Deep Rivers by José María Arguedas.

This week’s read was definitely a ride for me. I don’t think I’ve ever looked up words or referred to the footnote this much when reading a book, but it was fascinating reading about the culture, their language, and the nature of the Andean people. I really liked and appreciated how the translator kept some words untranslated to show the nuance of the language, enrich the narratives with layers of meanings and perhaps to pay respects to it. The stops I had to do while reading the novel to see the translated word almost kind of kept me aware that it was in Quechuan and painted the illusion of what it was like living in Peru in the 1920s. The novel allowed me to see from the eyes of a small boy into maturity, facing various challenges from witnessing social marginalization to experiencing the cultural ‘identity crisis’ himself, while illustrating his young curious mind like the talking Inca walls, or his fascination with the Pachachaca river and its bridge. This reminded me of the previous novel we read about Agostino, and it almost felt precious to be reading from the perspective of a young, naive mind. We can see both childhood elements like him and the boys playing with the zumballyu and more ‘adult’ problems like the chicheras’ uprising. Ernesto goes through this phase of growing up which involves the feelings of isolation, problems of identity and belonging especially as a mixed person, with each people treating him differently, and having to live in a catholic boarding school without his father. He is exposed to injustices in the world as a young child and has to deal with the feelings of sorrow and sympathy but also unending curiosity, which is shown when he follows the women’s protest to the next city. I almost saw myself in him – I find myself often observing more than participating, fascinated with nature and sometimes a bit isolated in society.

Back to the Andean culture, one thing I really liked was the idea of opposites in the book. The narrator compares the Inca stones to the never-stationary, unstoppable rivers, and moreover mentions the meaning of the word illa for describing kinds of lights but also monsters with birth defects. I think this could also be shown by the way society was illustrated in the novel: the owner of the haciendas, the white people and the indigenous people, the oppressor and the oppressed. Moreover, the idea of movement also seemed significant. Just like the river, Ernesto was always moving, always transforming, whether it was travelling from one city to other or growing as a person.

“The wall was stationary, but all its lines were seething and its surface was as changeable as that of the flooding summer rivers which have similar crests near the center, where the current flows the swiftest and is the most terrifying.”

“Illa is the name used for a certain kind of light, also for monsters with birth defects caused by moonbeams.”

I found all the descriptions and introductions of the Andean culture extremely interesting, especially their language and their meanings. It made me wonder about the different languages other cultures have. My question is:

Are there any words or elements in your culture that hold a significant meaning?