The Life and Importance of Argentina’s darling, Evita
Only when an individual has made a huge and significant impact on a society, will an entire country pause their individual lives to mourn the same lost one. This extraordinary scenario full of grief is portrayed in the popular musical Evita, which is based on the life of Eva Perón of Argentina (1919-1952). The musical begins with a movie at a theatre being stopped to announce the death of the country’s darling, Evita. The entire audience begins to cry, mourning the loss of one of the greatest and most influential leaders Argentina had ever seen. Eva Perón inspired Argentina in ways that other political leaders had never been able to do before her. Some say it was the combination of her “femininity, mystical or spiritual power and revolutionary leadership” that spurred the people’s love for her, and others say it was her ability to bring the "...hopes and dreams of the people to the president," and it is obvious that she has left the most prominent and respected legacy of any woman in Argentine history for her accomplishments.The biographies and novels that were written, movies and the award winning broadway show that were produced, the people that even today speak either in praise or ridicule confirm that Eva Perón has surpassed both time and legend. Eva Perón was born in 7 May 1919 in the village of Los Toldos in The Pampas, rural Argentina. She was the youngest of five (5) children, and her mother was her father Juan Duarte’s mistress. Although it was not uncommon for a man in Argentina to have a wife along with a mistress, Eva’s status amongst the rural, conservative Argentine society was marred due to her illegitimate status, and she spent her childhood stigmatized and rejected. Referred to as "bastards", the family was always isolated, getting irregular visits from Juan Duarte. When Duarte passed in a car accident, the family was left more isolated than ever, with no means to support themselves. This experience of extreme poverty is what caused Eva to move to Buenos Aires, as well as her passion for theatre and the cinema. She left Los Toldos at fifteen (15) years old to be an actress in the big city, which she had been told to be "marvelous places, where nothing was given but wealth." She arrived in Buenos Aires and for the next ten (10) years of her life spend her time and energy auditioning for different modeling, television, theatre and drama. She succeeded at time, never landed a big role but earning enough to support herself financially. At twenty-four (24) she met her future husband Juan Peron, and they were married a year later. This marks the beginning of her interest in politics, even if she did not become a prominent leader in Argentina for two more years. Eva’s upbringing and rough childhood is what caused her to care so much about Argentina’s descamisados, the “shirtless”, or simply the lower class. Juan Peron was already in politics when he and Eva met, but about two years after they got married, Juan decided to run for the presidency of Argentina. While he did have his critics, he was loved by all of the lower and middle class, gaining him the popular vote. This love is portrayed when Juan is arrested and an estimated 250,000- 350,000 people gather to rally for his freedom. In Evita the musical Eva herself is credited for the rally, but this is unlikely due to the fact that at the time, she was still not much more than an actress. However, the stage and having audience did serve both Juan and Eva well, as during his run for the presidency she was able to campaign for him heavily using her weekly radio shows and her cultural influence. She was the first wife of a candidate to travel with her husband to all of his campaigns, and is photographed with him all the time as he moved all around Argentina, gaining love from the people of their country. Juan Peron won the presidential election in 1946, and this time period is when Eva Peron was nicknamed