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En los primeros capítulos del libro El Reino de Este Mundo de Alejo Carpentier veo muchos elementos que son relacionados con la descripción del género de este libro. Lo real maravilloso se ve cuando el autor habla de creencias o aspectos de la vida de Haití, porque son diferentes de las de la cultura europea y según este cultura las creencias de Haití no son maravillosos; sin embargo, estos mismos elementos son reales también porque en la cultura de Haití hacen parte de la norma y de las creencias de este país. Hay un ejemplo de esto en el primer capítulo “Las cabezas de cera”, cuando dice que el Rey Dá es la “encarnación de la Serpiente”. La idea de la encarnación en la cultura europea o la religión cristiana es parte del maravilloso en que la gente no cree como hecho, pero en la cultura de Haití esto es dicho como un hecho normal y real. Otro ejemplo de ese surrealismo es cuando dice que “en gran allá, había príncipes duros como el yunque, y príncipes que eran el leopardo, y príncipes que conocían el lenguaje de los arboles” todo estos descripciones de los príncipes parecen completamente fantásticos para gente que no pertenece a esta cultura pero para ellos eso es normal y real.

Noto que hay mucha descripción en este libro, es como si el autor quería dibujar una imagen para los lectores, y eso es algo normal porque habla de una sociedad y de un atmosfera muy distinta de lo que los lectores de otros países o culturas conocen. La descripción detallada es presente cada vez que tenemos un lugar nuevo en que algo se pasa o a veces nada importante se pasa pero en la descripción hay elementos que demuestran la complejidad de esta sociedad.

Finalmente lo que me parece interesante es que el autor describe de manera explícita las diferencias entre las dos culturas y hace que el lector y el narrador sean conscientes de estas diferencias describiendo elementos de cada cultura y mostrando que son diferentes. Hay un ejemplo de esta comparación cuando habla del rey de África que es “guerrero, cazador…” y que “en Francia, en España, en cambio, el rey enviaba sus generales a combatir” (capitulo 1, “Las cabezas de cera”)

I would like to begin by saying that I am enjoying this book much more than the Leyendas which I think is due in part to the fact that El Reino de este Mundo is much more relatable, especially given the current situation in Haiti- very topical. I also enjoy historical context of the Haitian Revolution in that I feel as though I am learning quite a bit about the revolution that I previously was quite ignorant to; I knew the basic history, but after reading half of El Reino de este Mundo, I feel as though I have a better grasp on the socio-historical/political context and almost an “insider’s view” of Haiti’s history.

I would also like to touch on the topic of “realismo magico” vs “realismo maravilloso”. I did a very little bit of research on the book to grasp a better understanding of what was going on and in doing so found some sort of article declaring that El Reino is a book of “maravilloso” vs “magico”. I’m really not sure what the difference is, but the author seemed quite adamant in saying that they are different things. Maybe maravilloso is more believable and less fantasy than magico? I don’t know.

That being said, because this is a course on magical realism, I am going to stick to the idea that Carpentier was writing a novel based on el magico. He was able to capture, what I view to be, the single most important event in Haiti’s history in determining the country’s present politics, culture, etc, and make it not only accessible, but thought-provoking, through the use of magical realism. He took a brutal revolution and while keeping the history quite factual (the use of Mackandal as a character for instance) and was able to allow the reader to experience the Haitian Revolution through the eyes of a slave through the use of African religion as the magical aspect. As a reader I was able to gain perspective on African culture and it’s major influences on Haiti. I think it truly ingenious on the part Carpentier to use African religion to create the magical world- it added quite a bit of depth and meaning to the text and kept an air of poetry. He took two oppressed cultures and people (the slaves of Africa and Haiti) and meshed them into one story, which parallels the history of Haiti.

Okay, that’s all for now, but I suppose there will be more to read next week!

Well, I must say, Carpentier uses very difficult, complex language which makes the story very difficult to follow. The prolog indeed seemed very important to read as it introduced the idea of “lo real maravilloso,” to describe what is Latin America, its countries, lands, and cultures. I think, but I was not positive, Carpentier uses this expression to counter and critique the accounts of the first European explorers and conquistadors who lacked words to describe what they encountered in the new world and described the native people as beast and savages.

The book is about the oppression of black people during slavery, and there is a constant theme of blacks against whites in the book so far. The two main characters, as of now, are Ti Noel, the slave owner, and Mackandal, his slave; who escapes. I thought it was interesting how destroyed Ti Noel was after Mackandal escaped (pg. 31), he was crying and holding himself, and Mackandal was even his source of knowledge. This is reversal of roles between the slave holders and slaves: the blacks are empowered and knowledgeable where as the whites are weak and ignorant.

The blacks want to overthrow the whites and establish their own rule. I wanted to clarify the rest of the story, because next there seems to be a whole lot of death and dying, all caused by Mackadel? And I think through mushrooms, “hongos” but really I am not sure about that? Here the “lo real maravillos” plays a huge part because Mackadel can transform himself into different animals and insects to protect himself. However, I think when her turns back into a human he is caught by the whites and burned. The whites feel empowered however the blacks snicker to themselves well walking home knowing the whites are fools.

This is what I have understood so far from the reading, I am very interested to read other peoples post for this week, because I think we all could have very drastic interpretations of what happened because I found the text to be very confusing and difficult at times!

Historical fiction: historically based incidencts and/or characters altered or elaborated upon by an author, who may choose to mix fact with myth and/or the surreal or abstract. Blending the real and the surreal may often give the text a chaotic feel, in which the reader is never quite sure if what they’re reading is/was real or not. Similar to a psychological narrative in which real and dream aren’t seen as separate, but

El Reino de Este Mundo seems to display quite modern prose, mixing the history and the surreal as well as dream and reality in an seemingly chaotic structure. This brought to mind a favourite book of mine: Arthur Schnitzler’s Dream Story. Schnitzler, an Austrian author who was of the same progressively psychoanalytic generation as Sigmund Freud, was a pioneer in stream-of-consciousness narrative. Dream Story eloquently blurs the real from the dream and the reader is never quite sure if what is happening is really happening. Curious fact: Stanley Kubrick carried a copy of Dream Story in his pocket for over 30 years, struggling to find a way to bring such an abstract and indeterminate story to the screen. Such a psychological and psychoanalytic book that delves into the deepest desires of the conscious and subconscious/unconscious (what have you) was a challenge that proved nearly impossible to (re)create on film. He finished the film, Eyes Wide Shut, though died before its theatrical release. It is arguably his best film, though I recommend reading Dream Story before seeing the film as the film can be tough to follow. Schnitzler and Kubrick, like Carpentier, achieve in creating an obra that is chaotic and unpredictable, abstract, often unbelievable, though curiously fascinating and thought provoking. The reader/viewer are never quite sure what to think or believe and is left to imagine and decide for themselves. In doing so, Carpentier seems to illuminate the strange way in which an ancient world became the New World, and is able to show how Latin America’s fantastical and marvelous beginnings were/are chaotic and indefinite. He shows Latin America’s splendor by combining seemingly unbelievable historical incidents with myth and stipulation. All three works, however, can be tough to follow and to fully understand and this, perhaps, is another achievement. Each author/auteur achieves in creating a dreamlike sequence of events that, though based on the real, is blended with the surreal, ultimately attaining lo real maravilloso.

P.S.
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

Well for starters this book is way more interesting than the legends of Guatemala and a lot easier to read, coupled with short chapters makes this book a delight to read.

Magical realism is quite evident in this book although it seams to be a lot more realistic than magical. But the element of mysticism and magick, such as the poison or Mackandal’s ability to metamorphose into different creatures. On the realism side the book seem like it describes some of the slave history of Haiti and the way life was back then.

Over all I cant really say much about this book it seem s like a standard novel; although the chapters are incredibly small something I must say I love because it makes it easier to read a bit at a time.

There seems to be some either grammar mistakes in the book or it was just a different sentence structure used in older times I cant remember where in the book it was that I read the lines but it just didn’t seem right.

I like what I’ve read so far but hopefully it becomes even more interesting.

Just as I begin to think I’m grasping an understanding of this “magical realism” thing, it turns out everything I thought I knew about magical realism is not necessarily wrong, but not necessarily right either.

After reading “Leyendas de Guatemala”, I formed a definition of magical realism as being a style of literature set in a real environment, in an existing place, where out-of-the-ordinary things happen (such as talking birds, tortoises, etc. etc.)

However, after reading the first half of “El Reino de este Mundo”, it’s difficult to understand how both novels can be described as “magical realism”. “El Reino de este Mundo” presents a very different approach to the style of magical realism. There are no talking birds, or any other animal for that matter. The story is based on events that took place in Haiti. The one part I found that fit my previous definition of magical realism was when “dotado del poder de transformarse en animal de pezuna, en ave, pez o insecto, Mackandal visitaba continuamente las haciendas de la llanura para vigilar a sus fieles…” (p. 41). However, other than this small section, and perhaps a few others, I could not find any other elements that fit my definition of “magical realism”.

I suppose this is why the “Prologo” is so important, as it is here that Carpentier elaborates on “lo maravilloso” which is the term he uses to describe his writing style. As opposed to being out-of-the-ordinary, or magical and mystical, Carpentier describes “lo maravilloso” as “una inesperada alteracion de la realidad” (p. 7) and “una ampliacion de las escalas y categorias de la realidad, percibidas con particular intensidad en virtud de una exaltacion del espiritu que lo conduce a un modo de ‘estado limite'” (p. 8). What stands out to me in Carpentier’s definition is the focus on “la realidad”. “Lo maravilloso” is not based on other-worldly elements, actions, characters, etc. but rather is an amplification of what already exists in our world.

Carpentier’s definition of “lo maravilloso” has expanded my understanding of magical realism. However, is “lo maravilloso” a type of magical realism? Or can we separate “lo maravilloso” into a different category entirely?

On another note, with “Leyendas de Guatemala” we discussed the elements of transculturation and hybridization present in the text. These elements also appear in “El Reino de este Mundo”. I found it interesting that it is a Spanish text written about Haiti, a French-speaking country. I also found it interesting that the French excerpts included in the text were not translated (somewhat frustrating for a non-French speaker!). However, had they been translated I suppose it would be somewhat confusing, as I might think that the excerpt was originally in Spanish, and would wonder why, since they don’t speak Spanish in Haiti.

Hopefully these questions will be answered in this week’s class discussions. Looking forward!

Al principio, encontré “El Reino de Este Mundo” mucho más difícil que “Leyendas de Guatemala” solamente por el vocabulario. Pero cuando podía entender lo que estaba pasando (el lugar, los personajes, etc) me gustó mucho. No vi lo “mágico” en los primeros capítulos, pero leí con interés de Ti Noel y Macandal. Solamente cuando Macandal se convierte en (¿Dios? ¿Mito? No sé en qué) que el cuento pasó a lo mágico.

El cuento pareció más como un sueño que los dentro de “Leyendas,” y pensaba un rato en exactamente porqué. Primero, todo pasa en tiempo cronológica. Día sigue día, los esclavos limpian los cabellos, Monsieur Lenormand de Mezy tiene su primer esposa, la segunda, y la tercera y después de todo se muda a Cuba. Pero al mismo tiempo, hay cosas poco común en la vida que parecen que ser sueño, por ejemplo cuando Macandal se transforme en pájaro y perro a ver si los esclavos todavía le daban apoyo. Y era tan simple como vestirse en piel de animal – esto es pura sueño.

También el ritmo va rápidamente- de un capítulo al otro, Macandal se libra de Lenormand de Mezy, el próximo se descubre el hondo venenoso, y poco después todo los de piel blanco se mueren de un veneno misterioso. Este ritmo me acuerda de los cuentos de hadas, tal como el contenido.

Pienso en fin que me parece como un sueño porque las acontecimientos parecen casi normal, pero hay cosas pequeñas de la fantasía. “Leyendas” es tan raro a veces que el lector parece más bajo la influencia de drogas que dentro de un sueño.

La represión en un tema muy visible en la primer mitad. Esta frase my pareció lo más sorprendente:

“Monsieur Blanchelande estaba por el extermino total y absoluto de los esclavos, así como de los negros y mulatos libres. Todo el que tuviera sangre africana en las venas… debía ser pasado por las armas.”

El racismo estaba tan fuerte en un cuento tan llena de mágico y héroes místicos, que esta realidad cruel me sorprendió. También la violencia contra y cometido por las esclavos fue escrito vívidamente. Supongo que el cuento trata de ser como mito, pero el autor quiere reforzar la idea que la guerra no es cosa de cuentos de niños. La guerra, incluso lo justa, siempre es horrible. Y me da vergüenza que los ricos como de Mezy simplemente corrieron de la violencia para vivir una vida fácil en Cuba. Me parece un cobardía, pero sólo he leído la primer mitad. Tengo muchas ganas a continuar con el cuento a ver que pasa con Ti Noel (¿quien también está en Cuba? No entiendo bien por qué está con de Mezy todavía…) y con la revolución.

First off: I am thoroughly enjoying El reino de este mundo. Secondly: Who knew that I could look up spanish words so quickly? That’s how I measure my like/dislike for a spanish novel: Do I zealously look up the words because I can’t wait to continue with the stories? If yes, then it’s a keeper. Not to say that this book is all enjoyment…in fact, I find it a bit unsettling. As such, I’m going to focus on two themes that weave through the book: Magical Realism (of course) and Racism.

The magical realism in this book is further from the myths that Asturias told us last week, and more similar to the magic of everyday occurences that García Marquéz reveals so easily. Even so, El reino de este mundo relates a brutality that is even unlike Marquéz…and maybe that’s because the unbelievable actually did happen! Carpentier himself says in the prologue that “el relato que va a leerse ha sido establecido sobre una documentación extremadamente rigurosa” and “se narra una sucesión de hechos extraordinarios….dejándose que lo maravilloso fluya libremente de una realidad estrictamente seguida en todos sus detalles” (p. 11) [insert a shiver running up my spine here after reading the first half of the book]. And so Carpentier mentions myths and legends (p. 20), a witch who has no problem sticking her hands into a pot of boiling acid (p. 29), and the personification of a poison running rampant throughout the region: in soup, medicine, bread, wine, fruit, salt; “como una incontenible enradadera que buscara las sombras para hacer de los cuerpos sombras” (p. 36). Mmmm, that was beautiful! My personal favorite though, is when Mackandal returns from his metamorphosis “con testículos como piedras” (p. 42)…maybe he should get that checked. One commonality for me between Leyendas de Guatemala and what we’ve read of El reino de este mundo has been that in neither of these books do I feel a connection with any of the characters. Sure, that could be because they are Latin American or African or Spanish in colonial times, OR could it be that the style of magical realism distances the reader from any ‘real’ emotion that may come from the characters, and the attention is instead focused on the ‘magic’ of unfathomable events.

Now some short notes on racism. Obviously, the prejudices exists in the book and thus in that time. “¿Qué sabían los blancos de cosas de negros?” (p. 48) and “la desigualdad de las razas humanas” (p. 50). Did it seem to anyone else as though, despite the fruitless attempt by the Africans to free themselves, that it was actually los ricos who were freed: “El viudo redescubría las ventajas del celibato; la esposa respetable se daba al adulterio con entusiasmo de inventor;…” (p. 72)? I hope the second half delves deeper into these gross divisions in societies and maybe even adds a little emotion to the characters (….along with some voodoo).

While on the topic of voodoo, the Lope de Vega text between the prologue and chapter one sounded uncannily like the “true story” that Pastor Pat Robertson spoke of on January 13th, 2001, concerning the ‘logic’ of why Haiti was hit by a magnitude 7.0 earthquake. Since that sermon, he has been openly criticized for his claims (criticism which is not unfounded, in my eyes). See here for the official story:

http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2010/01/14/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry6096806.shtml

Next, a writer for the newspaper El Colombiano also makes the connection between the Haitian disaster and Lope de Vega’s play:

http://www.elcolombiano.com/BancoConocimiento/O/oh_tribunal_bendito/oh_tribunal_bendito.asp

Judging by these two examples, you can’t help but wonder if ‘magical realism’ (and the belief of it) not only lives in our imaginations, but underlies our society as well.

hey again!

La obra de Alejo Carpentier me interesa mucho por que tiene una narración dinámica, descripciónes maravillosas, y presenta algunos comentarios críticos sobre el estado político y social de Haiti.

En el prólogo del libro Carpentier se dirige a sus lectores y hace una explicación de lo real-maravilloso que me ha parecido muy interesante, lógica y concreta; su introducción me ha ayudado mucho en aproximarme del texto en una manera más profunda. Aunque he leído varias libros que presentan el real-maravilloso, el prólogo de Carpentier representa probablemente la explicación más útil de lo real-maravilloso que he leído. Carpentier identifica en el prólogo que “la sensación de lo maravilloso se presopune una fe,” algo que en mi opinión es clave en la experiencia del lector de una obra del real-maravilloso. Me encantó la descripción de Carpentier de Haiti como un país en cual “a cada paso hallaba lo real maravilloso”. En el prólogo, Carpentier también presenta el real-maravilloso como una creación que solamente podría nacer en Latinoamérica; cuenta que este relato que “oculta bajo su aparente temporalidad, un minuciosos cortejo de fechas y de cronologías […] resulta maravilloso en una historia imposible de situar en Europa”. Carpentier termina su discusión del real-maravilloso con una pregunta retórica (“¿Pero qué es la historia de América toda sino una crónica de lo real-maravilloso?”) que establece lo real-maravilloso como un elemento fundamental de la cultura de Latinoamérica.

El reino de este mundo tiene una estructura bastante compleja; el libro es dividido en tres partes y cada una de las partes tiene entre cuatro y ocho capítulos. Cada uno de los capitulos funciona como una viñeta, una pequeña historia que puede funcionar como una parte de una colección y que también tiene todos los elementos estructurales neccesarios para funcionar como un cuento indepediente. Los títulos de cada cuento pueden ser considerados como conteniendo un elemento de presagio, como “Las metamorfosis” y “Santiago de Cuba”.

Después de leer parte del libro, los elementos que me han parecido más sobresalientes son las descripciónes real-maravillosas y el estado político y social frágil del país. Las descripciónes real-maravillosas que me han impresionado mucho son las presentaciónes del personaje Mackandal; con su carácter unico, todos los elementos fantasticos y legedarios son concentrados en su identidad; cuando el desaperece bruscamente Ti Noël considera que “la partida de Mackandal era también la partida de todo el mundo evocado por sus relatos”. En mi opinión, las descripciónes de la metamorfosis de Mackandal en varios animales representan las imágenes mas fantásticas del libro hasta este punto.
El estado político y social de Haiti descrito en el libro me parece muy frágil, y las tensiónes entre los esclavos y los dueños aumentan hasta que la mayoría de los dueños abandonan sus propiedades en Haiti. Las tensiónes son claras desde el principio del libro; la sociedad es completamente divivida en categorías basadas en razas. Un momento que en mi opinión es especialemente ilustrativo de la división total de la sociedad es la descripción de Ti Noël de los reyes españoles como figuras que no saben nada de la poder de la naturaleza, al contrario de los dioses que el admira. El libro es lleno de otros ejemplos de esta división absoluta; la descripción de una sociedad en cual una sublevación es inevitable.

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