Cambridge Companion to Latin
American Novel: Chapter 7
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Indigenista literature – distinctive features:
(144)
o Tone
of social protest aimed at undoing immediate evils
o The
imposition of ideology on plot and character
o A
black and white construction of good and evil
o Little
stylistic preoccupation
o Little
or no character development
o Superficial
description of folklore and customs
o Principal
intent is to portray oppression
o Pessimistic
vision of world
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Transition from indigenismo to neoindigenismo
begins in the decade of the 1950s with the publication of the Peruvian José
María Arguedas’s Los ríos profundos
(144)
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Essential elements of neoindigenista literature
according to Cornejo Polar (144-145):
o Use
of magical realism to reveal the mythical dimension of the indigenous world
o Intensification
of lyricism as a category integrated into the narrative
o Expansion
and improvement of narrative techniques through a process of experimentation
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“While indigenismo was informed by the basic
contradiction between the indigenous communities and the landowners allied with
the state, neoindigenismo deals with more intangible problems, existential
conflicts, and the human condition” (145)
Discuss the vision of the indigenous in Me llamo Rigoberta Menchú, Balún Canan, Huasipungo, and/or any other text from the period that you find
relevant. How do questions of race, nation, and alterity affect them? In what
ways are their stories recorded and why does this matter?
I.
Introduction: The indigenous “other” is a very
important theme/character in all Latin American literature, since its very
beginnings! That’s because ever since the conquistadors showed up in the “New
World,” there was this other type of
person that they had to figure out what to do with and how to think about. Due
to the continued indigenous presence in Latin America and the social conflicts
that have frequently arisen do to this presence, it’s not really a surprise
that even various centuries after the “discovery” of the New World, the theme
is still prominent in literature. Thus, it is important to consider the vision
that 20th century Latin American literature creates of the
indigenous. In order to best analyze this idea, I will discuss three Latin
American texts: Huasipungo (Icaza,
1934), Me llamo Rigoberta Menchú
(Menchú and Burgos, 1983), and Los ríos
profundos (Arguedas, 19658). Before commencing my discussion, it is
important to note that these texts are representative of different genres and
movements, but all address the indigenous “other.” In my analysis, I will
comment on the interaction of genre, content, and message.
II.
Background literary context: brief presentation
of genres (don’t know if this would be appropriate)
-
Intro: As mentioned previously, the theme of the
indigenous is a very important one in Latin American literature. As such, the
theme has appeared within various genres and contexts, with varying levels of
prominence in different texts. Before analyzing specific texts, it is useful to
first consider some of the genres in which the theme of the indigenous “other”
has appeared in a larger role.
-
Indigenist literature: talks about indigenous
stuff, but often rather flat, always an outside perspective trying to propagate
what Indians are like (ex: Huasipungo)
-
Neo-indigenist literature: return to same goals
as above, but often a closer and more genuine vision (ex: Los ríos profundos)
-
Testimonial: not necessarily focused on
indigenous, as it can cover a variety of subjects, but in this case, we have an
example that applies (Me llamo Rigoberta
Menchú). This example is important because it gives a much closer vision,
since it records the voice of an actual indigenous person.
III.
Huasipungo
(Icaza, 1934, Ecuador)
-
Flat and infantilized vision of Indians, racial
stereotypes; one representative character (Andrés)
-
Discrimination: Indians are abused, live in very
poor conditions, Andrés’s wife is raped
-
Idea of the Indians’ weakness vs. the
landowners’ strength: the Indians attempt to rebel but are ultimately crushed
-
Indigenist novel: outside perspective, can’t
really do it justice.
-
Influence of realism (details of sordidness of
life, omniscient third-person narration)
IV.
Balún-Canán
(Castellanos, 1957, Mexico)
-
Indigenist novel
-
Influence of child’s perspective (infantilizes
problem)… taken care of by indigenous woman, sees conflict between landowners
and the indigenous people.
V.
Los ríos profundos (Arguedas, 1958, Peru)
-
Incorporates real maravilloso (Zumbayllu,
mythical structure, aspects of ancient indigenous culture. And that is
important because it shows a different, slightly more understanding/open vision
of the indio)
-
Much closer vision of indigenous
(neo-indigenismo) – more understanding
-
More interesting because our narrator (Ernesto)
actually puts himself into the position of having to choose between sides.
-
Very Peruvian – focused on social conflicts due
to indigenous vs. not-indigenous folks (like other Peruvian novels before – Aves sin nido)
VI.
Me llamo Rigoberta (Menchú y Burgos, 1983, Guatemala)
-
Testimonial novel – collective [marginalized] voice,
but more personal, closer view of the Indians because one of them is narrating
the story
-
Social
conflict: indigenous vs. non-indigenous ladinos
-
Also get a lot of stuff about indigenous culture
that we may not have gotten in a different context/genre
VII.
Recap: some common trends/ideas between all
-
All highlight social conflict (racism,
discrimination)
-
Varying levels of indigenous culture knowledge
(with Rigoberta having the most, and Icaza having the least)
-
Different genres have different results/feels
for the reader
VIII.
Conclusion
-
Indigenous thing is innate/inevitable
characteristic of Latin American literature, have seen it in a variety of ways
and will probably continue seeing it. Forms part of Latin American identity.
