A teacher, historian, critic, folklorist, playwright, prolific writer of essays, books, and poetry, Ricardo Rojas (1882–1957) was the preeminent cultural nationalist of Argentina. Born in the northwestern city of Tucumán to a family whose regional ties extended back to colonial times, Rojas identified himself with the ancient Incan Empire and identified Peru as the original cultural heart of Latin America. His revolutionary enthusiasm for Indian Latin America, and colonial culture, was most evident in his collection of essays, Cosmópolis. In contrast to President Domingo F. Sarmiento’s dichotomy between civilization and barbarism, Rojas proposed the dichotomy between Indianism and exoticism. In his alternative dichotomy, Rojas criticized cosmopolitanism under the umbrella of exoticism, yet he also rejected any negativity toward the synthesis of Spanish culture and the Argentinean indigenous cultural heritage. His lifelong political participation often led to banishment and imprisonment, which was particularly true of his later years. Now, he is revered as a tireless advocate for Argentina. He sought to identify cultural features unique to Argentina, and strove to give a voice to his people who had been condemned to imitate foreign models for so many years.