The Motorcycle Diaries
Deconstruction of Introduction
By Jackson Collett and Joshua Zucconi
Introduction to the Introduction
• Various themes of discovery can be encompassed within the
introduction of the text.
• Cintio Vitier, a Cuban poet, gives the audience insight into Che’s
journey through South America and the various discoveries he
makes as well as the revelation of previously hidden truths within
this journey.
• In this powerpoint we shall examine the social, political,
historical, personal, and cultural contexts of the discoveries that
Che encounters on his journey through Southern America.
The relevance of Cintio Vitier
• This renowned Cuban poet (often referred to as the greatest
writer of propaganda of his generation) was the sole writer of the
introduction to this book.
• Throughout this introduction, several contextual aspects of Vitier’s
writing are portrayed. These being his historical views regarding
propaganda and his South American heritage.
Historical Context of Vitier
• Vitier’s poetry took on a different turn after the advent of Fidel
Castro’s revolution. Encyclopaedia Britannica states…
• “With the advent of Fidel Castro’s revolution, Vitier radically
changed his poetic style. His poems became direct, clear, and
accessible to most readers.”
• This revolution, led by Castro and Che, may have been the
reasoning behind Cintio’s decision to write the introduction to
“The Motorcycle Diaries”, as Cintio very much idolised Che as a
freer of his people.
Cultural Context of Cintio Vitier
• The Cuban poet Cintio Vitier was born in Florida, USA (NOT CUBA- Just
sayin). In spite of this he spent most of his life in Cuba. According to
Encyclopaedia Britannica “Vitier compiled three anthologies of Cuban
poetry, and his study Lo cubano en la poesía (1958; “The Cuban in
Poetry”) reveals the depth of his critical intuition.” Within this study,
you see an obvious change in his style of writing due to age and
contextual surroundings.In the early stages of his life, his writing was
more fluid and more erratic, being very unclear and psychedelic, but
soon after (around the time of the Fidel Castro Revolution) his writing
became less poetic and more of a propaganda. As he lived (but was not
born) in Cuba, the revolution had a significant impact on his life.
Good Ole ‘Che’ (and his sidekick Cintio)
• With Vitier being a writer of propaganda, the introduction of “The
Motorcycle Diaries” is very much bias towards Che’s point of view.
Despite the bias, the so called ‘Cuban’ poet gives us a deep insight
into the richness of Guevara’s journey in terms of discovery. There
are various elements of discovery that give the reader an in depth
knowledge into the social disruptions of the time and the innate
discoveries that Che inevitably makes on his journey.
Introduction Deconstruction
• A large majority of the introduction to “The Motorcycle Diaries” is
very much inspired by Cintio’s background. The writing takes on a
propaganda-esque feel, and leans very much in favour towards
Che’s way of thinking. As previously mentioned, this could be
because of Cintio’s abject bias as a writer of propaganda, or could
just be a way of thinking based of his Cuban heritage.
• Most of the Cuban people saw Che Guevara and Fidel Castro as
messiahs of the Cuban people (who at the time were being
oppressed by the Batista, or president, of Cuba.) The bias present
in the introduction of Motorcycle Diaries is abjectly present as a
result of this “messiah ideology” based around Che and Fidel.
Conclusion of Introduction Deconstruction
• Much of the introduction of “The Motorcycle Diaries” is written in
a propaganda style, very much touting the deeds Che had
committed, and elevating them to an almost “saviour” level.
• The introduction of “The Motorcycle Diaries” does a very
adequate job of easing you into the book, even if it does so on a
very bias level. Cintio Vitier very much bases his writing around a
mid-point between abject propaganda and actually storytelling,
thus making the introduction very unique to the Cuban way of
thinking.