You do not currently have permission to view the full text for this document. Please sign in to an account with an active subscription or contact support.
Culture is a formulated, although diffuse, social structure that stems from a particular way of living together. Latin expresses this as convivere, or living happily together and at ease in the company of others. Cultures must have certain characteristics that make them unique and easily identifiable. These values, attitudes, or institutional practices are shared and make sense to all members. If this happens, the culture develops through time. If non-convivere exists, the culture will come to a halt; communication will be interrupted. I have selected the tango with its music, lyrics, and dance to understand the meaning of the rioplatense culture.
The tango emerged 130 years ago on both sides of the Rio de la Plata, in Buenos Aires and Montevideo. Its origins are unclear and mostly hypothetical. The word tango might come from the Spanish tañir (clink) or from the quechua tambo. It is now believed, however, that its origin is African. Tango is a phonetic deformation of the word shango, or “god of thunder” in the nago language of the Yarubas in Nigeria. Its music, with the typical four-by-two compass beat, is the final expression of sentiments comprising three subcultures:
the mass of native Argentines who were defeated by the liberal forces in 1853;
the European immigrants, mostly Italian, who came to Argentina in the 1860s to find a better life; and
African blacks and their descendants who brought their rhythms and their percussion instruments.
Although quickly becoming extremely popular, the tango was originally danced in the slums, bordellos, and other places of dubious reputation