"The Great War in the confines of the world. Its impact on Argentine society"

MARÍA INÉS TATO

Jinan

Congreso; 22nd. International Congress of Historical Sciences; 2015

International Committee of Historical Sciences

A recent approach in the historiography, rooted in a transnational perspective, has started to acknowledge the global character of the First World War and its broad influence over the economy, culture and politics of distant societies apparently not involved in the international conflict. In that sense, the Argentine case is a clear confirmation of the worldwide dimensions of the Great War. Despite the distance that separated it from the battlefields and the strict neutrality adopted by its government, this war had a deep impact on Argentine society. Linked to Europe by historical, demographic, economic and cultural ties, this southern country´s society showed an intense interest in the war and also a high level of commitment to the effort of the warring powers, expressed through a nationwide mobilization.In the first place, this paper aims to suggest a periodization of the reception of the Great War in Argentina, according to the rhythms of the aforementioned social mobilization. In the second place, it will explore the different expressions of social responses to the war in that country, from economic cooperation with the belligerent nations and the enlistment of hundreds of volunteer soldiers into their armies, until public cultural and political debates around the conflict and their implications for Argentina´s position in theinternational arena and for its definition of national identity. Finally, the paper will attempt to offer some hypotheses about the reasons that inspired the extended activism of a society lying thousands of miles away from the trenchesand only indirectly touched by the First World War.