The Claim of the Civilized Nation: Spanish Masculinity in Colonial Discourse about Morocco (1900-1927)

• Main Author: Gemma Torres
• Format: Article
• Language: Spanish
• Published: Universidad Complutense de Madrid 2017-07-01
• Series: Cuadernos de Historia Contemporánea
• Subjects: Colonialismo; Marruecos; masculinidad; identidad nacional; guerras del Rif.
• Online Access: https://revistas.ucm.es/index.php/CHCO/article/view/56266

This paper analyzes how Spanish national identity was discussed and constructed in Spanish colonial discourse about Morocco. Some colonial sectors claimed that Spain was and should be a civilized nation in a period during which doubt was cast on its status as a modern nation. Spain was described as a decadent, almost African nation. This article will examine how national identity was discussed through the values and images of manhood. To do so, it will analyze the male archetypes –Spanish and Moroccan– drawn in colonial discourses created in Spain about Morocco during the Rif wars (1909-1927).