User:Patrussell

Annotated Bibliography

The Dialects of Heresy and Authority in Borges and Carpentier
Eleni Kefala

This brief article discusses the idea of cultural translation and its related effects, citing the works of Borges and Carpentier as examples. Cultural translation is a theory originally propsed by Homi K. Bhabha. In the simplest sense, cultural translation refers to the process of morphing, or "translation" information from a foreign source so that it becomes relevant and significant for a new specific culture. According to Bhabha, the process of cultural translation is also intimately linked to the idea of hybridization. In the article, Kefala argues that Carpentier's El reino de este mundo is rich with examples of hybridization. Specifically, Kefala develops the idea that the interaction between what is distinctly colonial and what is distinctly "negro" results in the creation of a third "hybrid" entity in the novel, that is neither colonial, nor negro, but simply the "other." Kefala further argues that the third hybrid entity is best described as an example of cultural heresy; in the sense that the hybrid entity is in fact a departure from its cultural origins.

Two Paths to the Boom: Carpentier, Asturias, and the Performative Split
Stephen Henighan

While this article is rather lengthy, there is not much information that was specifically related to El reino de este mundo. Instead the author discusses the origins, styles and motivational differences between Asturias and Carpentier. While both authors spent time in Paris during the height of the French surrealist era, they were both had vastly different experiences. Unlike Asturias, Carpentier was born of a rather privileged descent and was well known within French literary circles. This fact, presumably, helped shaped Carpentier as a writer. Asturias was regarded as more of an outsider in the European literary circles, and derived his sense of identity from the fact he identified himself with his Guatemalan heritage. Carpentier, on the other hand, seemed to be rather confused about where his literary allegiances were. Due to his upbringing, Carpentier spoke perfect French and was also a gifted writer in his tongue. While writing in the French surrealist tradition would have been entirely feasible, Carpentier chose to cast aspects of his French roots aside in favor of becoming a Spanish-American writer. As Henighan points out in this article, the influence of Carpentier's French heritage, can be seen the Spanish prose of his novels. As mentioned in the summary of The Dialects of Heresy and Authority in Borges and Carpentier the idea of hybridization is also extremely common across Carpentier's works. The most notable insight that this article provided is that Carpentier's uses hybridization to provide himself with a sense of identity that lies somewhere between his French colonial heritage and his Spanish-America heritage.

Analisis objetivo (O material) del primer Carpentier
Rafael Bosch

Bosch's article gives quite a detailed account and analysis of the thematic and stylistic commonalities in Carpentier's collective works. Most interestingly is the rather lengthy discussion in the beginning of the article of the distinction between what distinguishes revolutionary from reactionary. Bosch argues that the fundamental difference between these two concepts is inevitably the notion of progress. Bosch stipulates that, the concept of progress and revolution are tightly linked, and that revolution does not occur without progress. While many latin-american authors explore the theme of revolution and its associated costs and benefits, very few choose to make an ideological distinction between revolution and reaction. Bosch points out that Carpentier's works reflect his ideological evolution as a writer, and that this evolution can be seen most clearly in Carpentier's perspective on revolution. For the purposes of our upcoming work, the most poignant aspect of this article is the discussion of Carpentier's perspective in El reino de este mundo. Bosch argues that this work, in particular, is a clear example of Carpentier providing literary commentary on the reactionary nature of the Haitian revolution. Carpentier's account of the "revolution" definitely does not constitute progress in any sense of the word; rather, it was a series of violent events, which were in many cases "reactions" to prevailing circumstances in society. The end result of which never truly produced progress, but instead produced cyclical violence that resulted in societal retrograde. Furthermore, this article offers a very lengthy analysis of the salient feature's of Carpentier's prose which would be a suitable source for a general subsection within our main article.

Blancas Y Negras: Carpentier and the Temporalities of Mutual Exclusion
Paul B. Miller

Paul B. Miller's article offers an extremely interesting interpretation of Carpentier's writing. Miller explains that the temporally opposing forces of prospective Afro-Carribean culture and retrospective European culture play a significant role in Carpentier's writing. More specifically, Miller explores the role of music in Carpentier's works, with explicit focus on El reino de este mundo. He illustrates that Carpentier often uses metonymy in his works and music is the vessel through which this idea is conveyed. To the slaves and Afro-Caribbean population music is not only a tribute to their African roots, but also something that is to be passed forward to subsequent generations. It is in this sense that the author considers Afro-Caribbean music as prospective. Meanwhile, in the European tradition, music is something that is historical, that is meant to be created and marked in history for others to discover - retrospective. Miller takes an innovative approach to explaining they way in which music amplifies the apparent rift and friction between Afro-Caribbean and European cultures, and the significance of this subtle detail in El reino de este mundo.