Las izquierdas y el carnaval: Montevideo, 1920-1950

Abstract

This text analyzes how anarchist, socialist and communist left looked at carnival in Montevideo between 1920 and 1950. During these three decades the evolution and, partly, the changes in those looks and practices can be appreciated. While in 1920 a "revolutionary" atmosphere prevails and it is expressed in the way those groups look at popular behaviours, in 1950 social integration is at its peak in the country. Criticism on carnival that appeared in the left official discourse in the '20s, was accompanied by some dissonant practices that showed less uniformity in behaviours. Since 1935 onwards, the communists began to change, accepting popular phenomenons like carnival; but that was a slower process for socialist and anarchist left, though it could already be perceived in their younger working class members. This process occurred while a climate of important socio-economic and cultural changes was permeating Montevideo’s society and political left.