Content area
Full Text
Peronismo, populismo y politica: Argentina, 1943 - 1955 By RAANAN REIN. Translated by ELIEZER NOWODWORSKI. Buenos Aires: Editorial de Belgrano, 1998. Tables. Notes. Bibliography. Index. 282 pp. Paper.
Given the centrality of Peronism to Argentine politics and society for over 50 years, it is not surprising that much attention has been paid to the years that Juan Peron was president. There have been additional studies about his rise to power. In Peronismo, populismo y politica, Rein has put together eight loosely connected but informative chapters on the years between 1946 and 1955. He focuses on three major themes: the nature of Argentine politics, the country's foreign relations, and several aspects of the regime's social policies.
The first chapter explores the various theories that have been put forth to explain Peronism, with Rein favoring populism as the paradigm that allows the best understanding of this movement. He then offers as something new the idea that at least during the initial stages of Peronism, mediators intervened between...