Honors Theses
Date of Award
Spring 4-14-2021
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Modern Languages
First Advisor
Diane Marting
Second Advisor
Robyn Wright
Third Advisor
Heather Allen
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
Cinema has been one of the most useful tools to portray the political and social beliefs prevalent during a given point in history. Following the Cuban Revolution, once-marginalized communities were given far more opportunity to participate in education, in the workforce, and in society. Institutionalized racism and sexism were combatted as Fidel Castro’s major areas of focus after the Cuban Revolution’s 1959 victory. Class issues were improved as the wealth inequality that had defined pre-Revolutionary Cuba was minimized following the nationalizing of private property. Despite these improvements, however, there remained sentiments of dissatisfaction regarding social issues in Revolutionary Cuba, including continued racism and sexism. Films produced after the Revolution give insight into these social issues that certain communities still faced while also highlighting the Revolution’s vital role in reversing some issues of pre-Revolutionary Cuba. The importance that the Revolutionary government placed on cinema cannot be overstated. It founded the state-run production company, the Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematográficos (ICAIC) as a means to promote the Revolution through film in order to reach a large audience. Tomás Gutierrez Alea, founding member of the ICAIC and lifelong loyalist to the Revolution, makes his opinions regarding issues of race and gender in Cuba known through his films La última cena, Hasta cierto punto, and El arte de tobaco. Likewise, Afro-Cuban filmmaker and member of the ICAIC Sara Gómez portrayed race and gender relations in Revolutionary Cuba in her films Iré a Santiago and De cierta manera, and reflects her beliefs through these films. The Revolutionary government’s response to these two filmmakers varies dramatically, and it reflects the level of criticism that the government deemed acceptable as filmmakers highlighted the shortcomings of the Revolution. This thesis aims to analyze the careers of Alea and Gómez, the social issues that they address, and the Revolution’s response to the criticism or praise that we see in these filmmakers’ works. The Revolutionary government was much more accepting of Alea’s criticism of Revolutionary social issues, whereas Gómez’s criticism resulted in censorship by the government. The role of the ICAIC in the censorship of Cuban cinema filmmakers’ freedom to call attention to certain social issues.
Recommended Citation
Bartley, Sarah, "The Portrayal of Race and Gender in Revolutionary Cuban Cinema" (2021). Honors Theses. 1680.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/1680
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