DOCSLIB.ORG

I New Visions of the Past: Reinterpretations of History in The

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
I New Visions of the Past: Reinterpretations of History in The New Visions of the Past: Reinterpretations of History in the Novel and Cinema of Contemporary Venezuela A Dissertation Presented by Jose Antonio Rodriguez to The Graduate School in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Hispanic Languages and Literature Stony Brook University PREVIEWMay 2017 i ProQuest Number: 10279395 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. ProQuest 10279395 Published by ProQuest LLC ( 2017). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. PREVIEW789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, MI 48106 - 1346 Stony Brook University The Graduate School Jose Antonio Rodriguez We, the dissertation committee for the above candidate for the Doctor of Philosophy degree, hereby recommend acceptance of this dissertation. Paul Firbas, Ph.D., Advisor Associate Professor, Hispanic Languages and Literature, Stony Brook University Adrián Pérez-Melgosa, Ph.D., Chairperson of Defense Associate Professor, Hispanic Languages and Literature, Stony Brook University Kathleen M. Vernon, Ph.D., Third member Associate Professor, Hispanic Languages and Literature, Stony Brook University Javier Uriarte, Ph.D., Fourth member Assistant Professor, Hispanic Languages and Literature, Stony Brook University PREVIEW Constanza Burucúa, Ph.D., Outside member Associate Professor, Modern Languages and Literatures, University of Western Ontario, Canada This dissertation is accepted by the Graduate School Charles Taber Dean of the Graduate School ii Abstract of the Dissertation New Visions of the Past: Reinterpre tations of History in the Novel and Cinema of Contemporary Venezuela by Jose Antonio Rodriguez Doctor of Philosophy in Hispanic Languages and Literature Stony Brook University 2017 The contemporary history of Venezuela is characterized by a series of socio-political crises rooted in ill-defined notions of nation, state and national identity that can be traced all the way back to colonial times and the founding of the nation in the early nineteenth century. In a major cultural movement, many novels and films have appeared in the last three decades examining key periods of the Venezuelan past. This Ph.D. dissertation analyzes two novels (La Luna de Fausto by Francisco Herrera Luque and Lope de Aguirre, Príncipe de la Libertad by Miguel Otero Silva) and two films (Orinoko Nuevo Mundo by Diego Rísquez and Jericó by Luis Alberto Lamata) that give to a general public a new perspective on the discovery and conquest of Venezuela by Spain in the sixteenth century. An analysis of relevant texts (chronicles, history books, personal letters, poems, etc) from this time period, which provided the main background for the novels and films under study, indicates that a mixture of reality and fiction was used to create an official discoursePREVIEW that supported the process of colonization, privileging direct descendants of the European conquistadors and neglecting Native Americans. In their adventures through Venezuela, the European explorers created a colonial discourse that shows the bright and dark sides of the Renaissance man with a shift in the idea of America as a marvelous land to the literature of desengaño. The diverse texts and films analyzed in this study indicate that our vision of the past is constantly changing. It varies from person to person. It was highly subjective in the sixteenth century and it is highly subjective nowadays. Thus, the writers and film directors that created the novels and films under study dealt with the past in their own terms. Using multiple strategies, the two novels and two films examined show a complex colonization process that had a negative impact on the colonized and the colonizers. They attack the idea of a superior European culture, challenging an official history which justifies a dominant white male elite and sets women and non-white people in the periphery of society. iii Table of Contents Introduction ………………………………………………………….. 1 History, fiction and Venezuelan identity …………………………………… 2 The boundaries between history and fiction ………………………………… 7 History and the conquest and colonization of the New World ……………… 10 Questioning the official history: Subversive views of history in novel and film ……………………………………………………………………... 17 Organization of this study …………………………………………………… 20 Part I Myths of Discovery and Orinoko Nuevo ………………………………….. 21 Introduction: First contact and the exploration of Venezuela and the Orinoco River …………………………………………………..……….……. 22 European thought in the 16th century and the myths of discovery …………... 24 A. The myth of Tierra de Gracia: Searching for a marvelous land …….… 27 B. The Amazons and the New World …………………………………… 31 C. The legend of El Dorado ……………………………………………… 35 D. The notion of the superior European male …………………………….. 41 Challenging the myths of the discovery through fiction ……………………. 45 Orinoko Nuevo Mundo ……………….……………………………………… 47 Orinoko Nuevo Mundo: A novel way of looking at history ……………..…. 48 Structure of Orinoko Nuevo Mundo …………………………………. …….. 50 Life in Tierra de Gracia and the Orinoco: The Yanomami Indians ………… 54 The myths of the discovery ……………...…………………………………... 55 Orinoko Nuevo Mundo and the challenging of the official history ……. 66 PREVIEW Part II The Welser, the Sword and the Cross in the Conquest of Venezuela …. 69 The Welser in Venezuelan colonial history ………………………………… 70 Hunters in Paradise: Creation of a Colonial Discourse by the Welser .. 76 The books, documents and letters of the Welser explorers ………………… 77 Genesis and structure of Nicolas Federmann’s Historia Indiana …………. 78 Diary and Letters of Philipp von Hutten …………………………………... 84 First contact and the evolution of a violent “contact zone” in the process of discovery, conquest and colonization of Venezuela ……………………… 88 Historia Indiana and the representation of Venezuela as a “marvelous iv possession”: Material driving forces behind exploration …………………… 94 The Welser explorers in the history of the colonization process ……………. 97 Conclusions and summary …………………………………………………. 100 La Luna de Fausto ……………………………………………………………. 102 Genesis and structure of La Luna de Fausto …………………………………….. 103 Myth, magic and prophecy in La Luna de Fausto …………………………... 107 Venezuela as a “marvelous land” in La Luna de Fausto …………………….. 115 Los viajeros de Indias: The people in La Luna de Fausto ……………………. 120 Globalization, multiple contact zones and violence in La Luna de Fausto …… 124 Conclusion: La Historia Fabulada and the contemporary Latin American historical novel ………………………………………………………………… 129 The Extraordinary Experience of Francisco Martín ………………………… 131 An European in the forest: Living with the Other ………………………………. 132 The story of Francisco Martín: His statement to a judge of the King …….……… 133 The story of Francisco Martín: The version of Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo ….. 136 The story of Francisco Martín: The version of Fray Pedro de Aguado ………….. 138 Living with the Other: The narrative of Cabeza de Vaca …..…………………….. 142 European vision of the Other and the experience of Francisco Martín ………….. 146 The concept of the Contact Zone and the experience of Francisco Martín ……… 149 The experience of Francisco Martín in literature and film ………………... 151 Jericó ………………………………………………………………... 154 Jericó: A revision of history and the films of Luis Alberto Lamata …………….. 155 The structure and content of Jericó ………………………………………….……. 157 Bringing Christianity to the New World: America land of demons ……………… 159 Desengaño and survival in Jericó ………………………………………………… 161 In search for gold: Finding death and the Other …………………………… 162 Jericó: Lost in the wilderness …………………………………………………… 166 Jericó: Living with thePREVIEW Other …………………………………………………….. 168 Jericó and other movies that view of the European as a captive ……… 173 Jericó and the revision of the official history ……………………………………… 175 Part III Lope de Aguirre, Desengaño and Rebellion …………………………………. 176 Lope de Aguirre, a bloody conquistador or a precursor of American independence? …………………………………………………………………. 177 Historical facts on the life of Lope de Aguirre ………………………………… 178 The letter of Lope de Aguirre to Felipe II: Desengaño and rebellion …………… 183 v Francisco Vázquez: Crónica de la expedición de Pedro de Ursúa y el alzamiento de Lope de Aguirre ……………………………………………… 187 Lope de Aguirre in history texts, novels and films ……………………………. 193 Lope de Aguirre, Príncipe de la Libertad ...……………………………………. 200 Lope de Aguirre in the vision of Miguel Otero Silva …………………………... 201 Structure of Lope de Aguirre, Príncipe de la Libertad …………………………….. 202 Challenging the veracity of the chronicles and old history texts ………………. 204 America as a marvelous land, desengaño, and a classic tragedy in a corrupt colonial system ………………………………………………………... 208 The letters of Lope de Aguirre ………………………………………………… 211 Mandrágora the spirit and horror in the island of Margarita …………………. 213 The female characters in the novel: Inés de Atienza and Elvira ………………. 215 Where is the Other? ……………………………………………………............. 218 Lope de Aguirre, Príncipe de la Libertad and the historical novel in Latin America
Load more

Recommended publications
  • FLOODS Appeal No
    11 February2000 VENEZUELA: FLOODS appeal no. 35/99 situation report no. 8 period covered: 18 January - 7 February 2000 The Federation, the Venezuelan Red Cross and Participating National Societies are increasing the scope of emergency relief assistance to flood victims. It includes food, clean water, health care and psychological support. The bad weather is continuing in some areas, causing further damage and adding to logistical difficulties. The disaster Weeks of torrential rains in Venezuela at the end of 1999 caused massive landslides and severe flooding in seven northern states. The official death toll is 30,000 but other sources put the figure as high as 50,000. Over 600,000 persons are estimated to have been directly affected and according to the Venezuelan Civil Defence’s initial damage assessments at least 64,700 houses have been damaged and over 23,200 destroyed. Update A state of alert is still in effect in the State of Vargas as rains continue in the mountains. Eight districts are still only accessible by air. The cave-in of one lane of the highway to El Junquito has cut off seven towns. The collapse of the highway between Morón and Coro has isolated the state of Falcón. Twenty four new landslides and floods were recorded during the past week. A growing lagoon has built up above Caracas because of debris blocking the rivers. The authorities have started to demolish condemned homes and shanty houses built in dangerous areas such as ravines and canyons because warmer weather is producing cracks in the mud banks and badly damaged homes are collapsing under their own weight.
    [Show full text]
  • CRACKDOWN on DISSENT Brutality, Torture, and Political Persecution in Venezuela
    CRACKDOWN ON DISSENT Brutality, Torture, and Political Persecution in Venezuela HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH Crackdown on Dissent Brutality, Torture, and Political Persecution in Venezuela Copyright © 2017 Human Rights Watch All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America ISBN: 978-1-6231-35492 Cover design by Rafael Jimenez Human Rights Watch defends the rights of people worldwide. We scrupulously investigate abuses, expose the facts widely, and pressure those with power to respect rights and secure justice. Human Rights Watch is an independent, international organization that works as part of a vibrant movement to uphold human dignity and advance the cause of human rights for all. Human Rights Watch is an international organization with staff in more than 40 countries, and offices in Amsterdam, Beirut, Berlin, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Goma, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Nairobi, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Sydney, Tokyo, Toronto, Tunis, Washington DC, and Zurich. For more information, please visit: http://www.hrw.org The Foro Penal (FP) or Penal Forum is a Venezuelan NGO that has worked defending human rights since 2002, offering free assistance to victims of state repression, including those arbitrarily detained, tortured, or murdered. The Penal Forum currently has a network of 200 volunteer lawyers and more than 4,000 volunteer activists, with regional representatives throughout Venezuela and also in other countries such as Argentina, Chile, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Uruguay, and the USA. Volunteers provide assistance and free legal counsel to victims, and organize campaigns for the release of political prisoners, to stop state repression, and increase the political and social cost for the Venezuelan government to use repression as a mechanism to stay in power.
    [Show full text]
  • Historia Urbana De Valencia. Crecimiento Poblacional Y Cambios Contemporáneos (1547-2000)
    HISTORIA URBANA DE VALENCIA. CRECIMIENTO POBLACIONAL Y CAMBIOS CONTEMPORÁNEOS (1547-2000) Armando Luis Martínez Resumen La historia urbana de Valencia se caracteriza por el predominio de un lento crecimiento poblacional. La ciudad colonial fue pequeña, contaba con escasas construcciones de una sola planta, modestas, y en sus alrededores habían casas hechas de bahareque y techos de paja. La cuadrícula de origen hispano fue el punto de partida del crecimiento urbano posterior. En el siglo XIX se mantuvo una tendencia a un crecimiento modesto de la población hasta la década comprendida entre 1881-1891, durante la cual ocurrió un incremento de la población estimulado por las inversiones en el sector secundario. A principios del siglo XX el establecimiento de las empresas textiles significó un estímulo económico y una atracción para la población que se estableció en la ciudad. Con la industrialización basada en la sustitución de importaciones esta tendencia se acentúa, en medio de una urbanización convulsiva que determinará la integración de la ciudad a la gran megalópolis del centro. Palabras Claves: crecimiento poblacional, cuadrícula, industrialización, urbanización convulsiva, megalópolis. URBAN HISTORY OF VALENCY. POPULATIONAL GROWTH AND CONTEMPORARY CHANGES (1547-2000) Summary The urban history of Valencia is characterized by the prevalence of a slow populational growth. The colonial city was small, it had scarce constructions of a single plant, modest, and in its surroundings they had houses made of bahareque and straw roofs. The grid of Hispanic origin was the starting point of the later urban growth. In the XIX century it stayed a tendency to the populationas modest growth until the understood decade among 1881-1891, during which happened the populationas increment stimulated by the investments in the secondary sector.
    [Show full text]
  • Attacks and Illegal Raids on Homes in Venezuela
    NIGHTS OF TERROR: ATTACKS AND ILLEGAL RAIDS ON HOMES IN VENEZUELA 1. INTRODUCTION Venezuela is unquestionably in the midst of an institutional crisis. This situation is closely linked to high levels of impunity and serious problems regarding access to economic, social and cultural rights for the whole population. In this context, Amnesty International’s research has noted the arbitrary actions and measures implemented by the Venezuelan security forces, as well as a worrying and frequently abusive use of force. This is clearly detrimental to the human rights of the entire population. Amnesty International has documented and denounced the Venezuelan authorities’ use of arbitrary detention as a mechanism for political persecution.1 It has also highlighted the practice of carrying out illegal raids and attacks on homes, regardless of people's political views or affiliations, which have had a much wider impact on the population. All these violations are taking place in the context of a policy of repression.2 Amnesty International's research team has received reports of at least 47 raids and attacks on residential areas by state security forces and groups of armed civilians. These incidents occurred in 11 different states between April and July 2017, a period marked by a high level of social conflict with days of demonstrations and frequent protests.3 In response to anti-government protests, the Venezuelan state has on many occasions resorted to using unjustified and disproportionate force. In the period from April to July 2017, more than 120 people were killed and around 1,958 injured, and more than 5,000 people were detained.4 1 Amnesty International, Silenced by force: politically motivated arbitrary detentions in Venezuela (Index: AMR 53/6014/2017).
    [Show full text]
  • Amalix Flores, MS, BCBA
    Amalix Flores, MS, BCBA. EDUCATION August 2019 University of South Florida Applied Behavior Analysis, Doctoral Student Tampa, USA May 2018. Florida Institute of Technology. Orlando, USA MS in Applied Behavior Analysis. GPA: 4.0 June 1998 Universidad Central de Venezuela Caracas, Venezuela MS in Psychology – Behavior Analysis GPA: 4.00 December 1992 Universidad Central de Venezuela Caracas, Venezuela BS in Psychology – Clinical Psychology GPA: 4.00 (magna cum laude) Number one in promotion Highest honors for final research paper (distinction) “Antonio José de Sucre” Award. Gran Mariscal deAyacucho Foundation Degree in Autism – 2009. Universidad Monteávila, Caracas, Venezuela Phi Kappa Phi Member. I. PROFESIONAL EXPERIENCE May 2017 - … JKP Learning Centers, LLC Orlando. USA BCBA April 2009 - … Private practice Valencia, Venezuela Clinical Phychologist 2005- … Universidad de Carabobo Valencia, Venezuela Professor 2004-2012 Rafael Guerra Méndez Private Medical Consultation Center Valencia, Venezuela Clinical Psychologist 2001 – 2006 FUNDAPSI Valencia, Venezuela Clinical Psychologist 2004 – 2006 Universidad Arturo Michelena – School of Psychology Valencia, Venezuela Professor 2004 – 2005 Universidad Arturo Michelena – School of Modern Languages Valencia, Venezuela Professor 1998 – 2004 Instituto de Educación Activa – IDEA Valencia, Venezuela School Psychologist 2004 Universidad José Antonio Páez – School of Education Valencia, Venezuela Professor 1998 – 1999 Universidad de Carabobo – School of Industrial Relations Valencia, Venezuela Professor
    [Show full text]
  • Una Lectura De Reverã³n En La Poesãła Venezolana O Los
    Inti: Revista de literatura hispánica Number 77 Literatura Venezolana del Siglo XXI Article 5 2013 Una lectura de Reverón en la poesía venezolana o los vericuetos de un poema Arturo Gutiérrez Plaza Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.providence.edu/inti Citas recomendadas Plaza, Arturo Gutiérrez (April 2013) "Una lectura de Reverón en la poesía venezolana o los vericuetos de un poema," Inti: Revista de literatura hispánica: No. 77, Article 5. Available at: https://digitalcommons.providence.edu/inti/vol1/iss77/5 This Estudios y Notas is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@Providence. It has been accepted for inclusion in Inti: Revista de literatura hispánica by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@Providence. For more information, please contact [email protected]. UNA LECTURA DE REVERÓN EN LA POESÍA VENEZOLANA O LOS VERICUETOS DE UN POEMA Arturo Gutiérrez Plaza Universidad Simón Bolívar Estas páginas nacen de una conjunción en la que se imbrican el recuerdo, la amistad, la poesía, la muerte y una suerte de cándida remisión a un sentimiento, marcado por la vida en el extranjero, de pertenencia a una patria como espacio de reconocimiento geográfico, cultural y afectivo. Allí encuentran su primordial asidero. Otros impulsos la conformarán en trama: aquellos que certifican que tras toda experiencia verbal existen vínculos, tejidos, ocultos hilos inscritos desde mucho en su interior, de cuya consciencia parcial o tardía ha de rendir cuentas, también, el acto creador. A comienzos del año 2007, viajé 14 horas por tierra acompañado del poeta chileno, Marcelo Rioseco, desde la ciudad de Cincinnati, en las riberas del río Ohio, hasta New York.
    [Show full text]
  • Contribucion a Una Historia De La Poesia Venezolana
    CONTRIBUCION A UNA HISTORIA DE LA POESIA VENEZOLANA POR Jost RAMON MEDINA Para una mayoria de autores la poesia venezolana comienza con Andres Bello (1781- 1865), en la encrucijada de neoclasicismo y romanticismo. Pero hay tambidn quienes seilalan mucho mais atrts. Por ejemplo, a Juan de Castellanos (1522-1607): "Poeta de las cosas de America, cantor de Venezuela en primer tdrmino: el primer poeta, cronol6gicamente, de nuestra literatura" (Orlando Araujo), en cuya "convivencia de accin y contemplaci6n" encuentra incluso una especie de modelo avanzado de lo que sera el escritor de nuestro pais. Araujo apunta igualmente -lo que ha hecho tambidn Pedro Diaz Seijas y Roberto Lovera de Sola entre otros- hacia la literatura indigena, pero sin pretender que ella sea el inicio de nuestra poesia. Por su parte, Isaac J. Pardo detecta en Castellanos elementos que apreciaremos luego en Bello: ciertas "pinceladas fuertemente expresivas" del paisaje y, sobre todo, las "largas enumeraciones de frutos del Nuevo Mundo", sin datar tampoco la poesia venezolana de las Elegias (1589) de Castellanos. El mismo Araujo considera la obra de Bello "Ia primera manifestacion exclusivamente literaria" en el pals. Luis Beltran Guerrero enumera, sin mayor entusiasmo, a otros soldados-poetas del XVI, de quienes no nos queda texto alguno, y se remite a los versos prefaciales de la Historia de la Conquistay poblacion de la provincia de Venezuela (1723) de Oviedo y Banios. Mario Pico~n Salas, para quien la obra de Castellanos no es sino una de las "malas imitaciones que la epopeya de Ercilla provoc6 en toda America", aprecia ciertamente al "como poeta idilico" que hay en la Historia, pero sobre todo al narrador fluido, gracioso, ameno.
    [Show full text]
  • Una Doble Mirada Sobre El Llano: Referencialidad Y Poética Telúrica
    UNA DOBLE MIRADA SOBRE EL LLANO: REFERENCIALIDAD Y POÉTICA TELÚRICA N. MARÍA CONCEPCIÓN LORENZO Universidad de La Laguna En las primeras décadas de este siglo se desata en los distintos países latinoamerica- nos un éxodo rural motivado por el desmoronamiento del sistema económico agropecuario. Campesinos desamparados de la Revolución mexicana, sertaneros que huyen de la sequía —magistralmente reinventados por Guimarães Rosa— o peones y jornaleros venezolanos, se incorporan a esa variopinta expedición continental fun- dadora de una realidad que, tantas veces, resultó efímera. Muchos de estos pioneros se dirigen a «la gran aldea» que acaba transformándose en ciudad; otros intentan probar fortuna en regiones de cultivos en alza o incorporándose a la explotación de las nuevas riquezas, como el cacao en Brasil o el petróleo en Venezuela. El campesino venezolano procedía, bien de la horizontalidad del llano, bien de ciudades del interior o pequeños poblados en decadencia. Cuando el destino era la capitalina Caracas, los sueños (la devoción por el tranvía, la magia de los salones de cine, el automóvil...) se desvanecieron en zonas marginales, erigiéndo- se entonces la génesis de una estética del barrio que inspiraría —décadas más tarde— numerosos relatos. Si estos viajeros en tránsito se asentaron en territorios donde fluían nuevos Dorados, asistieron también a otros espacios de confluencia. Los seres de ficción —el hombre— fundan el escenario para satisfacer necesida- des y proyectan en ese enclave —ficticio o real— la esperanza, la utopía. El escritor venezolano Miguel Otero Silva (1908-1985) traduce en las nove- las Casas muertas (1955)1 y Oficina nº 1 (1961) el curso que adopta la historia socio-económica de Venezuela y todas las vicisitudes que marcan el nuevo cariz nacional, en el que declina el campo y se vislumbra la ciudad: dos realidades que no son más que las secuencias de nuestro proceso histórico.
    [Show full text]
  • Un Espacio Para La Literatura: La Caracas Imaginaria De Miguel Otero Silva
    Anales de Literatura Hispanoamericana ISSN: 0210-4547 0 28: 891-906 1999, n. Un espacio para la literatura: la Caracas imaginaria de Miguel Otero Silva NIEVES-MARIA CONCEPCIÓN LORENZO Universidad de La Laguna Su espacio es real, impávido, concreto sólo mi historia es falsa. Eugenio Montejo Desde los primeros cronistas hasta narradores recientes, como Ángel Gustavo Infante o Israel Centeno, distintos discursos o visiones han intenta- do definir —fundar--— la ciudad de Caracas. El devenir histórico convertirá a «Caracas la gentil» cantada por el poeta romántico García de Quevedo en una ciudad transculturada y, más recientemente, en un espacio híbrido. A raiz de la extracción petrolera que se desarrolla en Venezuela a partir de la segunda década de este siglo, el modelo cultural norteamericano pene- tra a través de distintas vías: el contacto con la mano de obra extranjera, pro- ductos importados, pero sobre todo a través de los medios masivos de comu- nicación. En los últimos lustros, advertidos ya por Luis Britto García de la «miamización» de los modos y las costumbres venezolanas’, parece que Caracas asiste a la hibridez de la cultura, que podemos definir como mezclas interculturales articuladas por un complejo haz de costumbres y moderni- dades2. Por otro lado, corresponde a Guillermo Meneses y a Salvador Garmen- dia, entre otros, anotar literariamente una ciudad compleja y hostil ——«Ca- L. Brito García. Entrevista realizada por R. Hemández, en «Suplemento Cultural» de Últimas Noticias, Caracas, 14 dc octubre de 1978, págs. 10-12. 2 Vid. N. García Canclini. Culturas hibridas, México, Grijalbo, 1994, págs. XX-XXII. 891 Nieves-María Concepción Lorenzo Un espacio paro la litemtu,u: la Caracas imaginaria de Miguel Otero Silva racas la horrible—, continuando así una ya larga tradición de las letras vene- zolanas.
    [Show full text]
  • Juan Calzadilla Y El Surrealismo En La Poesia Venezolana Del '58
    JUAN CALZADILLA Y EL SURREALISMO EN LA POESIA VENEZOLANA DEL '58 POR PAUL W. BORGESON, JR. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign INTRODUCCION: FONDOS SOCIOHISTORICOS El desarrollo de la poesia venezolana en el siglo XX, asi como ei de la historia socioecon6mica del pais, trazan lineas desacostumbradas en el resto de America Latina. Respecto a la segunda de estas, el hallazgo y la apresurada explotacibn del petrbleo produjo un intenso desplazamiento econ6mico -un "salto" del pleno subdesarrollo a un subdesarrollo todavia predominante pero enfrentado ya a un superdesarrollo minoritario y politicamente poderoso. Hubo desde luego toda una serie de consecuencias, muchas de las cuales francamente an6malas e inauditas, tales como una infraestructura en casi todos los sentidos defectuoso y parcialista; un monocomercio particularmente extremado y las vulnerabilidades que el mismo conlieva; y una debilitante dependencia material y, peor, sicol6gica de lo importado: productos, maquinarias, ideas y tambidn cultura. La violencia y el impacto de estas circunstancias nacionales, pues, pasan a ser elementos tambidn de la cultura: y como casi siempre pasa, dsta reacciona ante ellas con mayor celeridad que la politica nacional, para darse plena cuenta -entre ciertas minorias, desde luego- de las profundas y complejas escisiones en la sociedad venezolana.' Asimismo, la situacion sociopolitica de Venezuela en 1958, cuando por fin cay6 Marcos Perez Jimenez, su uiltimo dictador (despuds ha habido incompetentes y abusivos, pero no dictadores), fue critica
    [Show full text]
  • Cuando Quiero Llorar No Lloro" / "Vittorino" Di Miguel Otero Silva
    GIUSEPPE BELUNI "CUANDO QUIERO LLORAR NO LLORO" / "VITTORINO" DI MIGUEL OTERO SILVA Lo scrittore venezolano Miguel Otero Silva, nato a Barcelona del Venezuela nel 1908 e morto a Caracas nel 1985, non è certamente molto conosciuto nel nostro Paese, al di là della non più così ristretta schiera di coloro che si occupano, per professione o per interesse culturale, della letteratura ispano-americana. Miguel Otero fu per anni diretto­ re, oltre che proprietario del maggior giornale di Caracas, El Nacional, giornalista, scrit­ tore, autore di saggi, di racconti e di una serie di romanzi che ne hanno consacrato sta­ bilmente il nome tra i maggiori romanzieri latino-americani. Grande amico di Neruda, cui lo accomunavano le tematiche civili e le simpatie poli­ tiche, fu anche, come la stragrande maggioranza dei venezolani, amico del nostro Pae­ se; vi possedeva addirittura un castello, vicino ad Arezzo, nel quale ospitava spesso scrittori dell'America latina, lo stesso Neruda, che lo considerava, come scrive nelle sue memorie, "no solamente una gran conciencia americana, sino también un incompara­ ble companero" 1 Le origini clelia narrativa cli Miguel Otero Silva risalgono al 1939 con il romanzo Fie­ bre, al quale seguirono Casas muertas (1955), Oji"cina IV" 1 (1960), La muerte de Ho­ norio (1968), quindi nel 1970 il romanzo di cui ci occupiamo, Cuando quiero llorar no llora, ora presentato da Maitana Editrice, in efficace traduzione italiana di Electra Gra­ maglia, con il titolo di Vittorino. Successivamente Otero Silva pubblicò altri romanzi: Lope de Aguirre, Principe de la libertad (1979) e La piedra que era Cristo (1984).
    [Show full text]
  • Irregularities in the Venezuelan Elections During
    Electoral Irregularities A Typology Based on Venezuela under Chavismo Draft February 6, 2018 Javier Corrales1 Department of Political Science Amherst College [email protected] This is a draft document. Please help improve this document by reporting any errors and omissions to [email protected]. 1 I am grateful to Alejandro Sucre, Federico Sucre, and Franz von Bergen for their research assistance. 1 Electoral Irregularities: A Typology based on Venezuela under Chavismo Venezuela’s Chavista period (1999-present) has often been praised for its frequent electoral activity. But it has also been characterized by two, less praiseworthy features: irregularities and biased electoral reforms. These features have worsened over time. To date, the total number of irregularities is 117. From the very beginning, almost every electoral process has featured at least one major irregularity or system biases in favor of the incumbent party. These irregularities consist of practices, rules, and even laws that depart from either the spirit or the letter of the Constitution or from international standards for conducting “free and fair” elections. This paper provides a typology of electoral irregularities in Venezuela in the Chavista era, 1999-present. The full list appears in the Appendix. Irregularities are classified according to three characteristics: timing, type, and effect. Regarding timing, the evidence shows that electoral irregularities occurred since the start of the Chavista era (referendum on whether to conduct a constituent assembly, 1999) and expanded over overtime during the entire Hugo Chávez administration (1999-2013). They have become ubiquitous now under Nicolás Maduro (2013- present). Regarding type, each irregularity is classified according to the following categories: 1.
    [Show full text]