Motorcycle Diaries
This week’sreading pertains to the film entitled MotorcycleDiaries. The overall synopsis of the film is to elaborate on the difficulties faced by the people living in SouthAmerica, yet also captures the different classes of wealth in South Americafocusing mainly on the poor class. Throughoutthe journey of the young, traveling companions/good friends Ernesto and Albertodeal with an eye opening, life changing reality of the “true life” of aSouthern American.
Afterreading Zulawski’s passage on the actual voyage Guevara faced and the peoplethat were encountered on his journey I felt that the movie didn’t reflectenough of the hardships that really were taking place during the Revolution. For example the movie captures Ernestobuilding a bond with the patients, whom are all ill with leprosy, or the couplethat were kicked out of their town because of their political beliefs and havenothing so he gives him the fifteen American dollars he had. There’s also ascene were Ernesto speaks with a farmer who loses his job duties and land oncehe had established wheat, cane, and other agrarian needs however all thoughthese events lead up to Ernesto’s political leader abilities to arise out ofhim in the film they tend to exclude his actual works during the CubanRevolution that make him a hero in Bolivia. Guevara’s role in the CubanRevolution consisted of him teaching new recruits to the military about tacticsand taught the illiterate to read and write. Zulawski also mentions his role ascomandante and it amazes me to see how a med student traveling throughout thecontinent of South America changes his life to where he tries to fight for thepeople in desperate need in order for them to live better yet being involved inthe revolution also drew out a persona of harshness, and cruelness in ways towhich he ended the lives of anyone who interceded in his plan with highviolence.
Elena’s foretellsin her essay Guevara’s life yet brings up another point of interest which isthe fact that the migrants are moving between rural areas to larger cities likeBuenos Aires. Also the movie tends to exempt the tourists who are on their wayto resorts and other sites of interest which added to the rebellious side ofGuevara to rise out of him. The filmtends to lead the viewer into representing that Ernesto’s political leader abilitiesrise out due to how the public (mainly the poor citizens) is being treatedunfairly and poorly yet the tourists exploring South America and a citizenrelocating into bigger cites represent the dominance of cultural norms which hedid not want.
The film leaves us without knowing if Ernestocompletes his school of medicine yet Elena concludes that he does receive his doctoratedegree and returns to his family in Buenos Aires after his journey. Elena alsogives the reader a better understanding of how Guevara goes from a simple medstudent to a leader of a revolutionmovement explaining his transformation into joining Fidel Castro in the CubanRevolution.
