El teórico, el artista y las flores de papel: las raíces post-imperiales del “imperio informal” y la controversia de Platt con Robinson y Gallagher sobre América Latina (1953-1989): The Theorist, the Artist, and Paper Flowers: The Post-Imperial Roots of “Informal Empire” and the Controversy of Platt with Robinson and Gallagher on Latin America (1953-1989)

Deborah Besseghini

doi:10.12795/araucaria.2025.i60.17

Autores/as

Deborah Besseghini Universidad Pablo de Olavide

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.12795/araucaria.2025.i60.17

Palabras clave:

imperio informal, descolonización, Controversia Robinson-Gallagher, D. C. M. Platt, dependencia en América Latina

Resumen

El “imperio informal” ha vuelto con fuerza a la historiografía, aunque nunca se había ido del todo. Esta actualidad del concepto ha suscitado un renovado interés por sus orígenes y la acalorada discusión que provocó. Como entonces, América Latina es la geografía que más se invoca al respecto. Este artículo explica la propuesta de Robinson y Gallagher y las reticencias que concitó, en especial por parte de D. C. M. Platt. Las biografías de los protagonistas de la controversia y sus contextos políticos e historiográficos permiten explicar su naturaleza y evolución. Se destacan el carácter indefinido de la categoría moderna de imperio, el problema de sus límites y el papel histórico de la modernidad extraeuropea. En realidad, fueron dos debates sucesivos. Robinson y Gallagher respondían al fin del imperio británico y el auge de la hegemonía estadounidense; Platt a la América Latina revolucionaria y el discurso “dependentista”: capítulos y escenarios de la Guerra Fría.

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