7 - The Faces of Bernardo de Monteagudo
The Impossibility of a Non-White Hero
from Part III - A Special Painting
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 December 2025
Summary
Chapter 7 examines the construction of a stereotype of a different nature from those studied in the book. The discovery of a portrait of Bernardo de Monteagudo allowed a reflection on the theoretical impossibility of a descendant of enslaved Africans to be part of the pantheon of national heroes. It is a different image from that which was and continues to be widely disseminated, in which the face of the Tucumán hero was represented with undeniably “White” features. Comparing both portraits demonstrates an extreme case of whitening that enabled deploying a reverse stereotype.
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- Stereotypes in BlackAfro-Argentines and Visual Culture in Nineteenth-Century Buenos Aires, pp. 315 - 338Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
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