Month: February 2010

Después de leer dos libros, de los cuales ninguno era exactamente del género realismo mágico, he encontrado una tema que me interesa. En Leyendas de Guatemala, la lengua que usa Asturias es muy poética. Hay un ritmo en las repeticiones de palabras, en su incluso de sonidos, y en sus juegos de palabras. Además, sus cuentos están llenos de colores. Por ejemplo en la segunda mitad del libro, los capítulos tienen un temático de colores. Los diferentes colores significan diferentes partes del día. Con este estilo de escritura, los mitos de los Mayas viven en la página. Aunque este libro procede la creación del género del realismo mágico, para mi, Asturias ha creado un mundo fantástico.

En El reino de este mundo, encontré un aspecto de magia similar en la cultura vodú de los negros. La religión dio poder y respecto a la naturaleza. La integración de la naturaleza con su cultura formaba parte de su identidad. Esto me di cuenta de la cultura Maya. Los cuentos por Asturias, o las recreaciones/improvisaciones de los mitos Maya, dio voces y identidades a animales y la naturaleza.

El realismo mágico (o lo que sea) es algo separado de la cultura de los europeos. Es algo que precedió la llegada de los conquistadores y sigue viviendo como un movimiento contra la cultura no indígena o mestizo. En el caso de Asturias, sus estudios sobre la cultura de los indígenas de su país de nacimiento lo permitió dar una voz a una parte de la cultura Maya no conocido o no entendido por los europeos. En comparación, la cultura mística de los negros en Saint-Domingue era algo que los separaba de los blancos más que la esclavitud. La conexión que tenían los negros con la naturaleza era algo incomprensible y miedoso. Eso les dio poder a sublevar contra los blancos.

Hmmm me gusta lo que he escrito pero no se si estoy convencido de mis propios pensamientos. De todos modos, me interesa mucho el realismo mágico porque es un género de la tierra de América latina. Estoy muy contenta con las dos selecciones de libros y estoy curiosa en lo que queda en el curso.

Mis pensamientos hasta ahora… ¿qué decir?

Leemos dos libros: Leyendas de Guatemala y El reino de este mundo. No me gustó mucho la primera obra por la dificultad de leerla, además de un lenguaje complicado, las tramas eran demasiado complejas y abstractas. Ya el segundo libro me encantó: es verdad que el vocabulario no es muy sencillo y que el estilo de Carpentier a veces estorba la comprensión. Sin embargo, El reino tiene una narración clara, con personajes definidos y situaciones con principio, medio y fin.

Estos dos textos son considerados los precursores del realismo mágico. No obstante, yo hesitaría antes de incluir la obra de Asturias en esa categoría. Las leyendas tienen demasiada fantasía y solo algunos elementos reales, o sea, en lugar de ser el realismo mágico, yo las consideraría una magia realista. Las leyendas no tienen elementos mágicos, sino son en sí mágicas: quizás hay uno u otro elemento realista, pero lo que domina es, sin duda, la fantasía. Ya la obra de Carpentier me parece un ejemplo perfecto del realismo mágico: lo que domina es la realidad (especialmente por ser un recuento de la historia, o sea, hechos reales), y algunos elementos son mágicos – aquellos elementos que reflejan las creencias de los negros.

Los dos libros representan un intento de volver a las raíces de Latinoamérica y de huir las tendencias aburridas y previsibles de la literatura europea. Ambos autores lo logran, pero de maneras muy distintas. Asturias vuelve a las creencias indígenas y las retoma, añadiendo elementos pos-invasión española. La esencia, sin embargo, es puramente indígena, o precolombina. Carpentier, por su parte, retoma la historia, enfocando en lo que representa lo mejor posible el aislamiento de la perspectiva europea. Su libro ignora figuras importantísimas en la revolución, como Toussaint y Dessalines, pues su inclusión no adicionaría mucho a su objetivo de enfatizar lo que es distinto en Latinoamérica.

Se nota en ambas obras la importancia de la naturaleza para las creencias latinoamericanas. Las leyendas indígenas caracterizan la naturaleza como acontecimientos divinos y hay un inmenso respeto hacia los fenómenos de la naturaleza. La historia contada por Carpentier, por otra parte, muestra el valor que las creencias afro-caribeñas daban a la naturaleza: los truenos son señales divinos, la metamorfosis en forma animal es manera superior de percibir las cosas. Solo pregunto si la importancia es realmente tan grande o si los autores la estresan para aumentar la diferencia respecto a Europa.

…creo que ya basta. Lo que quiero es más del realismo mágico del estilo de Carpentier, más de lo que hizo García Márquez volver la figura icónica que es.

Many weeks later, as he sat facing the computer screen hours before the due project, (name was removed for security purposes) was to remember that distant morn when his professor took him to discover magical realism. At that time, UBC was a village of about 50,000, built on the peninsula, surrounded by clear water that ran along the coast and through to the open ocean. The world was so young that many things were left to be discovered, many things left to be learnt and for this young individual, a long life to live. Every four years, during the coldest of winter months, there was held a grand ceremony, lasting only two weeks, that celebrated the very greatest of those to walk, skate, sled, or curl on this earth. It was this week that our young protagonist yearned for to arrive, and which, however close it seemed, was just out of reach, impeded by that which faced him in this hour, not a single project, but a plethora of examinations that were to decide the path he took, his fate, and that of the world. He went from web page to web page, scouring notes and thoughts about magic and realism, ancient myths and beliefs, dragging with him the weight of the consequences of taking the short-cut, the easy way out, by listening to the distant words of web-gypsies, who set up virtual tents and with a great uproar of strong opinion, false ingenuity and pipesmoke, would display their thoughts for others to see. “Things have a life of their own,” a web-gypsy proclaimed with a harsh accent. “It’s simply a matter of waking up their souls..” Our protagonist, whose unbridled imagination always went beyond the genius of nature and even beyond miracles and magic, thought that it would be possible to make use of these useless gypsy words to extract gold from the depths of the web. And so, taking them, against the counsel of this heavy gypsy with an untamed web page and sparrow hands, our young protagonist used these words to complete the smallest of weekly web-journal entries. Empowered by the words of the great, inspired by those whose knowledge of prose he could not touch, this young gent, a dignified gentleman though he was, produced what would grant him the grades worthy of participation. With a click heard around the vast array of tubes that make up these wondrous web of internets, he finished his assignment.

Achieving what he set out to do in reflecting upon his readings of late: the epic literary tone, the mythical structure, the use of cultural tales of yesteryear to narrate the stories of the present, the fantastic portrayed as normal and accepted, and the real being embellished as marvelously real. Our young protagonist’s fate was laid to rest, for the time being, in the hands of his professor. So it goes.

so far i have enjoyed certain aspects of the class and found others a little difficult. although i think we all have some background on magical realism, this class really delves into it in great detail. after first reading Asturias i definitely felt a little worried about what was to come as i found Asturias very difficult to understand and follow with vocabulary i had never encountered before. i didn’t really enjoy leyendas de Guatemala as much as i thought i would. i didn’t understand enough of it to really get into and enjoy it.

i was happy when we moved on from Asturias de Carpentier. although the vocabulary was also difficult in el reino de este mundo, i found the storyline much easier to follow (as there was an actual storyline this time and not just a collection of short stories or legends as in leyendas de Guatemala) and i enjoyed getting to know the characters. i especially enjoyed the fact that the story was completely based on real people and real events (with the exception of Ti Noel) and i consider it a great way to learn of the Haitian Revolution and the events that took place. i really learned a lot that from reading this book and it was great to read it in this context rather than in a history book. the magical realism in the book was interesting to read and also helped me understand the importance of magical realism in latin America.

i find our classroom discussions very helpful in understanding what we have just read (especially since i have had such difficulty with the vocabulary in our first two books). i like to hear other people’s opinions for it helps me open my mind to different outlooks on the subject that we are discussing that i had not considered earlier. i do find it difficult to keep up with the blog though. i have never kept a blog before and i usually forget we even have to do it until 10pm on Sundays. it is helpful though to have everyone’s opinions displayed on one website. it also helps to understand the readings.

so far i have enjoyed this class and the readings. i find the format pretty good although there is often a lot to keep up with with the blogs and Wikipedia pages. i do really look forward to reading cien anos de soledad although i suspect it will also be a challenge for me.

oh how I wish I could fill up my blog describing the magnificence of this Sunday’s super bowl 🙂
not to worry instead I will summarize my general overview of Asturias and Carpentier. The magical realism novels we have read as part of ESPN 365. I really am awed at the works. I find the idea of mixing together magical elements in a historical context a very ingenious way of teaching the important part, which I figure to be the historical information. Asturias’ Legends of Guatemala takes the reader to an absolutely foreign experience. As a reader I felt alien, but at the same there was an appealing factor that circulated through the stories and therefore completely comfortable. My experience in reading Asturias was one in which he allowed to be almost as a spiritual journey, because there was such power in his descriptions. Power that came from the natural world. I could not stop thinking of AVATAR the movie. It reminded me of the energy connection the AVATAR’S have with PANDORA, similarly to the connection the Guatemalan inhabitants have with their world. A connection that is deeper than those of colonial Europe. The connection is not with the economic wealth and resources of the new world, as it is for colonial Europe. Rather it is with the divine, power and spiritual beauty of their ancient world. On this note, it is easy to tie into El reino de este mundo, and the fight for a homeland the people identify with and are able to build their identity from. The Revolution in Haiti is revealed as a struggle on both sides. Carpentier subjects the Europeans and through his use of magical elements is able to explain a sense of out of placement and inability to understand the people nor the world in which they have chosen to still. In choosing to colonize in Haiti is as if they consciously rob a people of their identity. A sense of patriotism comes from the myths and ancient stories of the world. It’s very cool to make connections between the two works. I believe there is a parallel with what the genre of these two works say and what they represent. Magical realism is an intertwining of the historical and the fantastical, fact with fiction. But for the indigenious people of the new worlds, the magical WAS their history. Here I find a better understanding for the lo real marvilloso, because again what is REAL is the marvelous happening that are also impossible to describe in a European historical sense. Finally, the magical realism, signifies the European (realist) world trying to assimilate themselves into the indigenious (magical world), and what I mean by that, is trying to change the way of life as it is for the indigenious people. Much can be lost in translation but there is greater loss in the attempts to force the opposition to understand a language they don’t speak.

So, Asturias. Reading Leyendas de Guatemala was an experience. Honestly I found it challenging and difficult to follow and analyze. The entire text was extremely metaphorical, and since I apparently don’t understand subtlety, I had a difficult time trying to decipher the actual meaning and significance of the text (I’m sure the fact that it is written in spanish and a lot of the vocabulary was new to me really did not help my situation). All in all though, I thought that the texts were good. They embraced pre-columbian ideals and culture, while also integrating aspects of the spanish (and maybe even african?) cultures that have had immense influence on what is now latin american culture.

I enjoyed El Reino de este mundo much more. I just found it to be much more accessible in terms of theme, and also much more topical, given the recent earthquake in Haiti. I think that I found the theme to be more accessible because of the interest and background information I already had on Haiti. I find it to be a very interesting country, politically, religiously, socially, and historically, and I think that the Haitian people embrace many ideals and positivity that I wish all cultures could posses.

Also, in terms of understanding, I found Carpentier’s work to be more easy to understand because of vocabulary and context. If I did not know a word, many times I could figure it out based on the context it was in. General ideas and themes were much easier to decipher. The poetic nature of the text was also easier to understand because it wasn’t as metaphorical as Leyendas.

All of that being said, I truly did enjoy reading both texts, and I’m happy that I’m finally reading some of the major literature that has effected Latin America and the writers who have influenced that culture and the people.

En mi opinión, ambos libros- Las leyendas de Guatemala y El reino de este mundo– son libros fascinantes que abren una ventana en las culturas y tradiciones de Latinoamérica. No tenia conocimiento previo de estos tipos de libro y fue un poco difícil de seguir cada uno, debido a las estructuras y temas que defieren mucho de los libros que ya he leído.

(Photo:George Grosz, The Eclipse of the Sun,1926)

Lo que me parecía interesante en el primer libro – las leyendas- fue la dominancia de los elementos mágicos en cada cuento. Primero, la mezcla entre lo humano y la naturaleza fue algo muy interesante para mi, porque nunca antes había pensado en este hecho, que la naturaleza constituye un aspecto esencial en varias culturas latinoamericanas. Además, las transformaciones mágicas que ocurren en este libro, como el ejemplo que hemos discutido en la clase sobre la pelota que se convierte en un Sombreron- el espíritu- fue para mi algo nuevo. Antes de discutirlo en la clase, pensaba que estos elementos son primero para entretener al lector, pero después, me di cuenta de que existen primariamente para transmitir los elementos míticos que desempeñan papeles importantes en la cultura guatemalteca. Las leyendas de Guatemala puede ser leído como una historia de orígenes- tal vez limitado a la cultura de Guatemala. Cada cuenta, en una manera, tiene el poder de mezclar lo real con lo mágico y así el lector se pierde cuando quiere demarcar entre los dos- creo que eso resulta en el realismo mágico, cuando el lector no puede decir donde termina lo mágico y donde comienza lo real. Hacia el final de la segunda mitad, estaba casi acostumbrado a este estilo de escritura que imaginar lo que estaba pasando, me parecía normal- independiente de los componentes míticos.

Por otro lado creo que el reino de este mundo comienza mas como un libro histórico que contiene elementos mágicos. No se si la causa de esta interpretación es la lenguaje que no podría entender o no! Pero, pienso que los elementos maravillosos de que hablemos en la clase son mas ocultos en este libro. El estilo de escritura trato a estos elementos en una manera muy diferente que las leyendas: lo histórico es como el marco (framework) entre lo que ocurre lo maravilloso. Las transformaciones de Mackandal por ejemplo, son elementos maravillosos, pero el contexto en que estas transformaciones están ocurriéndoos es lo real/histórico. Se puede aplicar lo mismo a la historia de Ti Noel y como el adquiere su poder de transformarse a otros especies. La imagen que aún queda en mi mente, es de la escena en que los europeos se están quemando a Mackandal. La ideología de haitianos- que piensen que Mackandal se ha salvado- representa lo maravilloso y en una manera un optimismo sobre la vida, mientras que las acciones de los europeos señale lo real. Eso puede ser visto como la imaginación limitado de los europeos que no pueden imaginar un mundo más allá de la percepción. Eso es lo que he entendido de este libro. Lo que me parecía muy interesante es la comparación con Hegel, y como el esclavo sabe lo que sabe también el amo. Entonces, se puede decir que lo maravilloso que pertenece a los haitianos incluye lo real también.

Por fin, he disfrutado mucho leer ambos libros, y ahora pienso que tengo una mejor comprensión de este género.

(Photo: Rob Gonsalves)

Me ha gustado los textos por lo mayor parte hasta ahora. Tenía dificultidades con Leyendas de Guatemala en que tenía buscar por muchas palabras en el diccionario, pero cuando entendí el texto finalmente, encontré que la historia, aunque extraño, era muy interesante. Los aspectos que me gusté lo más era los aspectos mágicos, que es un poco afuera del ordinario por mi porque hasta este punto, yo no he disfrutado el realismo mágico mucho.

Me gusté El reino de este mundo más que Leyendas de Guatemala, pero no estoy seguro porque porque me gusta ambos textos muchos. Probablamente puede atribuir mi preferencia por El reino de este mundo al hecho que no tenía buscar por tantos palabras en el diccionario como tenía hacer con Leyendas de Guatemala. Sin embargo, mi impresión general de ambos textos es bien.

Además, me gusta la estructura de la clase hasta este punto. Me encontré que el proyecto de Wikipedia, aunque un poco dificíl a coordinar con los otros miembros de mi grupo, has seido muy gratificante, porque la estructura del tarea es un poco menos formal que, por instancia un ensayo. Por esto razón, no tiene preocuparse con detalles menores (como gramatica proper) que tiene preocuparse en un ensayo. Aunque, tengo decir que encontré que manteniendo el blog es un poco más dificíl que yo pensé al comienzo del termo, pero cada semana es un poco más facíl a pensar ideas o comentarios sobre el material. Todo para ahora, lo siento que probablamente hay bastantes errores en este posting, pero no tengo mi diccionario conmigo.

So far in this class I have enjoyed reading Asturias and Carpentier and analyzing their works to better understand their writing styles and influences that inspired them. Asturias’ focus was covering the origins and history of the indigenous culture as a way to secure, preserve and reflect on what had been passed down by generations in order to remind the people of their roots. Carpentier focused his book on more of the historical facts of the struggle the Haitian people what they had gone through to fight for their rights of independence and freedom only to realize that the freedoms their looked for were once again taken away by their own people. In both literary works we also analyzed the style of magical realism in its infancy as a literary style that presented people, history and its events in an alternative form that depicted reality, in some instances, in magical and blurred reality if you will. Almost felt that you were led into the fantasy and imagination of the authors that would note down as they saw it. Almost as if they would write how they would see things in their mind and write their draft without revision or interpretation and just presenting it as it was and allow the reader to become apart of the creative thinking.

As I am relatively new to this writing style it is interesting none the less to find yourself in their reality which is transformed into the awesome and unreal. I found that Asturias definitely used more of a magical setting than Carpentier but both had elements of the imaginative. I found that their experimentation with the mysterious and obscure that added an element of curiosity to these readings and in addition the difficulty in understanding the text made it hard to interpret at times. As we have just begun to discover the magical realism up to now I have begun to see the mysterious interaction between humans and their surroundings and how their circumstances in life are depicted with historical relevance. A mixture of a creation of imaginary beings and worlds, as in portrayed by Asturias where in contrast to Carpentier magical realism which combined the key events and reality of Haiti. It is an interesting class so far as it does test the understanding and logic of the author’s transformation and representation of reality.