Los rumbos de las ruralidades en Petén, Guatemala : la configuración social de la ruralidad en Macanche, Ixlú, El Remate y El Caoba

Abstract

This study shows for a peripheral region in Guatemala that the processes which influence the social configuration of rural areas have their own clear-cut dynamics, which change over time and which have differentiating outcomes at the level of individual settlements. This implies that the concept of 'the new rurality' - quite fashionable now among scholars in Latin America - should be further qualified. The distinction between 'the traditional rurality' and 'the new rurality' presents yet another dichotomy which reflects a rather reductionist and static perspective. It is much more accurate to consider rurality from the perspective of the ongoing processes of material transformation and social configuration that lead to distinct outcomes for each specific locality.