral). The verse in its original version in Spanish was accompanied by a color drawing where a gaucho was shown, from his horse, courting a “china” who blushed while she listened to him[45]. In another advertisement of the same product, gauchos were linked with the colors of the country:

 

 

 

 

Image 4.

                Source: Caras y Caretas, No. 1957, 4 April, 1936, 138

 

The image presented a corrida de sortijas (a traditional gaucho horse race), adorned with Argentinian flags. The flags and the escarapelas (pins) lead us to think that this was part of a patriotic celebration. The drawing is preceded by a verse that linked the success in the competition to the ingestion of the aperitif[46]. Other advertising uses, in different sectors, were characterized by using the name gaucho directly in the products they commercialized. Swift boasted about the duration of its soap, El gaucho, and defined its qualities in comparison to others[47]. To protect cattle, Alcoluz presented its anti-parasitical powder (sic) Gaucho and drew a gaucho protecting the top of the container, contemplating the figure of a tormented cow[48].

 

 

 

Image 5.

Source: Caras y Caretas, No. 2041, 13 November, 1937, 36.

 

 

5. Conclusions

 

The gaucho imaginary constituted a perspective to represent rural life in the 1930s.  The official measures that took place after that period did not need to construct an object from nothing in order to elevate him as a “symbol of national identity.” On the contrary, the figure of the gaucho was presented in different contexts. The circulation of diverse representations that articulated and contradicted themselves in order to define the gaucho according to their needs would later cause disputes. Those resignification processes found their … antecedents during the 30s. At that time, they could already be recognized -though with less intensity- diverse interpretations of the figure of the gaucho and an incipient link of what was gaucho-related with what was national.

 

As it was summarized in this work, the countryside customs awoke the interest of different social actors who disseminated their concept on the gaucho and determined his correspondence, or not, with the “national features.” The expansion of the literary field during the 30s was an inescapable factor in interpreting the incorporation of those topics in diverse magazines. The modernization process of the graphic press broadened the topics dealt with by periodical publications. In that wide spectrum, Nativa magazine became the permanent support of the voices that intended to revive the gaucho tradition.

 

The assessment of periodical publications showed a particular use of rural topics linked to the expansion of different objects of consumption. The commercial strategies of the companies -national as well as international- saw the figure of the gaucho as a door for their products to enter the market. Foreign brands used that link in their process to conquest new markets. In these operations, an unquestionable articulation between the gauchos and national Argentine features was established. This identification would gain ground in the years after the formation of governmental institutions. The gaucho consolidated its most disseminated representation: the one that placed him as a symbol of the Argentine Republic.

 

Appendix 1: Number of articles about the gaucho published in the Nativa magazine.

 

Year

Number of articles published about the gaucho

1925

24

1926

18

1927

21

1928

17

1929

16

1930

22

1931

21

1932

19

1933

17

1934

18

1935

20

1936

19

1937

23

1938

17

1939

19

 

Documental sources

 

Academia Argentina de Letras, Discursos académicos, 1933-1937

Caras y Caretas

El Día – La Plata

El Sol – San Antonio de Areco

La Gaceta –San Antonio de Areco

Nativa. Revista mensual ilustrada

Para ti

Sur

 

 

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Gasió, Guillermo, Yrigoyen. El mandato extraordinario, Buenos Aires: Corregidor, 2006.

 

Gené, Marcela, Un mundo feliz. Imágenes de los trabajadores en el primer peronismo, 1946-1955, Buenos Aires: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2008.

 

Girbal-Blacha, Noemí y María Silvia Ospital, “`Vivir con lo nuestro´: Publicidad y política en la Argentina de los años treinta”, en Revista europea de estudios latinoamericanos y del caribe, (abril de 2005): 49-66.

 

Gutiérrez Saldivar, Ignacio, Molina Campos, Buenos Aires: Zurbaran Ediciones, 1996.

 

Horowitz, Joel, Argentina´s radical party and popular mobilization, 1916-1930, Pennsykvania: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2008.

 

Morin, Edgar, Le spritu du temps, París : Libre du Poche, 1981.

 

Pasternac, Nora, Sur: una revista en la tormenta, los momentos de formación 1931-1944, Buenos Aires: Paradiso, 2002.

 

Rocchi, Fernando, “Consumir es un placer: La industria y la expansión de la demanda en Buenos Aires a la vuelta del siglo pasado”, en Desarrollo económico, revista de Ciencias Sociales, vol. 37, núm. 148, (enero-marzo de 1998): 533-558.

 

_______________, “La americanización del consumo: la batalla por el mercado argentino, 1920-1945”, en, María Inés Barbero y Andrés Regalsky, comp., Estados Unidos y América Latina en el siglo XX. Transferencias económicas, tecnológicas y culturales, Buenos Aires, Eduntref, 2003, 131-190.

 

Sarlo, Beatriz, Una modernidad periférica: Buenos Aires, 1920 y 1930, Buenos Aires: Ediciones Nueva Visión, 1998.

 

Seoane María y Víctor Santa María, La tragedia y la comedia de la Argentina: 1898-2008 [cien años de Caras y Caretas], Buenos Aires: Caras y Caretas, 2008.

 

Tiscornia, Eleuterio, La lengua del “Martín Fierro”, Buenos Aires: Imprenta de la Universidad de Buenos Aires, 1930.

 

__________________. Martín Fierro, anotado y comentado, Buenos Aires: Editorial Coni, 1952.

Vega, Carlos, “Noticia”, en Juan Moreira (1886), drama de Gutiérrez-Podestá, Buenos Aires: Instituto de Literatura Argentina, 1935.

 

 

To cite this article:

Matías Emiliano Casas, “Representations and publications on the Argentinian gaucho in the thirties. Between national identity, the literary field and business strategies.”, Historia y Memoria, No. 11 (July-December, 2015): 151-176.

 


* The present work is part of a research process for a doctoral thesis, where the representations of the gaucho and his relation with the formation of the national Argentine identity are approached.

[1]Professor, Master’s degree holder and Doctor of History from the Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero and the Université Denis Diderot Paris. Scholar from CONICET and professor at UNTREF.

[2] On radical governments around social conflict, see Joel Horowitz, Argentina´s radical party and popular mobilization, 1916-1930, (Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2008); about the second government of Hipólito Yrigoyen, see, among others, Guillermo Gasió, Yrigoyen. El mandato extraordinario, (Buenos Aires: Corregidor, 2006). In particular the activity of the Liga Patriótica Argentina and the sociopolitical persecusion, 437-446.

[3] On social conflict and government policies in response to a crisis during the 30s, see María Dolores Béjar, Uriburu y Justo: el auge conservador (1930-1935), (Buenos Aires: Centro Editor de América Latina, 1983). With regard to migratory policies, see an analytical study that, although it covers a more extensive period, it outlines the increase of obstacles to immigration due to the economic crisis, in Fernando Devoto, “El revés de la trama: políticas migratorias y prácticas administrativas en la Argentina (1919-1949)”, in Desarrollo económico, vol. 41, N° 162, (July-September, 2001), 281-304.

[4] See Cornelius Castoriadis, La institución imaginaria de la sociedad, (Madrid: Tusquets Editores, 2013), 269-273. 

[5] The concepts contributed by Cornelius Castoriadis were later dealt with in-depth in Lucian Boia, Pour une histoire de l´imaginaire, (París: Les Belles Lettres, 1998). 

[6] See Baczko, Bronislaw, Los imaginarios sociales. Memorias y esperanzas colectivas, (Buenos Aires: Nueva Visión, 1991), 26-32.

[7] See Gastón Bachelard, Poética de la ensoñación, (México: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1977); Gilbert Durand, Las estructuras antropológicas de lo imaginario, (Madrid: Taurus, 1981). 

[8]Edgar Morin, Le spritu du temps, (París : Libre du Poche, 1981), 91-92. 

[9] For a panorama of the porteño cultural life during the first decades of the 20th century, see Paula Bruno, “Sociabilidades culturales en Buenos Aires, 1860-1930” in Prismas, vol. 16, N° 2, 2012. The dossier presented there was published as a book in 2014, Paula Bruno dir, Sociabilidades y vida cultural, (Buenos Aire: Universidad Nacional de Quilmes, 2014).

[10] Beatriz Sarlo, Una modernidad periférica: Buenos Aires, 1920 y 1930, (Buenos Aires: Ediciones Nueva Visión, 1998), 26-27.

[11] Figure in Beatriz Sarlo, Una modernidad…7.

[12] In an article published for its 20th anniversary, El Hogar reported the modifications undergone and the modernization processes that led to an increase in its print run. Figures showed a substantial increase from 1911 to 1915, doubling the number of copies from 30 thousand to 66 thousand. See, El Hogar, 4 January, 1924. The number of the print run of Caras y Caretas was highlighted in the 2008-anniversary publication, see, María Seoane and Víctor Santa María, La tragedia y la comedia de la Argentina: 1898-2008 [cien años de Caras y Caretas], (Buenos Aires: Caras y Caretas, 2008), 23, 47. 

[13] The number of copies of El Día was published in each edition. With regard to the numbers for the mid-30s, see, for example, El Día, 1st January, 1936. The increase was highlighted in the celebration of its 56th- anniversary, see, El Día, 2 March, 3.

[14] El Sol, 13 December, 1936.

[15] See, La Gaceta, San Antonio de Areco, 11 November, 1950, p.5; De mis pagos. N° 20. April, 2005.  

[16]Carlos Vega, “Noticia”, in Juan Moreira (1886), drama de Gutiérrez-Podestá, (Buenos Aires: Instituto de Literatura Argentina, 1935), 3-4.

[17]Eleuterio Tiscornia, La lengua del “Martín Fierro”, Buenos Aires, Imprenta de la Universidad de Buenos Aires, 1930; Martín Fierro, anotado y comentado, (Buenos Aires: Editorial Coni, 1952).

[18] His most celebrated works were, Atilio Chiáppori, La inmortalidad de una patria, (Buenos Aires: Ministerio de Justicia e Instrucción Pública, 1942); Atilio Chiáppori, Prosa narrativa, (Buenos Aires: Academia Argentina de Letras, 1986).

[19]Academia Argentina de Letras, Discursos académicos, 1933-1937, Tomo I, (Buenos Aires, 1945), 296-305.

[20]Academia Argentina de Letras, Discursos…333.

[21] Massino Bontempelli et al, La vida y la cultura en la Argentina, (Buenos Aires: Comisión Argentina de Cooperación Intelectual, 1939), 53.

[22] About Sur magazine, see, Nora Pasternac, Sur: una revista en la tormenta, los momentos de formación 1931-1944, (Buenos Aires: Paradiso, 2002); John King, Sur, estudio de la revista argentina y de su papel en el desarrollo de una cultura, 1931-1970, (México: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1989). About the internal and external writing council, see the first issue of Sur magazine, summer 1931.

[23]Sur, fall 1931,134-145.

[24] Another publication that dealt with the figure of the gaucho from a literary work was Nosotros magazine, which in 1937 published a special issue due to the 50th anniversary of the poem Santos Vega. See, Nosotros, II year, Second epoch (October, 1937). 

[25]See, Sur, July 1935, 101-104; September 1935, 76-80; January 1936, 67-75.

[26] The figure appeared in an issue almost entirely dedicated to the trajectory of the magazine, due to its 20th anniversary, Nativa. Revista mensual ilustrada, 31 December, 1943.

[27] See, among others, Julio Díaz Usandivaras ed., Folklore y tradición: antología argentina, (Buenos Aires: Editorial Raigal, 1953); Julio Díaz Usandivaras ed., 5 siglos de literatura argentina, (Buenos Aires: Ediciones Corregidor, 1993). 

[28]See, Nativa. Revista mensual ilustrada, 31 December, 1926.

[29]Nativa. Revista mensual ilustrada, 31 December, 1926.

[30] In the early 40s, the management of the magazine had a conflict with national officials, due to the removal of a subsidy that it had obtained years before. The dispute took place throughout a prolonged period without success, despite their efforts by disseminating their claim in the pages of the magazine. See an outline of the conflict in Nativa, revista mensual ilustrada, (30 April, 1944):2-3.

[31] In the Appendix, the number of articles published about the gaucho in Nativa in the period studied are outlined.

[32] Apart from visiting the cities, the management obtained new sponsors for the financing of the magazine. An example of this appeared in the issue dedicated to Tandil, Nativa. Revista mensual ilustrada, 31 May, 1929. Also, see, the issue dedicated to the district of 9 de Julio, Nativa. Revista mensual ilustrada, 30 April, 1944; or the edition on the city of Rosario, Nativa. Revista mensual ilustrada, 30 June, 1945.

[33] About the creation of Para Ti, its insertion into the market and its ideological lines, see, Paula Bontempo, “Para Ti: una revista moderna para una mujer moderna, 1922-1935,” in Estudios sociales, biannual university journal, year 21, Universidad Nacional del Litoral, (second semester 2011):127-156.

[34]Para Ti, 20 June, 1939, 16-17.

[35] Another reference published in Para Ti magazine was a small article about the meaning of the 10 November ephemerid where the gaucho was evoked as the holder of the “elements that constituted essence of being Argentinian.” See in Para Ti, 8 November, 1952.

[36] About the incidences and the characteristics of consumption in the context of the change of century, see, Fernando Rocchi, “Consumir es un placer: La industria y la expansión de la demanda en Buenos Aires a la vuelta del siglo pasado”, in Desarrollo económico, revista de Ciencias Sociales, vol. 37, N° 148, (January-March, 1998), 533-558.

[37] See, Fernando Rocchi, “La americanización del consumo: la batalla por el mercado argentino, 1920-1945”, in, María Inés Barbero and Andrés Regalsky, comp., Estados Unidos y América Latina en el siglo XX. Transferencias económicas, tecnológicas y culturales, (Buenos Aires, Eduntref, 2003), 131-190.

[38] See, Noemí Girbal-Blacha and María Silvia Ospital, “`Vivir con lo nuestro´: Publicidad y política en la Argentina de los años treinta”, in Revista europea de estudios latinoamericanos y del caribe, (April 2005), 49-66.

[39]Marcela, Gené, Un mundo feliz. Imágenes de los trabajadores en el primer peronismo, 1946-1955, (Buenos Aires: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2008), 110.

[40] See, for example, Caras y Caretas, 16 February, 1929. p. 19; Caras y Caretas, 20 April, 1929, 51; Caras y Caretas, 6 July, 1929, 57.

[41]Caras y Caretas, 2 November, 1929.

[42]See, for example, the advertisement of two gentlemen standing in a terrace, both fond of good food and dressed in fancy clothes, talking about the benefits of seasoning food with Savora (mustard), in Caras y Caretas, 6 July, 1929, 215. Another advertisement portrayed how domestic workers kept a little bit of mustard for themselves before offering the jar to their masters, in Caras y Caretas, 13 July, 1929, 42.

[43] See the advertisement that involved the family and appealed to the reader to capture important moments with Kodak cameras, in Caras y Caretas, 22 January, 1930, 113.

[44]Caras y Caretas, 26 March, 1932, 98.

[45]Caras y Caretas, N° 1957, 4 April, 1936, 138.

[46]Caras y Caretas, N° 1958, 11 April, 1936, 158.

[47]Caras y Caretas, N° 1644, 5 April, 1930, 153.

[48]Caras y Caretas, N° 2041, 13 November, 1937, 36.