Attempting to uncover and document the history, or rather histories and pre-histories, of queer tango is difficult. Superficially, the history ought to be easy. The term “queer tango” barely existed before 2001 when it was first used by LGBT dancers in Hamburg, Germany. It was perceived of by them as a riposte to “hetero-normative” leader-follower relationships in mainstream Argentinian tango, proposing instead women as leaders, men as followers, same sex couples and “active” rather than passive followers. Queer tango has subsequently been characterized by the emergence around the world of queer tango organizations, of international festivals, and an international community of dancers, thriving by contact through social media. Yet as the author, who is collaborating with writers and dancers Birthe Havmøller and Olaya Aramo in editing The Queer Tango Book, an online anthology of writings about queer tango, has found out, there is still no settled agreement as to what, precisely, the term means; there is disagreement about the premise that “hetero-normative” tango was quite as oppressive to women in the ways it was originally made out to be, and there is no agreement—indeed so far, precious little discussion—as to which dance practices in Buenos Aires and beyond from the late nineteenth century onward might legitimately be enlisted as forming the pre-history. Were the men-only prácticas, which ran for decades, a part of it? Or women teaching each other at home? When so little was written down, how is one to find out?
Most critics would readily agree that any assessment of contemporary thought, whether it involves politics, literature, philosophy or religion, must at some point deal with the theme of revolt. It is an undeniable fact that, from the evocative and highly expressive date of 1789, which serves conveniently and appropriately as the great watershed of modem European history, separating the old from the new, until current times, man has demonstrated a persistent preoccupation with a deep-seated hostility towards the society that has nurtured him and the world at large. Indeed, the history of the past two hundred years obliges us to state without reserve that revolt forms one of the essential dimensions of modem man. This attitude of a thorough-going revolt which acts as a rallying-point for countless thinkers and artists, centralizes man's individualism in terms of protest against the rationalizing and inhibiting tendencies which external forces have always attempted to impose upon him. Such people resent, with increasing vehemence, the intrusion of formal authority as expressed through the media of education, government or religion, into the manner in which they conduct themselves as creative artists, seeking an antidote in the uncensured and often unbridled display of their personal sentiments and aspirations. It almost appears that the modem writer becomes a writer precisely because he senses an antagonistic environment, and a radical opposition between what he assumes for himself and his observations in an alien and inconsistent world.Little wonder, then, that contemporary Europe and indeed the
This 2005 book is a guide to Spanish usage for those who have already acquired the basics of the language and wish to extend their knowledge. Unlike conventional grammars, it focuses on those areas of vocabulary and grammar which cause most difficulty to English speakers. It fully illustrates the differences between the Spanish of Spain and Latin America, and looks in detail at register variation. Complete with a full word index, this clear and easy-to-consult text guides students through the richness and diversity of this major world language. This new edition has been extensively revised and updated to take a fuller account of Latin-American (particularly Mexican) usage. The vocabulary sections have been significantly expanded, and now include examples which contextualize each word or expression. The presentation of many sections has been improved to make reference even easier than before, and some completely new material has been added on semi-technical vocabulary and Anglicisms.
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