The secret of an American in the land of the Incas: characterization of Albert A. Giesecke's cultural praxis in Peru based on the film Secret of the Incas

Abstract

Albert A. Giesecke (USA, 1883-Peru, 1968) arrived in Peru in 1909 as a member of the team in charge of educational reform during the first government of Augusto B. Leguía. After working in various educational institutions, he was appointed rector of the University of Cuzco (1910-1923) and later elected mayor of the city (1920-1923). Based on the analysis of the representation of American subjects in the film Secret of the Incas (1954), this essay seeks to characterize the Gieseckian style of cultural policies. In the first part, his arrival in Perú is contextualized in order to understand the complex political situation that the young American encountered. In the second part, the analysis of the film shows different ways of being an American in Cuzco, challenging the stereotype of the “gold-digger gringo” and offering a profile of an American capable of passionately defending and promoting the culture of his adopted homeland.