#20475 - L5 Raza - Literature and Film under Franco - Lecture Notes

What are the values of the “race” that the film champions? How does it portray those values?

The ambiguity of ‘Raza’

• 1941: race had quite a few different meanings, e.g. nazi Germany it was a biological concept

• This thinking justified persecution (jews)

• In the film, it could be ancestry/bloodline or to describe someone’s spirit

• ‘tener raza’ means someone who has inner strength

• Before Franco, raza meant mixing moral and cultural ideas

• During Franco, national as well as moral, title could refer to the inner strength of the Spanish at this time

• Romanticised in Spanish literature

• Franco uses the ambiguity of the word in the film, film borrows language of nazi regime ideology

• Purity etc adapts this to the Catholic framework

• Raza defines Spanish race as a spiritual community, unified by the identity of having faith and sacrifice

• Not about genetics, about belief and behaviour

• Makes Francoism sound powerful

• Mystical nationalism

Catholicism

• Film uses a lot of catholic symbolism, nationalist side is in gods favour

• Uses soft, bright light to suggest divine presence, characters are shown in this light during prayer/decision making

• Republicans are shown in a darker light, the viewers can see the difference between good and evil

Nationalism and militarism

• Uses patriotic speeches

• Glorifies Spanish homeland as eternal and holy

• Ideal Spaniard is courageous and willing to sacrifice himself, unquestioning loyalty

• War becomes a sacred duty

• Shown through costumes and cinematography

• Clip of Jose and brother asking for money;

• Jose fights for his dads faith

• Political son is fighting for the ‘other side’

National allegory

• Their family division represents Spain

• Each member of the family identifies with a different type of Spain

• Father represents duty and faith

• Mother represents moral endurance, selflessness

• The sons represent two different sides of Spain (Republican vs Nationalist)

• Familial conflict represents the Civil War

• Spain has been divided and reunited under Franco

• Turns politics into an emotional concept

Moral purity

• End clip: Jose accepts the Francoist faith

• Nationalist were guided by a divine purpose

• True Spain is going to be reborn by the Nationalists

• Portrayed as an inner virtue

• Not just personal, but a reflection of the spiritual health

• Purity in raza means being loyal to god

• Pure characters are the ones that stay loyal throughout the film

• Use of light represents truth and faith, makes it emotionally persuasive

• Mother embodies spiritual purity, aligns her with the virgin Mary

• Male characters approve their purity through sacrifice

Blood and redemption

• Blood symbolises lineage, sacrifice, and moral inheritance

• Good blood: more than ancestry, inner virtue and courage

• E.g. captain Churruca: wanted to die with the ship, shows devotion to the nation

• Establishes moral framework for the next generation

• Blood takes on a sacrificial meaning, acts of cleansing and redemption of the soldiers

The title’s ideological purpose

• Raza defines Spanishness as sacred and inherited

• Combines ancestry, culture and faith into one identity

• Creates a national myth of unity after the civil War

• Film creates a myth of unity after the tragedies of the war

• Biological ideas are present but are given a symbolic meaning

• Share ancestry but also belief and moral strength

Commentary of a clip: the end scene

Context

• The only moment where we look beyond the Civil War, up until now the film has been very linear with a few flashbacks

• Gives a sense of inevitability of history

Analysis

• ‘Esto es raza’ (“this is race” – referring to...