Reading Carlos Fuentes’ “The Old Gringo” felt like being taken into a place somewhere between two cultures, somewhere between past, present, and future, somewhere between sleeping and waking. This feeling, of occupying a space in between seems to me a central theme of the novel, in which it’s primary premises are the exact interrelations between these things and the way these simple dualities inform our lives, constraining them in some ways and yet opening pathways to new ways forward in other ways. Fuentes’ prose similarly occupies an interesting state between pure narrative prose that would be expected of a traditional fictional narrative (despite having been a dramatized interpretation of the disappearance of real-life author Ambrose Bierce) and the embellishments of poetry. Many of our central characters’ motivations and observations are embellished by symbolism and repetitions that serve to accentuate their thoughts while clouding them in a sort of haze. This is often done in such a way as to blend our characters’ recollections from their present thoughts, which is fitting given that the central conceit of the narrative is that one of our protagonists, Harriet Winslow, is remembering the events being told to us. This blurring of past and present informs much of the novel as each of our central characters is grappling with understanding and coming to terms with their own pasts through their involvement in the Mexican civil war. The General Thomas Arroyo grapples with his unfortunate history in the hacienda, all the while clinging to those same lands that he suffered in, chaining him to this land. The old gringo, burdened by a past wrought with personal tragedies, seeks the tumult of the war seeking the refuge of death. Even Winslow, who we can infer plays some role as narrator of these memories, consistently “sits alone and remembers”, this motif itself repeating many times throughout the novel. This idea of being constrained by the past, of ghosts of one’s memories, unites our characters regardless of their cultural heritage. This intersection of culture also permeates the narrative as the backdrop of our story, the Mexican revolution, was a turning point in redefining Mexican sovereignty and identity. The rebel band takes up arms for this reclamation of their own agency and yet Arroyo stays chained to his past, incapable of truly seeing a path forward. Meanwhile the Americans, Bierce and Winslow, seek out Mexico in spite of the danger of this time as a refuge from the constraints placed upon them by their old lives in America, them too chasing demons away. While the old and new, remembered and perceived, and disparate cultures clash in this place, the novel creates a space between these things, and in attempting to reconcile the inherent differences it asks whether or not one can gleam a path forward in the spaces between old and present to truly find something new.

My question to readers is what did you think of Fuentes’ prose? How do you think time, perception, and/or culture impacts the narrative?