Reinaldo Funes Monzote:

Alexander von Humboldt’s „Utopian“ Vision of Cuba and Divergent Paths of Industrial Modernity

Following Alexander von Humboldt’s writings on Cuba, Reinaldo Funes Monzote will present how the advent of agro-industrial modernity seemed to derail his positive views of the Island’s future. An example of this trend was the English translation of Humboldt’s book on Cuba, 1826, by J. Thrasher, a southern US pro-slavery journalist, three decades later. However, in the long term, the German scientist’s ideas proved to be more advanced and endure until today as a dream of a more just and balanced world.