San Martín, from Bronze to Celluloid: Argentina's Liberator As Film
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Tzvi Tal | Special In-Depth Section San Martín, from Bronze to Celluloid: Argentina’s Liberator as Film Character by Tzvi Tal Te l Aviv University and Sapir Academic College Tr anslation: Martha Grenzeback National history has always been a major theme in Argentine This article analyzes representations of the Liberator Gen- cinema. El fusilamiento de Dorrego (“The Execution of Dorrego”, eral José de San Martín in films produced during different peri- Mario Gallo, 1910), Argentina’s first narrative film, portrayed an ods and national moods: the military dictatorship instituted in incident reflecting the internal political conflict that had prevailed 1966; the popular resistance and rise of revolutionary guerrilla since independence. Recognizing the potential of the historical warfare in the late 1960s and early 1970s; the eagerness for na- genre, Gallo went on to make La Revolución de Mayo (“The May tional rebirth with the return to democracy in 1984; and the disil- Revolution”) and La Batalla de Maipú (“The Battle of Maipú”).1 lusion generated by the imposition of neo-liberalism—with its Historical films performed an integrative function at a time when implicit political and economic corruption—by Carlos Menem’s industrialization was attracting farm workers to the cities and the presidency after 1989. My analysis points up the different uses of state was promoting mass immigration from Europe. historiography and iconography by filmmakers. During the mili- For the most part, narrative films with historical themes dis- tary dictatorship (1966-1973), the hegemonic discourse dissemi- seminated basic myths of national identity and presented versions nated through official history, civil rituals and the media, waged a of the past reflecting the history produced by the oligarchical-lib- battle over symbols with revolutionary discourses that included eral rulers of the country. Yet, interestingly, very few films depicted possession of the national myth of the Liberator in films. After the image of General José de San Martín, the soldier who had led 1984, this battle subsided, opening the door to portrayals of imag- native forces to victory against Spanish armies between 1812 and ined aspects of San Martín’s private life—a subject never addressed 1822 before going into exile in France until his death in 1850— before. The globalization of the Argentine economy and its cul- even though his memory was enshrined in the national imaginary tural consequences have resulted in a humanization and weaken- under the title “the Father of our country,” and “the Liberator”. ing of San Martín’s image in later films, expressing shifts in San Martín’s memory was appropriated and monopolized national identity discourse. by the state. The Instituto Nacional Sanmartiniano (San Martín Society), established in 1933, proclaimed itself as a private, apo- Historic Heroes and litical, essentially nationalist professional institution for the pres- ervation of national memory; but it was founded at the Círculo Symbolic Conflicts Militar (Military Club), at a time when the army was involved in The biographies and images of national heroes offer ob- politics. In 1944 the Instituto was nationalized by the military jects of identification in various respects, reinforcing social cohe- dictatorship and put under the control of the War Ministry. In 1950 sion and obscuring social disparities. Dreams and desires are the centennial of San Martín’s death was exploited by President vicariously realized by almost superhuman patriots who transcend Juan Domingo Perón’s regime to glorify the president’s image, the normal human horizons, as San Martín’s image was incul- and ceremonies commemorating San Martín were incorporated cated to children and citizens throughout the years. National he- into Argentina’s “civil religion”.2 This sanctification of San Martín roes lead justified war, and the hero’s name becomes a metaphor was a deterrent to representing him in movies. Most filmmakers for the ideal of the national character. San Martín’s “Precepts for and businessmen preferred to avoid a subject that was controlled my daughter” were incorporated to formal studies and decorum, by the National Academy of History or the Instituto Sanmartiniano while the hero’s image, transformed into an icon, is an index of and regulated by censorship laws that penalized any perceived morality, patriotism, and sacrifice, marking internal or external attack on the “fundamental values of the nation”.3 “Others”. The hero’s deeds and moral qualities are placed above Vol. 34.1 (2004) | 21 Ta l | San Martín, from Bronze to Celluloid: Argentina’s Liberator as Film Character social contradictions, while the education system, the state insti- orrhoids, and cholera. For years he took opium, one of the few tutions, and the media inculcate the national myths, contributing palliatives known at the time, and he often fell prey to pains and significantly to the construction of the “imagined community”.4 illnesses.10 Those myths are, in fact, narrative constructions that help over- The young San Martín participated in battles against Arab come the discrepancy between knowledge and belief, creating an and French armies, and served under English officers, Spain’s ideological image of the past and the present.5 new allies in its confrontations with Napoleon. His meteoric as- Biographies are a popular genre in history, literature, and cension through military ranks attested to his leadership and stra- cinema, where they reinforce the social status quo by disseminat- tegic abilities. When King Fernando VII restored the old regime, ing the established views, as San Martín’s life was represented in civil war broke out all over Spain, while in the American colonies literature and educational texts. The guardians of that status quo liberal Creoles battled royalist forces. San Martín resigned his often become fanatically protective of the images of national he- military commission and joined a group of Americans planning roes when changing social relations give rise to new views of the to seek independence from the Spanish crown with English sup- “founding fathers” that challenge the conventional representations, port. In March, 1812, San Martín disembarked in Buenos Aires, as revisionist historiography did in Argentina. Interpretations of where the government charged him with the task of organizing a the nation as an imagined community built through the narrative regiment that was victorious against the Spaniards in its first battle, process, wherein different subjects tell alternative versions of the in February, 1813. During this period he married Remedios, the past, permit a comparative study of the way heroes have been 15-year-old daughter of the wealthy Escalada family. represented through time, while textual analysis reveals the po- Appointed commander of the army destined to liberate Peru, litical significance of those representations.6 San Martín devised an ingenious strategy: to cross the Andes, lib- Historical films integrate current political interests with lo- erate Chile, and surprise the Spaniards in Peru from the sea. Serv- cal discourses and historiography, as well as cinematographic tra- ing as governor of Cuyo, at the foot of the Andes, he spent three ditions inspired by universal aesthetic trends. In the sixties the years forming an army, despite constant friction with the political Argentine military dictatorship exploited the emotional and intel- leadership in Buenos Aires. In January 1817 his forces liberated lectual influence of this complex interweaving of discourse and Chile, where he declined the position of Chilean head of state. The aesthetics, reinforcing the collective and individual sense of be- campaign for Peru’s liberation lasted from August 1820 to June longing to the nation.7 1822. Ships were provided by the English navy. On 25 July 1822, Film is a product of negotiation between the identity of the Simón Bolivar and José de San Martin met at Guayaquil. Some creative subjects and social discourses and forces. Whether a film’s interpretations suggest conflicts between the two men: San Martín producers are economically independent or dependent on official was a constitutional royalist while Bolivar, educated in the French and institutional subsidies can have a crucial influence on the way tradition, was a republican. Nor did they have equal political the image of the past is constructed, especially in countries, like strength, since Bolivar enjoyed the support of the state of Greater Argentina, where the film industry has difficultly surviving with- Colombia (present-day Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, and out state support.8 Current censorship laws or other forms of ideo- Panama), whereas San Martin had no backing from the Argentine logical control affect the script, as do changes in the balance of government. Traditional accounts of their meeting emphasize San power between discourses, which permit new interpretations. The Martín’s willingness to sacrifice his own interests. conquest of screens by commercial modes of representation re- San Martín handed Peru over to Bolívar in September 1822 duced the creative freedom of Argentine filmmakers seeking a and retired to Argentina, while politicians accused him of cow- wide audience. Only clandestine or experimental filmmakers can ardice. His wife passed away in 1823. Reluctant to involve him- ignore the conditioning factors affecting the market for symbolic self in civil wars, he went into exile in Europe in 1824, with his products.9 daughter Mercedes. In 1829 he tried to return to Argentina, but remained in Europe until passing away at Boulogne-sur-Mer on From Glory to Oblivion 17 August 1850. In 1877, at President Nicholas Avellaneda’s ini- José de San Martín, born in 1778, was the Creole son of the tiative, San Martín’s remains were repatriated to Argentina and Spanish governor at the little town of Yapeyú. Present-day re- interred in the Cathedral of Buenos Aires. searchers claim that he was the product of a liaison between his father and an indigenous woman. His mestizo appearance earned From Exile to the him the sobriquets of “El Cholo” and “El Tape de las misiones” National Pantheon (“mission Indian”).