No. 46 (2023)

The Cultural History Section of the School of General Studies, in its desire to disseminate the most recent research on humanistic issues, is pleased to present the first issue of 2023 of the magazine Estudios.

As usual, this issue 46 opens with an article dedicated to history. In political history we traditionally see the powerful featured, but their political strategies and practices are often veiled. Jorge Marchena uncovers the role of the elite in the historical construction of wealth in Costa Rica by analyzing the attributes of the Jiménez clan and the figure of businessman Manuel Jiménez Ortiz in the 20th century. 

Next, José Carlos Vázquez, Domingo Coss and Betania Rodríguez, offer a historical account of the homosexual movement in the West from the narrative of the lesbian movement and the trans community, highlighting the particularities of these groups in the Latin American region. 

On the other hand, Mariana Jiménez presents the struggle of Costa Rican women filmmakers in the first two decades of the 21st century for an audiovisual space within the global film industry, showing their life stories intertwined with those of a field that has historically been dominated by men. 

Recent scientific and technological advances lead us to question the role of technology and its ability to transcend the limitations of the notion of humanity. This is the discussion proposed by Indira González when comparing the similarities and differences of transhumanism with the enlightened humanist movement. 

The problems that concern children and adolescents resonate in the media as a result of the climate of insecurity and budget cuts to health, education and social welfare programs, harming the future of these people who—due to their age—present great social vulnerability. For this reason, Estudios magazine considers the works of Rolando Barrantes; Milton Brenes and Marcela Sanabria; and Pablo Chaverri, María Auxiliadora Montoya, and other authors to be of great value. The first one because it highlights the development and historical evolution, between 1989 and 2009, of legislation and public policy for children and adolescents in Costa Rica. The second one because it presents the systematization of an institutional experience in the generation of an institutional policy on childhood and adolescence in the field of university social responsibility at the National University. Both works show that the action of the Costa Rican State and public universities is invaluable for the defense of the rights of children and adolescents. 

We close this issue by opening a space for research on cultural heritage with two articles whose fundamental concern is the enjoyment of cultural assets. In the first, a methodology is proposed to make accessible the cultural legacy of an important Latin American city. Based on a human rights approach, Estefanía Slavin elaborates a scale of public access and use of protected assets in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina, intending to contribute to the development of inclusive, effective, and sustainable guidelines to guarantee the public access to architectural heritage. In the second, Luis Carlos Bonilla revalues ​​sacred art in the development of Costa Rican art history through the review of existing interpretations of imagery and imagery makers in national art and makes a valuable empirical contribution by documenting sacred art works by Costa Rican artist Juan Rafael Chacón Solares.

We are deeply grateful to the authors, the editorial team, and the reviewers for making this publication possible, which we hope will contribute to the development of a humanistic perspective that guides decision-making.

M.Sc. Ileana D'Alolio Sánchez

Director