1. COSTA RICA CULTURE(Art, Music, Dance, Literature) Marian Huang Hist 28(online) Nation Report Part 2 Dr. Arguello

2. Arts and Crafts Relatively impoverished in arts due to heterogeneous population and devastation at an early stage Creativity is becoming increasingly important Tourist interest spawned renaissance in crafts Souvenirs and Antiques Pottery is booming (bowls, mugs, clay pits, patios) Most arts and crafts come from Sarchí famous home of decorated wooden oxcarts (symbol of Costa Rica) and leather rocking chairs Jewelry made from wood, glass, silver, and gold Woodcrafts (bowls, boxes, etc) are made from tropical Costa Rican wood

3. Music For dancing, hypnotic Latin and rhythmic Caribbean beats are very popular Outside of dance hall, young listen to Anglo-American rock Music reflects African, pre-Columbian, and Spanish roots The xylapone (mirimba) and guitar are popular instruments Country is more elusive and restrained than the vigorous native music of Panamá and Guatemala Formed National Symphony Orchestra in 1970 Classical music gained much popularity Performs at TeatroNacional with world-renowned soloists and conductors (José Castillo and Pablo Ortiz) Costa Rica holds an International Festival of Music during the last two weeks of August

4. Dance Ticos love to dance (very important part of culture) Rural folks flock to small-town dance halls on weekends Listen to hypno, rhythmic music for cumbia, lambada, marcado, merengue, salsa, soca , and the Costa Rican swing PuntoGuanacasteo: National Dance Upbeat folk dance with rhythmical foot stomping Other dances include La danza del sol (dance of the sun) La danza de la luna (dance of the moon) Folkloric dance troupes tour the country and some perform year around in theaters In traditional dance, women wear ruffled blouses and colorful tiered skirts and men wear white shirts and hats

5. Literature Literary tradition is young because country is also young History of Costa Rican literature dates to the end of the 19th century Early literary figures were mostly essayists and poets Roberto BrenesMesen JoaquínGarcíaMonge 1930s and 1940s theme was plea for social progress Realist movement started the arrival of a literary style that denounced social injustice and transmitted revolutionary ideas Twentieth century literature influenced by European literature

6. Works Cited Baker, Christopher. Moon Handbooks Costa Rica. Avalon Travel Publishing, 2004. Print. "Costa Rican Music and Dance." What Costa Rica. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar 2011. <http://www.whatcostarica.com/costa-rica-music.html>. "Costa Rica Traditional Dances." Vacation City. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar 2011. <http://www.vacationcity.com/costa-rica/information/culture/dance/#>. "Culture in Costa Rica." CostaRica.net. InformáticaInternacional, 2002. Web. 28 Mar 2011. <http://www.costarica.net/features/culture.htm>. Lytle, Tim. "The Real Costa Rica." N.p., 2010. Web. 28 Mar 2011. <http:// www.therealcostarica.com/costa_rica/costaricans.html>.