Artist Statement

Without A Cause
By: Ricardo Garcia, Angel Martinez, Angel Morazan, Talissa Ruiz, and Kassandra Urbina
Photography and edited with Photoshop

Our picture represents what happened during the Mexican Revolution (1910-1940). After reading The Underdogs by Mariano Aduzuela, we decided to emphasize the role of the Mexican rebels. After the federal government failed to protect the country from foreign invaders, a small group of citizens decided to take political matters in their own hands, rebelling and starting a civil war. In the scene, one federal soldier is fighting with two women in the front, while in the background two Mexican rebels look on from a distance. This was true for a majority of the participating rebels during the revolution: most didn’t know the exact purpose of the war. They would start fighting for a small, insignificant reason and continue to fight just because they were so used to the violence. The two men in the back represent this idea; not knowing what to fight for, they ignore the brawl in front of them and keep to themselves. They just drink beer and have a good time. The beer specifically symbolizes that the Rebels were interested in better things than the war, and didn’t care about the fighting. Another prop our group used was the Mexican flag, to act as a clue that it was the Mexican Revolution. Lastly, the scene also conveys the message that women had an important role during this time, and they would participate in the war for the well being of their families. For the scenery, our group took pictures near a lake to mimic the wild territory of a war zone.

essay

Two Leaders, One Man

Angel Martinez

Humanities

Guerrero

March 5, 2009

Angel Martinez

Guerrero

Humanities

March 5, 2009

Two Leaders, One Man

Julius Caesar, Napoleon Bonaparte and Adolf Hitler; all great war generals and commanders. These three leaders all fought hard for their motives and they were part of significant and impacting movements. There have been distinguished leaders in every revolution since the beginning of time. One of the most known generals from the Mexican revolution is Pancho Villa, a man who rose to greatness from merely nothing. In the book The Underdogs by Mariano Azuela, Demetrio Macias is a very influential commander in the Mexican revolution and he reflects Pancho Villa’s leadership and life in many ways. Azuela makes a statement that there is no need for great leaders like Pancho Villa when there is no great cause.

One of the most noticeable similarities between Pancho Villa and Demetrio Macias is their reason to join the revolution. Both of their families were almost victims of men unjustly using their superiority at the time to rape women. Pancho Villa was a regular person before the revolution; he worked in a ranch. “Villa shot the hacienda owner when he was sixteen because he wanted to have sex with his twelve year old sister” (Pancho Villa). Pancho Villa shot him in order to protect his younger sister. He then fled to the mountains and survived off the land for a couple of years. “After years of surviving in the mountains, he joined a bandit group and soon became their leader”(Pancho Villa). In Azuela’s book, some soldiers try to molest Demetrio’s wife and he threatens to kill them. He knew that they would return with reinforcements to kill him so he joined rebel forces. This part of their lives was the spark in their life to rebel, not only these two men but also many others because many had similar experiences. This shows that the people at the time had a reason to rebel. The people did not protest, they felt such a strong need to change that they directly thought of violence because they knew that peaceful strikes would not work.

When Francisco Madero promised change for the lower classes. “Madero studied commerce and economics in France and agriculture in the U.S. and saw the need to improve conditions in Mexico”(Francisco I. Madero 1873- 1913) Madero had also seen the people were not equal and they were being treated unjustly. The people were treated unjustly because the president was taking their land and gave it to the rich people so he could maintain his porwer. Pancho Villa joined his cause and agreed with Madero to be the leader of the revolutionary army. Villa became allies with Madero because he, too, realized the situation the people of Mexico were in. The people did not have a voice in society. Pancho Villa soon became a horrifying figure in enemy eyes after winning many battles when leading the army. He was feared by his foes and respected by the civilians who were for the revolution.

Though undefeated and for many battles, every great warrior has his fall. “In mid 1915 Villa lost one of the biggest battles of the revolution to the Carranzista general Alvaro Obregon” (Ai Camp). Villa’s men fought bravely at the battle of Celaya but his brute strength was no match for Obregon’s tactics. This loss for Pancho Villa was the first of many. Eventually, Obregon defeated Villa’s armies and Villa was later assassinated in 1923.

As shown, in The Underdogs, there is a similar leader to Pancho Villa. His name is Demetrio Macias and he had joined the rebels after protecting his wife from some federal soldiers who wanted to abuse of her. After fleeing, he eventually became leader of the small rebel group and he won many battles. After several years and many battles he managed to work his way up to be promoted to general for the revolutionary armies. He always achieved his goals and found his own way of accomplishing things.

Azuela also tries to make a connection between Demetrio and the people that are taking action taking during the revolution. “’But what I can’t get through my head,’ observed Anastasio Montañes, ‘is why we have to go on fighting… didn’t we defeat the federation?”(Azuela 106). Nearing the conclusion of the book, neither Demetrio nor his comrades knew whether or not to continue fighting since the president was taken out of power. Demetrio resembles the people because most rebels just wanted to end the current president’s reign. Porfirio Dias, the president, was very cruel and unjust and many people did not realize they were fighting for justice and freedom during the Mexican revolution. He was unjust because he took much land from the lower classes and gave it to people who did not deserve it. Throughout his reign the Mexican economy benefited the higher classes while ignoring and bringing down the poor people. Once the people finally took Diaz out of power there was no need to continue fighting and there was no need for the outstanding leaders of the revolution like Villa and Macias.

Pancho Villa and Demetrio Macias are very alike; it is as if the author of The Underdogs wanted to mimic Pancho Villa’s life and his leadership. Both of their families were attempted to be abused of. That experience made them join the revolution for revenge and justice. Both Villa and Macias became strong revolutionary leaders who were capable of making decisions and leading people in critical situations. Both generals integrated fear into their enemy’s thoughts because they were undefeated for so long and they were brutal killers. Many rebels continued fighting for the pleasure of killing and drinking .It is very probable that Mariano Azuela wanted to make a connection between these two men.

Demetrio Macias in The Underdogs symbolizes Pancho Villa in many ways. They were both people who rose to leadership and greatness during the Mexican revolution. They both had a long streak for being undefeated and as a result it made people fear and respect them. They always achieved their goals and they didn’t know the meaning of the word defeat. Mariano Azuela truly did try to make a comparison between these two heroes in The Underdogs.

Bibliography

Ai Camp, Roderic. “Zapata, Emiliano (1879-1919).” Gale Virtual Reference Library. February ……….19, 2009 ………...........ce=library&tabID=T001&Z3950=1&userGroupName=sddp_main&docId=>

Azuela, Mariano. The Underdogs. New York: Buccaneer Books, Inc., 1976.

“Pancho Villa” About.com:20^th Century History. February 27, 2009. ……….

“Francisco I. Madero 1873- 1913” Mexico Connect. March 24, 2009. ……….

This is our photograph that best represents the Mexican revolution. It portraits the revolution because women took a part in the war in a time when women did not have the same rights as they do now. Another reason it displays the Mexican revolution is because toward the end of the war many people began to loose interest in it like the two men in the picture.

ESSAY OUTLINE

1)Intro
a)Thesis: In the book "The Underdogs" by Mariano Azuela, Demetrio Macias is a very influential commander in the Mexican Revolution and he reflects Pancho Villa's leadership in many different ways.
2)Mexican Revolution background
a)Leader Pancho Villa
i)Life & Accomplishments
(1)Fled to mountains after saving sister
(2)Survived couple years
(3)Joined bandits and then became leader
(4)Supported the revolution
(5)Modern Robin Hood – stole from rich and helped the poor
3)The Underdogs
a)Leader Demetrio Macias
i)Life & accomplishments
(1)Was a land owner and share cropper until revolution
(2)Leader of a rebel group
(3)Later promoted to General by the revolutionary armies
(4)Lost reason to fight, but he continued fighting
4)Compare & contrast
a)Both families abused by federals
b)Strong revolutionary leaders capable of making decisions
c)Liked to kill for the thrill
d)Created fear
5)Conclusion

New Research Question + Thesis

Research Question:

• How does Demetrio Macias' leadership reflect that of Pancho Villa in the Mexican Revolution?

Thesis Statement:

• In the book "The Underdogs" by Mariano Azuela, Demetrio Macias is a very influencial commander in the Mexican Revolution and he reflects Pancho Villa's leadership in many different ways; both their families were tried to be abused from by state federals, they both became strong revolutionary leaders which made a difference although they had a desire to kill and to be a part of battles.

Can a thesis be more than one sentence? I tried to jamm as many thing I could in the thesis although I would like to talk about more.

NEW EDITED RESEARCH QUESTION

How does Demetrio Macias being turned into a hero reflect Pancho Villa being turned into a hero?

Q-Q-C

The Underdogs

Quote: "I'll tell Demetrio to leave us both here, that I'll say to take care of you, that as soon as you're feeling all right again, well catch up with them,. but instead of that, ill see that you get home safe and sound."

Question: I didn't know that War Paint was capable of such a good deed. She is introduced in the book as a tough woman, capable of standing up for herself. Why such a drastic change of characteristic?

Comment: I think she only wants to take Camilla back to her home because she is jealous of her. I think she likes Demetrio and doesn't want her to be his woman. War Paint believes that even though Camilla doesn't like Demetrio she thinks that he is capable of conquering her to have her at his side. My belief is that War Paint is jealous of Camilla.