Historical memory of the Spanish Revolution of October 1934: Cultural representations of martyrdom and gender

This project, through examination of archival documents, newspapers, periodicals, books and posters, reveals how commentators of all political stripes used the imagery of the common Spanish cultural past to give meaning to the events of the revolution of October 1934. Both pro- and anti-revolutionary commentators adapted existing cultural paradigms of martyrdom and gender to highlight memories and interpretations of the events in order to argue for a position either in favor of the insurrection or against it.; The events of October became encoded within the familiar imagery of martyrdom and gender in order to establish interpretations and evaluations of revolutionary actions and people. This process of instantiation and transmission endowed the events of the past with a particular meaning and helped form memories. These memories could then be utilized to inform subsequent decisions and positions, creating a form of contested political discourse. Over the next eighteen months these discourses, founded within the memories of the October insurrection, dominated political culture. While the revolutionary position emerged dominant following the elections of February 1936, it was the conservative forces led by Francisco Franco who ultimately won the baffle of culture as well as the Civil War.; The interplay between the events of the revolt and gender roles became a fundamental aspect of memory as commentators produced imagery that excluded women from the political and military arenas. The dissertation analyzes the story of a young woman named Aida Lafuente who took up arms to fight on behalf of the revolution. This section provides a concrete example and case study showing how the forms of representation, martyrdom and gender, effectively worked at creating memories of the rebellion. Finally, the study reveals how martyrdom and gender continued to inform the memories of 1934 up to the present day, even as the meanings derived from these events could and did change over time.