| Abstract: | The Cuban situation reveals how long-lasting late-adolescent formed views, grounded in lived experiences, often prove to be, and how they may maintain meaning even after people emigrate. Those experiences may be differently interpreted depending on social class as well as age. Building on the work of Mannheim, a historically grounded generational frame of analysis helps explain why Cubans initially divided deeply over the revolution, with many of those who opposed it uprooting. It also helps explain why the first émigrés who fled the revolution continued to oppose the social transformation of their homeland, even as they assimilated in their adopted country. They continued being committed to ideas formed in their pre-immigration past. The historically grounded generational frame of analysis also helps explain why the Cuba-born who experienced the Special Period viewed life differently, whether they remained in Cuba or emigrated. |
