The Pongo’s Dream

Jose Maria Arguedas

From the Forward about the Author:

• Learned Quechua from the servants of his household
• He was a novelist and anthropologist
• Peruvian proponent for keeping Quechua alive
• Challenged notions of “modernization”
• “Hombre Quechua Moderno”
• Notion of cultural pluralism
  • The ability to maintain unique cultural identities within cultural contexts
• The Pongo’s Dream, is adaption of a story the author heard from a Cusco peasant
• Encompasses the structure of the feudal systems in place during this time
• “suggests the spirit of independence and opposition”

 This short story depicts the relationship between a “lord” and servant. Detailing the verbal abuses and commands of the servant. The story shifts when the servant details a dream he has wherein both he and his master die. Two angels descend, cover the bodies of the servant and the master, in fecal matter and honey respectively. In the dream they are meant to lick the body of the other for eternity. While the passage is concise, the conclusion leaves readers to interpret the larger meaning. The story highlights a very literal voice of opposition within the servant and works to undermine the authority and morality of the master. The story also brings divinity as a sort of final judgement or

Miguel Angel Asturias

Legend of the Singing Tablets

Legend of the Crystal Mask

Legend of the Silent Bell

Legend of the Dancing Butchers

 This is a collection of four stories written as ornate prose. While the writing style is beautiful and detailed, it borders on verbose, making it cumbersome. The pieces, while effective in calling forth vibrant imagery, lead me to wonder if there are audible renditions available and what kind of clarity it would bring to the pieces. The difficulty I encountered was deciphering symbolic meaning from legitimately occurring plot points. For example, in Legend of the Crystal Mask, the author begins to describe the movement of figures, “…[they] arrayed themselves in order of battle. First flanking him, then forming a file at his front, without war cries, they bent their bows, and fired their poison arrows. A second group of warriors, also made by him, sculpted in stone by his hand, spread out like a fan and, playful as butterflies, surrounded him, pinning him…” (94). On one level, you can interpret this literally as a myth or legend and on another you can analyze it for it symbolic meaning of destroying the systems created by the colonizers.

As always I started this weeks readings with some research on the authors. Miguel Angel Asturias is definitely a very well regarded author is more than qualified to write about the topics in his stories. Asturias first story legend of the singing tablets was so incredibly captivating and colourful. His prose invoked so many beautiful images into my mind regarding indigenous culture in pre-colonial Latin america. I think legend of the singing tablets was meant to recognize the importance of song and written culture, specifically symbology in indigenous culture. The wonderful images of moon and the singing competition the usage of cycles encapsulates a lot of themes in pre-colonialization latin american indigenous culture.

Legend of the crystal masks was just as colorful and the introduction of the sentient creation of beings like jaguars and giants had me rereading lines and basking in the lyrical component of the story. I don’t think I was fully able to grasp the meaning of this piece but I did catch on to the mention of colonialization and white people. More importantly the ending was very jarring. The natural betrayal of man by his own creation is somewhat symbolic of the cycle of life. Creation then death. I’m not sure I understand the meaning of nurse rain but the blindness and the mask invoke an image of complacency. I think it might be about how the indigenous people were receptive of the colonizers and the blindness to their effects. Honestly the story was so absolutely beautiful I’m kind of amazed.

Legend of the Silent bell was a very creepy story in my opinion. The gold imagery I think was used to denote the colonial extraction of latin american resources, specifically gold. The story was easier to grasp in terms of thematics; the obvious struggle between colonial and indigenous identity, the betrayal of christians and the piracy. The gold, silver, bronze bells. The sacrificial element of indigenous property. Taking away from all these stories I think Asturias attempted to preserve the beauty of indigneity (indian nun) whilst also exposing the internal struggles of the colonized and the usurption of culture. Asturias uses notable latin american symbols like gold, jaguars, snakes, the moon and sun, and contrasting that with spanish imagery like christian religion, the bell all the wealth being melted into the bell. Asturias stories capture intrinisic elements of latin american identity struggles bursting with colors.

Looking forward to class this week as I had a hard time placing these stories in the context of Pop Culture in Latin America.

Reading translated fiction always makes me wish I was fluent in the original language the text was written in. These stories in particular possess super animated, descriptive & imaginative language, and it’s interesting in English. I bet it’s even better in Spanish.

I was reading up on Asturias and he seems like a pretty interesting guy.  He is an artist who felt it was very important to represent indigenous Guatemala and is credited with having done this accurately and well. That’s pretty sweet.

The stories are very beautiful.

I didn’t get a chance to read the second reading yet. I will update this post when I do!

Legend of the Singing Tablets-

I really enjoyed reading Austrias’ writing! I love all the imagery and his terminology created a Universe all its own! My thoughts are really choppy and my interpretation may be a little far fetched so sorry if this is kind of incoherent.

My personal favourite was The Singing Tablets, I became totally immersed in the beauty of the (dare i say it.. psychedelic-ish) (sorry) imagery in this story.
The elements of animism (inanimate (non-animal) beings considered as animate or conscious beings) were particularly intriguing for me because I like to imagine our Universe (or ecosystem) as one giant body made up of tiny bodies. In this society there is an implied natural intention or a collective consciousness i.e. their idea of god lives in everything. The nature seems to take on even negative or diseased animation that we would associate with people and is described as being insane and spastic at certain points (could it be reacting to it’s “cultivation” and extraction?)

At the beginning the Green-ness of the hills, and Utuquels hair (which is described as a kind of a living being) reminded me of the double or even maybe triple meaning of the word green. The obvious one the colour, to be innocent or inexperienced and the magical green Arthurian universe (my Eurocentric perspective coming out?? Or maybe cus I’m an English Major????) I found the contrast between the green of their world vs the introduction of the white at the end (which obviously holds both racial and secularly religious connotations) really interesting .

“The brunt of comic opera, must yield up his mock heart of chocolate.” The Comic and Opera being “high” artistic genres, (assertion of Euro cultural Value onto native context) the brunt, (or person who bears the burden of this “poetic war”) is described as yielding up his “mock heart” (representing the colonial view of indigenous people as being somehow less human or “mock” versions of themselves ) of chocolate (quantifying the value of the people based on what can be extracted and commodified- their worth= chocolate to be sent home.) They insert their alien concept of monetary value onto the (spirited) natural world describing it in terms of “epic” or using “high” or western notion of art to glorify while simultaneously stripping every member of this culture of their celestial integrity by claiming and objectifying them….. How horrifying!!

Utuquel says “to create is to steal.” Going on about how every work of “art” is appropriated and stolen from other places. In their “creation” of what we now know as Latin America the colonialists did steal a lot from the land and it’s inhabitants. They held a view of the land (and the people who call the land home) as material items to be won, understood (rather, re-interpreted), and commodified by them. The “poetic battle” is representing the contrasting the materialistic and ritualistic Catholic spirituality (which covers the once green land with the concept of “Milk White” purity) with the inclusive omni-present spirituality that existed there long before it’s “conquest.”

The Pongo’s Dream

This was heart wrenching, and the picture of the adorable real-life Pongos certainly didn’t help with that. This story more than any other provided a clear concise “moral” and though it did have spiritual elements there did seem to be a larger use of Catholic terms- “heaven” “angel” “the Our father” and “Hail Mary” as well as the appearance of St. Francis who is guardian of the poor etc. This reinforces the control the mean and nasty lord (or what he represents) has over all aspects of the Pongos life. For me the lesson at the end made me think of one (not so classy phrase) “Don’t shit where you eat” which on a literal level is some good advice, but can also mean don’t bite the hand that feeds you (another weird expression) aka don’t abuse those who you rely on. It also harkens back to the world in Austurias’ myths where every being exists in a cycle where they rely on the other. The golden honey may cover the lord’s (also interesting how he is “lord” and “father” while he also attempts to play god in his dominion over the Pongo) temporary earthly body, in heaven he is on equal level with the Pongo and must “taste his own medicine.” A thoroughly satisfying conclusion which allows us to feel a little less sick to our stomach about how the little boy was treated. And take pride in the resilience of men women and children who were able to sustain themselves and flourish even under such conditions. The meekness and piousness which the Pongo is seemingly punished for is ironically a direct reflection of Christian teachings, which the false “lord” clearly does not uphold. He listens to the Pongo recount his dream because it exists in HIS heaven and by HIS terms, but he is quickly proven to be an utter fool by his own standards!

Legend of the Singing Tablets-

I really enjoyed reading Austrias’ writing! I love all the imagery and his terminology created a Universe all its own! My thoughts are really choppy and my interpretation may be a little far fetched so sorry if this is kind of incoherent.

My personal favourite was The Singing Tablets, I became totally immersed in the beauty of the (dare i say it.. psychedelic-ish) (sorry) imagery in this story.
The elements of animism (inanimate (non-animal) beings considered as animate or conscious beings) were particularly intriguing for me because I like to imagine our Universe (or ecosystem) as one giant body made up of tiny bodies. In this society there is an implied natural intention or a collective consciousness i.e. their idea of god lives in everything. The nature seems to take on even negative or diseased animation that we would associate with people and is described as being insane and spastic at certain points (could it be reacting to it’s “cultivation” and extraction?)

At the beginning the Green-ness of the hills, and Utuquels hair (which is described as a kind of a living being) reminded me of the double or even maybe triple meaning of the word green. The obvious one the colour, to be innocent or inexperienced and the magical green Arthurian universe (my Eurocentric perspective coming out?? Or maybe cus I’m an English Major????) I found the contrast between the green of their world vs the introduction of the white at the end (which obviously holds both racial and secularly religious connotations) really interesting .

“The brunt of comic opera, must yield up his mock heart of chocolate.” The Comic and Opera being “high” artistic genres, (assertion of Euro cultural Value onto native context) the brunt, (or person who bears the burden of this “poetic war”) is described as yielding up his “mock heart” (representing the colonial view of indigenous people as being somehow less human or “mock” versions of themselves ) of chocolate (quantifying the value of the people based on what can be extracted and commodified- their worth= chocolate to be sent home.) They insert their alien concept of monetary value onto the (spirited) natural world describing it in terms of “epic” or using “high” or western notion of art to glorify while simultaneously stripping every member of this culture of their celestial integrity by claiming and objectifying them….. How horrifying!!

Utuquel says “to create is to steal.” Going on about how every work of “art” is appropriated and stolen from other places. In their “creation” of what we now know as Latin America the colonialists did steal a lot from the land and it’s inhabitants. They held a view of the land (and the people who call the land home) as material items to be won, understood (rather, re-interpreted), and commodified by them. The “poetic battle” is representing the contrasting the materialistic and ritualistic Catholic spirituality (which covers the once green land with the concept of “Milk White” purity) with the inclusive omni-present spirituality that existed there long before it’s “conquest.”

The Pongo’s Dream

This was heart wrenching, and the picture of the adorable real-life Pongos certainly didn’t help with that. This story more than any other provided a clear concise “moral” and though it did have spiritual elements there did seem to be a larger use of Catholic terms- “heaven” “angel” “the Our father” and “Hail Mary” as well as the appearance of St. Francis who is guardian of the poor etc. This reinforces the control the mean and nasty lord (or what he represents) has over all aspects of the Pongos life. For me the lesson at the end made me think of one (not so classy phrase) “Don’t shit where you eat” which on a literal level is some good advice, but can also mean don’t bite the hand that feeds you (another weird expression) aka don’t abuse those who you rely on. It also harkens back to the world in Austurias’ myths where every being exists in a cycle where they rely on the other. The golden honey may cover the lord’s (also interesting how he is “lord” and “father” while he also attempts to play god in his dominion over the Pongo) temporary earthly body, in heaven he is on equal level with the Pongo and must “taste his own medicine.” A thoroughly satisfying conclusion which allows us to feel a little less sick to our stomach about how the little boy was treated. And take pride in the resilience of men women and children who were able to sustain themselves and flourish even under such conditions. The meekness and piousness which the Pongo is seemingly punished for is ironically a direct reflection of Christian teachings, which the false “lord” clearly does not uphold. He listens to the Pongo recount his dream because it exists in HIS heaven and by HIS terms, but he is quickly proven to be an utter fool by his own standards!

EDIT: Shamefully I must admit that I only managed to skim both these articles on account of the fact that my life is falling to bits and pieces way too early in the term (the flu, midterms, assignments and papers?! Someone save me). It’s currently 12:45am and I just got home from work so please forgive my mess of a brain.

I want to first talk briefly about The Pongo’s Dream. This story started out in such a depressing manner, my heart ached for the servant. The way it ended though took me by surprise and I absolutely loved the consequence of possessing a gross personality. This karmic story is definitely one I could see being a children’s folk tale; it’s a simple story with a very clear message that adheres to the desirable virtues of a culture.

I’m writing this second reflection of Legend of the Singing Tablets as I go, in fear of falling asleep half way through the story (it’s written beautifully but my brain is no bueno). The writing of this legend is so intricate, and the imagery is incredibly powerful. This concept of a Moon-Chewer intrigues me, probably more than it would if I weren’t as tired, but it always strikes me as so interesting that each culture has such different variations of descriptions of both every day people and mythical beings. I’m still not really sure what the legend is about in all honesty, but my half-functioning brain can tell there’s a lot going on in terms of action. I also found Utuquel’s speech about everything being borrowed so profound.

I think I need to stop here, as any passage I write after this will not be of much value whatsoever. I strongly believe that if I come back to these legends with a more sound mind I’ll enjoy them thoroughly, but for now I must cease.

Well these readings were super interesting! Although I haven’t read all of Asturia’s stories, these readings have probably been my favourite so far.

Asturia’s writing is so imagery-rich and beautifully descriptive, it really drew me in from the first paragraph. One thing I noticed in Legend of the Singing Tablets was the use of binaries. Specifically on page 84 when Utuquel is described as an “artist-thief, thief of things known and forgotten, apologetically presenting his argument to the visible-invisible diviners” as well as when Utuquel himself says “to create is to steal..”. This really related back to what we’ve discussed in class, the confluence of worlds and ideas seemingly at odds with each other which coexist so vibrantly in Latin American culture. Is ‘creating’ inherently some form of stealing because we are always influenced by the words, the ideas, the images of others? Is this a comment on the often hybrid nature of much of Latin American culture in its ‘appropriation’ of the Western and the indigenous? Interesting here to relate back to the colonial mechanisms of Latin America- a region that was looted to essentially create Europe. To create a vast concentration of wealth in one area (be it a geographical location, or a particular class of people among society) usually comes from leeching this wealth from somewhere else.

Arguedas story was quite hard-hitting and written in much more of an upfront manner. Saint Francis is a saint associated with the well-being of the poor which definitely stood out to me when he appears in the story. The ‘sweet’ little twist at the end, which this saint of poor was to oversee, made me laugh.

Not the most interesting blog post this week- I would love to write more, but work has worn me out. Looking forward to class discussion on these stories!

I really enjoyed the collection of stories based on Guatemalan folklore by the 1967 Nobel Laureate, Miguel Angel Asturias. The stories were compelling and engaging because of the poetic language and the imagery it creates in the readers’ minds. They were very unique in terms of structure too, since he would usually start the legend with one set of thoughts/ideas that would continually transform throughout the story, as we are introduced to new settings and new characters all along.

My favourite story was “Legend of the Crystal Mask”. Ambiastro has fled to the “most inaccessible of mountains” to escape the “men with worm-white skin” (Spanish colonialists). He has an obsession with carving sculptures of gods, warriors and priests out of rocks, that guard his cave. He toils and toils for days at end, without stopping, his face and hands replete with injuries and cuts, but none of this matters. He is devoted to sculpting. But in a twist in the end, his creations turn against their creator. The stools “kick him in the shins”, the work tables and work benches “hurled themselves about like enraged animals”, the shelves “lashed out at his shoulders, as if to kill him”. It parallels the science-fiction narratives common today where human creations such as robots/artificial intelligence turn against the human species. I wonder how prevalent this folklore is in Guatemala? How do they feel about today’s ever-growing technologies? I really liked this one excerpt from the story, “The one who adds creatures of artifice to creation must know that these creatures are rebellious. See, they have buried him, yet they remain!”

The short story, “Legend of the Singing Tablets”, reminded me of last week’s reading, “Popular Faces of Culture”, where one of the major themes was resistance, either masked or upfront. The indigenous culture, as portrayed in this story, is uninfluenced/untouched by the Spanish Conquest. The story is based on the lunar cycle, followed by the indigenous population. Despite the Spanish imposition of their own calendar and methods of life, the natives are able to keep their culture and traditions alive.

Overall, I loved the works of Asturias. They are definitely unlike anything I have read before!

I really enjoyed the collection of stories based on Guatemalan folklore by the 1967 Nobel Laureate, Miguel Angel Asturias. The stories were compelling and engaging because of the poetic language and the imagery it creates in the readers’ minds. They were very unique in terms of structure too, since he would usually start the legend with one set of thoughts/ideas that would continually transform throughout the story, as we are introduced to new settings and new characters all along.

My favourite story was “Legend of the Crystal Mask”. Ambiastro has fled to the “most inaccessible of mountains” to escape the “men with worm-white skin” (Spanish colonialists). He has an obsession with carving sculptures of gods, warriors and priests out of rocks, that guard his cave. He toils and toils for days at end, without stopping, his face and hands replete with injuries and cuts, but none of this matters. He is devoted to sculpting. But in a twist in the end, his creations turn against their creator. The stools “kick him in the shins”, the work tables and work benches “hurled themselves about like enraged animals”, the shelves “lashed out at his shoulders, as if to kill him”. It parallels the science-fiction narratives common today where human creations such as robots/artificial intelligence turn against the human species. I wonder how prevalent this folklore is in Guatemala? How do they feel about today’s ever-growing technologies? I really liked this one excerpt from the story, “The one who adds creatures of artifice to creation must know that these creatures are rebellious. See, they have buried him, yet they remain!”

The short story, “Legend of the Singing Tablets”, reminded me of last week’s reading, “Popular Faces of Culture”, where one of the major themes was resistance, either masked or upfront. The indigenous culture, as portrayed in this story, is uninfluenced/untouched by the Spanish Conquest. The story is based on the lunar cycle, followed by the indigenous population. Despite the Spanish imposition of their own calendar and methods of life, the natives are able to keep their culture and traditions alive.

Overall, I loved the works of Asturias. They are definitely unlike anything I have read before!