Pilar Herr | University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg (original) (raw)

Papers by Pilar Herr

Latin Americanist/˜The œLatin Americanist, Mar 1, 2024

As Chilean citizens, the Mapuche peoples were landowners of large tracts of lands in Araucanía, C... more As Chilean citizens, the Mapuche peoples were landowners of large tracts of lands in Araucanía, Chile's southern borderlands region between the Bío-Bío and Toltén rivers. This article analyzes a series of letters that Mapuche leaders wrote to state authorities and others in the middle of the nineteenth century. The content of these letters reveals multiple ways that Mapuche leaders argued for the protection of their lands and interests, as the state created policies that actively worked to undermine them through a settler colonization plan. This strategy included appropriating Mapuche lands for outside settlers and denying the Mapuche their citizen rights as Chilean citizens.

The Latin Americanist, 2024

As Chilean citizens, the Mapuche peoples were landowners of large tracts of lands in Araucanía, C... more As Chilean citizens, the Mapuche peoples were landowners of large tracts of lands in Araucanía, Chile's southern borderlands region between the Bío-Bío and Toltén rivers. This article analyzes a series of letters that Mapuche leaders wrote to state authorities and others in the middle of the nineteenth century. The content of these letters reveals multiple ways that Mapuche leaders argued for the protection of their lands and interests, as the state created policies that actively worked to undermine them through a settler colonization plan. This strategy included appropriating Mapuche lands for outside settlers and denying the Mapuche their citizen rights as Chilean citizens.

Hahr-hispanic American Historical Review, Nov 1, 2004

The author's stated purpose is to provide a balanced perspective on the history of disease. The C... more The author's stated purpose is to provide a balanced perspective on the history of disease. The Columbian Quincentenary of 1992-its preparations and aftermathfocused much attention on the spread of lethal pathogens from Europe to vulnerable native peoples, which has distorted certain truths about the trajectory of fatal diseases as an inexorable part of the human condition everywhere. In the first chapter the author is challenged to relate, in eight thousand words, what is known about Old World epidemiology before 1500 A.D. In contrast, the vague and tentative second chapter reflects the dearth of documentary evidence on disease in the pre-Hispanic New World. These two chapters set the stage for the discussion of the introduction and impact of Old World maladies in the Americas. The author then discusses Native American and European responses to epidemic disease, the impact of military conquest and colonialism, and questions of slavery, labor, and migration. A short epilogue invokes the 1918 flu pandemic, AIDS, bioterrorism, and other lethal microbes as more modern versions of the intercontinental flow of pathogens. Its disquieting tone contrasts with the progressive medical rhetoric of 50 years ago, when rapid advances in vaccinations, antibiotics, and pesticides had the industrial world ready to believe that disease could be conquered. This work is not based on a careful winnowing of the vast literature or even on a critical evaluation of the rather limited number of sources repeatedly cited. The information comes from generally accessible English-language secondary sources, except for western South America, the author's area of scholarly investigation. Accounts of pestiferous outbreaks are interrupted by background information on tribes, environments, and events. Dependence on conventional formulations results in an outdated description of preconquest Amazonia as having been covered with dense forests, swidden farmers, and scant populations, whereas the accumulating evidence now indicates that much of the region was inhabited by complex cultures with dense populations practicing sustained agriculture. More disconcerting are the naive expressions of environmental determinism that mar the narrative-Hispanic American Historical Review

The Americas, Dec 27, 2021

Hahr-hispanic American Historical Review, May 1, 2003

Page 1. Hispanic American Historical Review 83:2 Copyright 2003 by Duke University Press Book Rev... more Page 1. Hispanic American Historical Review 83:2 Copyright 2003 by Duke University Press Book Reviews General Art and Anger: Essays on Politics and the Imagination. By ilan stavans. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2001. Index. ix, 253 pp. Paper, $18.95. ...

Journal of Early American History, Mar 14, 2014

In the early nineteenth century Chilean elites centralized political power and forged a national ... more In the early nineteenth century Chilean elites centralized political power and forged a national state independent of Spain. The new government’s main goals were to expand Chile’s national territory as far south as Cape Horn, a region that included the frontier zone known as Araucanía (between the Bío-Bío and Toltén Rivers), and assimilate Araucanía’s inhabitants, the “barbaric” Mapuche Indians- several ethnic groups that shared a language and cultural traditions- into Chilean society. Some Mapuche groups such as the Trapatrapa Pehuenches and the Abajinos became ardent supporters of the state’s territorial ambitions. They allied with the Chilean government and fought against a common enemy that included a few remaining Spanish officers, soldiers, and other Mapuche groups such as the Arribanos and Pehuenches of Chillán. This article will analyze the Pehuenches of Chillán and the Arribanos. The Pehuenches of Chillán resisted the Chilean government’s efforts at territorial expansion on to their lands. The Arribanos initially resisted with the Pehuenches of Chillán, but in the mid-1820s switched sides and became a supporter of the Chilean state. This article will address why these two groups were divided and the actions each group undertook to achieve its desired outcome. Ultimately it took most of the nineteenth century for the Chilean state to acquire national territory that extended as far south as Cape Horn, and those that lost the most were the Mapuches.

Hispanic American Historical Review, 2004

... The author of the section on Alejandro Prieto views him as repre-sentative of the initial hig... more ... The author of the section on Alejandro Prieto views him as repre-sentative of the initial high aspirations, but ultimately limited achievements, of the Book Reviews / General 721 Page 6. ... Translated and annotated by victoria r. bricker and helga-maria miram. ...

Hispanic American Historical Review, 2003

Page 1. Hispanic American Historical Review 83:2 Copyright 2003 by Duke University Press Book Rev... more Page 1. Hispanic American Historical Review 83:2 Copyright 2003 by Duke University Press Book Reviews General Art and Anger: Essays on Politics and the Imagination. By ilan stavans. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2001. Index. ix, 253 pp. Paper, $18.95. ...

Journal of Early American History, 2014

In the early nineteenth century Chilean elites centralized political power and forged a national ... more In the early nineteenth century Chilean elites centralized political power and forged a national state independent of Spain.

Books by Pilar Herr

Throughout the colonial period the Spanish crown made numerous unsuccessful attempts to conquer A... more Throughout the colonial period the Spanish crown made numerous unsuccessful attempts to conquer Araucanía, Chile's southern borderlands region. Contested Nation argues that with Chilean independence, Araucanía-because of its status as a separate nation-state-became essential to the territorial integrity of the new Chilean Republic. This book studies how Araucanía's indigenous inhabitants, the Mapuche, played a central role in the new Chilean state's pursuit of an expansionist policy that simultaneously exalted indigenous bravery while relegating the Mapuche to second-class citizenship. It also examines other subaltern groups, particularly bandits, who challenged the nation-state's monopoly on force and were thus regarded as criminals and enemies unfit for citizenship in Chilean society. Pilar M. Herr's work advances our understanding of early state formation in Chile by viewing this process through the lens of Chilean-Mapuche relations. She provides a thorough historical context and suggests that Araucanía was central to the process of post-independence nation building and territorial expansion in Chile.

Latin Americanist/˜The œLatin Americanist, Mar 1, 2024

As Chilean citizens, the Mapuche peoples were landowners of large tracts of lands in Araucanía, C... more As Chilean citizens, the Mapuche peoples were landowners of large tracts of lands in Araucanía, Chile's southern borderlands region between the Bío-Bío and Toltén rivers. This article analyzes a series of letters that Mapuche leaders wrote to state authorities and others in the middle of the nineteenth century. The content of these letters reveals multiple ways that Mapuche leaders argued for the protection of their lands and interests, as the state created policies that actively worked to undermine them through a settler colonization plan. This strategy included appropriating Mapuche lands for outside settlers and denying the Mapuche their citizen rights as Chilean citizens.

The Latin Americanist, 2024

As Chilean citizens, the Mapuche peoples were landowners of large tracts of lands in Araucanía, C... more As Chilean citizens, the Mapuche peoples were landowners of large tracts of lands in Araucanía, Chile's southern borderlands region between the Bío-Bío and Toltén rivers. This article analyzes a series of letters that Mapuche leaders wrote to state authorities and others in the middle of the nineteenth century. The content of these letters reveals multiple ways that Mapuche leaders argued for the protection of their lands and interests, as the state created policies that actively worked to undermine them through a settler colonization plan. This strategy included appropriating Mapuche lands for outside settlers and denying the Mapuche their citizen rights as Chilean citizens.

Hahr-hispanic American Historical Review, Nov 1, 2004

The author's stated purpose is to provide a balanced perspective on the history of disease. The C... more The author's stated purpose is to provide a balanced perspective on the history of disease. The Columbian Quincentenary of 1992-its preparations and aftermathfocused much attention on the spread of lethal pathogens from Europe to vulnerable native peoples, which has distorted certain truths about the trajectory of fatal diseases as an inexorable part of the human condition everywhere. In the first chapter the author is challenged to relate, in eight thousand words, what is known about Old World epidemiology before 1500 A.D. In contrast, the vague and tentative second chapter reflects the dearth of documentary evidence on disease in the pre-Hispanic New World. These two chapters set the stage for the discussion of the introduction and impact of Old World maladies in the Americas. The author then discusses Native American and European responses to epidemic disease, the impact of military conquest and colonialism, and questions of slavery, labor, and migration. A short epilogue invokes the 1918 flu pandemic, AIDS, bioterrorism, and other lethal microbes as more modern versions of the intercontinental flow of pathogens. Its disquieting tone contrasts with the progressive medical rhetoric of 50 years ago, when rapid advances in vaccinations, antibiotics, and pesticides had the industrial world ready to believe that disease could be conquered. This work is not based on a careful winnowing of the vast literature or even on a critical evaluation of the rather limited number of sources repeatedly cited. The information comes from generally accessible English-language secondary sources, except for western South America, the author's area of scholarly investigation. Accounts of pestiferous outbreaks are interrupted by background information on tribes, environments, and events. Dependence on conventional formulations results in an outdated description of preconquest Amazonia as having been covered with dense forests, swidden farmers, and scant populations, whereas the accumulating evidence now indicates that much of the region was inhabited by complex cultures with dense populations practicing sustained agriculture. More disconcerting are the naive expressions of environmental determinism that mar the narrative-Hispanic American Historical Review

The Americas, Dec 27, 2021

Hahr-hispanic American Historical Review, May 1, 2003

Page 1. Hispanic American Historical Review 83:2 Copyright 2003 by Duke University Press Book Rev... more Page 1. Hispanic American Historical Review 83:2 Copyright 2003 by Duke University Press Book Reviews General Art and Anger: Essays on Politics and the Imagination. By ilan stavans. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2001. Index. ix, 253 pp. Paper, $18.95. ...

Journal of Early American History, Mar 14, 2014

In the early nineteenth century Chilean elites centralized political power and forged a national ... more In the early nineteenth century Chilean elites centralized political power and forged a national state independent of Spain. The new government’s main goals were to expand Chile’s national territory as far south as Cape Horn, a region that included the frontier zone known as Araucanía (between the Bío-Bío and Toltén Rivers), and assimilate Araucanía’s inhabitants, the “barbaric” Mapuche Indians- several ethnic groups that shared a language and cultural traditions- into Chilean society. Some Mapuche groups such as the Trapatrapa Pehuenches and the Abajinos became ardent supporters of the state’s territorial ambitions. They allied with the Chilean government and fought against a common enemy that included a few remaining Spanish officers, soldiers, and other Mapuche groups such as the Arribanos and Pehuenches of Chillán. This article will analyze the Pehuenches of Chillán and the Arribanos. The Pehuenches of Chillán resisted the Chilean government’s efforts at territorial expansion on to their lands. The Arribanos initially resisted with the Pehuenches of Chillán, but in the mid-1820s switched sides and became a supporter of the Chilean state. This article will address why these two groups were divided and the actions each group undertook to achieve its desired outcome. Ultimately it took most of the nineteenth century for the Chilean state to acquire national territory that extended as far south as Cape Horn, and those that lost the most were the Mapuches.

Hispanic American Historical Review, 2004

... The author of the section on Alejandro Prieto views him as repre-sentative of the initial hig... more ... The author of the section on Alejandro Prieto views him as repre-sentative of the initial high aspirations, but ultimately limited achievements, of the Book Reviews / General 721 Page 6. ... Translated and annotated by victoria r. bricker and helga-maria miram. ...

Hispanic American Historical Review, 2003

Page 1. Hispanic American Historical Review 83:2 Copyright 2003 by Duke University Press Book Rev... more Page 1. Hispanic American Historical Review 83:2 Copyright 2003 by Duke University Press Book Reviews General Art and Anger: Essays on Politics and the Imagination. By ilan stavans. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2001. Index. ix, 253 pp. Paper, $18.95. ...

Journal of Early American History, 2014

In the early nineteenth century Chilean elites centralized political power and forged a national ... more In the early nineteenth century Chilean elites centralized political power and forged a national state independent of Spain.

Throughout the colonial period the Spanish crown made numerous unsuccessful attempts to conquer A... more Throughout the colonial period the Spanish crown made numerous unsuccessful attempts to conquer Araucanía, Chile's southern borderlands region. Contested Nation argues that with Chilean independence, Araucanía-because of its status as a separate nation-state-became essential to the territorial integrity of the new Chilean Republic. This book studies how Araucanía's indigenous inhabitants, the Mapuche, played a central role in the new Chilean state's pursuit of an expansionist policy that simultaneously exalted indigenous bravery while relegating the Mapuche to second-class citizenship. It also examines other subaltern groups, particularly bandits, who challenged the nation-state's monopoly on force and were thus regarded as criminals and enemies unfit for citizenship in Chilean society. Pilar M. Herr's work advances our understanding of early state formation in Chile by viewing this process through the lens of Chilean-Mapuche relations. She provides a thorough historical context and suggests that Araucanía was central to the process of post-independence nation building and territorial expansion in Chile.