The Image of Cuba in American Citizens' Letters to N.S. Khrushchev During the Cuban Missile Crisis
The article analyzes role of the image of Cuba in the letters of American citizens addressed to N.S. Khrushchev at the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. The study focuses on perception of Cuba as a political and symbolic subject, its significance in the confrontation between the two superpowers, as well as the emotional reactions reflected in these letters. The Cuban Missile Crisis, which reached its apogee after the discovery of Soviet missiles in Cuba, became the most important episode of the Cold War, giving rise to public anxieties and fears that were manifested in letters addressed to the leader of the USSR. The author considers the letters as an important historical source that allows us to study the social and cultural practices of conveying emotions. Using the methods of social constructivism, the study demonstrates how emotions such as fear, anger, or hope were transformed into politically significant forms of group identity. The letters show that the dominant image of Cuba as a dangerous "Other" served as a tool for constructing an emotional community that united citizens of the USA and the USSR, while excluding Cuba from this group. The article highlights the uniqueness of the perception of Cuba as a symbol of threat and highlights its marginal place in the public consciousness of Americans, who rarely identified with the Cuban people. The analysis also reveals potential of emotions as a tool for the formation of new identities in the context of global conflicts. The findings of the study emphasize that the Cuban Missile Crisis contributed not only to the escalation of political tensions, but also to the transformation of international relations through emotional and cultural mechanisms.
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