Portrait of a Nation: Culture and Progress in Ecuador

Portrait of a Nation. Culture and Progress in Ecuador. Hardback $ eBook $ Summary. Summary. Book Details. Book Details. Madison Books.
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Portrait of a Nation: Culture and Progress in Ecuador

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later. Kindle Edition Verified Purchase. Hurtado's historical and sociological review excoriates the church, the hacienda system, and the isolation of Ecuador's early "settlement" in his sometimes heavy handed but sweeping work.

But he certainly makes his case. I found his more recent sections which are supported by sociological studies more interesting, however.

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His Pan-American survey statistics on how such obscure, but relevant things, as thievery is viewed in Ecuador vs. His work is also comforting in his strong acknowledgement of North American technical innovations that moved Ecuador into the present. It was comforting to see the US's involvement in such a positive light for once. He also gives some surprising nods to different groups, such as Ecuador's small, but important, post war Jewish community.

His work is courageous given his historic vilification of the Church and it's continuing presence in Ecuador.

Portrait of a Nation

One last, very annoying electronic challenge is the apparent inability to increase the font size electronically on my e-book of his forward and bibliography and notes. His work is revealing and well worth purchasing. One person found this helpful 2 people found this helpful. If you are considering moving to Ecuador or even if you are just a history buff, this book is a "Must Read" The author painstakingly analyzes political, geographical, religious, cultural and other dynamics that have combined over a thousand years to make Ecuadorian culture and life what it is today.

It paints a discouraging picture which we blew off as we were deciding to move here. Now that we live here, hardly a day passes that we don't look at each other and acknowledge, "Yup, Hurtado got it right again! This is the 2nd "must read" if thinking about moving to Ecuador.

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Hurtado is a former president of Ecuador and he pulls no punches with an explanation of the cultural aspects of Ecuador and the historical explanations behind them. I kept saying to myself, "NOW I get it! This is a "Must Read" for all gringos in Ecuador, and those considering a visit or moving there.

I know the author personally, and his friends and family were concerned for his safety, due some portions of this book being very critical of the political corruption that he has reported in this book. I do not know about pure Kimdle readers, but I have Kindle for PC, and only the introduction is in tiny print, and is much like a digital photo; the font size cannot be changed.

However, if you simply bypass the introduction, the entire book is in large, easy to read font size. I am a gringo and live in Ecuador. I have learned so very much about my adopted country, from reading this book. I picked up this book because I had an interest in learning more about latin america, particularly Ecuador, since so little is known about this country at large. I didn't expect to find such a gem. Even though Ecuador has made great advancements in recent years it continues to be a country that is still far behind much of the world.

The author speaks honestly about his country, as a true patriot, he shows a true picture of the past, while at the same time inspiring his countrymen to move forward to a new future. He attempts what no other author has done--the fine strokes of a brush; and what he paints is not unequivocally beautiful. Anyone going to Ecuador, or wanting to know about the country's history, will find this book fascinating. I recommend it highly.

I purchased this book prior to a school trip to Ecuador. Once there, I leared this book is required reading in international studies. It is current and give a good history and retrospecive view of the history and political culture of Ecuador. Hmmmm could be a useful book but in the e-version it is impossible to read the index or bibliography. Amazon should not sell academic books where you cannot read the bib.

It is not very useful. In addition the footnotes are not linked and there is no Table of Contents. This makes it impossible to navigate through the book or maintain a sense of order. Don't bother with e-books like this. One person found this helpful. See all 12 reviews. Most recent customer reviews. Published 1 year ago. Published on July 25, Published on August 3, Return to Book Page. Preview — Portrait of a Nation by Osvaldo Hurtado. Portrait of a Nation: Culture and Progress in Ecuador by Osvaldo Hurtado ,.

Portrait of a Nation: Culture and Progress in Ecuador - Osvaldo Hurtado - Google Книги

Culture and Progress in Ecuador 3. A case study of why Third World countries are still poor, the premise of this book is that while some progress has been made in transforming the political economy of Ecuador, certain behaviors, beliefs and attitudes have kept the country from developing in ways that otherwise would have been possible.

As the author asserts, for almost five centuries the cultural habits of A case study of why Third World countries are still poor, the premise of this book is that while some progress has been made in transforming the political economy of Ecuador, certain behaviors, beliefs and attitudes have kept the country from developing in ways that otherwise would have been possible. As the author asserts, for almost five centuries the cultural habits of Ecuadorian citizens have constituted a stumbling block for individual economic success. Still, he concludes, people's cultural values are not immutable: This is the challenge that Ecuador faces in the twenty-first century.


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Huratdo y sus colaboradores, pero pienso que el formato libro es excesivo para una tesis que se resume en dos patadas. A really interesting read. I read it in preparation for a trip to ecuador and we'll see how well it currently depicts the cultural context of the country! I know he intended this as more of an essay but I do kind of wish he would have provided more detail on his points.

He often referred to generalities or things it seems he assumes to be true based off of persona, experience. This is sometimes where he lost my attention as it doesn't seem like he was saying anything concrete at times. Gabrielita Carchi rated it it was ok Mar 02, Kevin David c rated it did not like it May 06, Laurie S Sherman rated it it was ok Mar 14, Ingrid rated it it was amazing Dec 14, Gabriela rated it really liked it Jul 21, Camilo rated it liked it Nov 28, Joyce Zavala rated it did not like it Jan 20, Sebastian rated it really liked it Feb 10, Juan Jose rated it it was amazing Jan 31,