Learning Guide 6

Lesson 12: Latin American Literature

You have probably enjoyed the reading selection in North America, for most of the students nowadays are fan of creative and imaginative works of literature. In relation, did you know that the oldest kinds of magic in fiction come from the central-southern part of America?

All of Mexico, along with Central and South American countries, may be grouped under the name Latin America (with the United States and Canada being referred to as Anglo-America (North America)) – including the islands of Caribbean whose inhabitant speak a Romance Language.

\ Moreover, most of the countries in this region were former colonies of either Spanish or Portugal, hence the “Latin” part of this nomenclature—Spanish and Portuguese are Romance languages originating from Latin. Thus, Latin American is ==defined by the common colonial History as well as the language that binds these countries.== Yet, it is also part of the global migration movement of the 20th and 21st century, where many migrant workers, immigrants and diasporic communities, particularly in the U.S, had their origins in Latin America.

\ Back to the oldest kinds of magic in fiction, this is often associated with Latin America, and here are the founders of this genre – ^^Magic Realism^^: which is ==a style of fiction that paints a realistic view of the modern world while also adding magical elements==

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  • %%María Luisa Bombal (1910-1980):%% was a ==Chilean novelist and story writer,== one of the first to break away from the realistic tradition in Latin America.
  • Gabriel García Márquez
  • %%Isabel Allende (1927 to 2014):%% was a ==Colombian writer==, associated with the Magical Realism genre of narrative fiction
  • %%Jorge Luis Borges%%  (August 24, 1899 – June 14, 1986): was ==an Argentine poet, essayist, and short-tory writer== who is ==considered one of the foremost figures in world literature== of the twentieth century.
  • %%Juan Rulfo%% (May 16, 1918 – January 7, 1986): was ==one of Latin America's most admired novelists== and short story writers.
  • %%Miguel Ángel Asturias%% (1899-1974): was ==born in Guatemala== and spent his childhood and adolescence in his native country
  • %%Elena Garro%% was ==born in 1920 in Puebla, Mexico.== Her father was a Spanish architect, while her mother was Mexican.
  • %%Mireya Robles%% (born 1934): is an ==award-winning Cuban American writer== and literary critic.
  • %%Rómulo Gallegos%% (2 August 1884 – 5 April 1969): was a ==Venezuelan novelist and politician==.
  • %%Arturo Uslar Pietri%% (16 May 1906 in Caracas): was a ==Venezuelan intellectual,== historian, writer, television producer and politician.

          Different literary movements in Latin American literature, including the noted works and writers:

1.    The Vanguardia (between 1916 and 1935) – collectively referred to the literary movements

a.    Creacionismo, founded by Vicente Huidobro (1893-1948), a Chilean poet, in 1916

b.    Ultraismo, introduced to South America by Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986), an Argentine writer in 1921

c.    Estridentismo, founded in Mexico City by Manuel Maples Arce (1898-1981), a Mexican writer, in 1921

d.    Surrealism, which is said to have started in Argentina when the Argentinian poet Aldo Pellegrini (1903-1973) launched the first Surrealist Magazine in 1928

2.    The Boom Novels (essentially modernist novels) – appeared in the second half of the 20th century

a.    The Death of Artemio Cruz (1962) by Carlos Fuentes (1928-012), a Mexican writer.

b.    Hopscotch (1963) by Julio Cortazar (1914-1984), an Argentine fictionist

c.    The Time of the Hero (1963) by Mario Vargas Llosa, a Peruvian writer

d.    One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967) by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (1927-2014) a Columbian fictionist

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3.    The Post-Boom Writers – published works in the last twenty years of the 20th Century:

a.    Isabel Allende, a Chilean writer who wrote The House of Spirits (1982)

b.    Diamela Eltit, a Chilean writer who wrote E. Luminata (1983)

c.    Luisa Valenzuela, an Argentine writer who wrote Black Novel with Argentines (1990).

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Here are the noted works and writers in Surrealism:

 ^^Surrealism^^: also became ==a major influence in Latin American Literature== throughout 20th Century. This ==is set in a dream-like world that seems to combine elements of the conscious and the unconscious==; and this differ from magic realism, where stories are set in a completely realistic setting. Furthermore, these realism and surrealism are also different from speculative fiction, for this fiction re-impose new rules to achieve fantasy and conduct thought experiments.

\ a.    %%Pablo Neruda (1904-1973%%): a ==Chilean poet==, wrote ==Residence on Earth (1933)==, a ==collection of poetry inspired by surrealism.==

b.    %%Octavio Paz (1914-1998)%%: ==Mexican poet==, who wrote ==poems with surrealist imagery==. His major works were published in Freedom Under Parole (1960).

c.    %%Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986)%%: was ==known for his fantastic stories==, and published later a collection ==entitled Ficciones (1944).==

d.    %%Alejo Carpentier (1904-1980)________:%% ==Cuban writer==, wrote ==The Kingdom of This World (1949)==, a novel of the magic realism genre, in which elements of fantasy or myth are included matter-of-factly in seemingly realistic fiction

e.    %%Miguel Angel Asturias (1899-1974)%%: a ==Guatemalan writer==, who wrote t==he novel The President (1946)==. This novel along with Carpentier’s novel introduced magic realism.

 \n (Source: Basilan, M. L. J. ”Latin American Literature”. Letra: 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World, Unlimited Books Library Services & Publishing Inc., 2018, pp 169-170.) \n

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Lesson 13: European Literature

EUROPEAN LITERATURE is considered the largest body of literature in the world, but English Literature is the most developed in the world. English Literature compasses both written and spoken words by writers from the United Kingdom; but the writers don't necessarily have to be from the United Kingdom (England), and can be from all over the world: James Joyce (Ireland), William Shakespeare (England), Mark Twain (United States), Arthur Conan Doyle (Scotland), Dylan Thomas (Wales), and Vladimir Nabokov (Russia).  \n \n (Source: https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-english-literature-history-definition-quiz.html.) \n \n

THE OLD ENGLISH (ANGLO-SAXON) PERIOD \n

This is the ==so-called "Dark Ages" (455 CE-799 CE),== which occurred after Rome fell and barbarian tribes moved into Europe. Franks, Ostrogoths, Lombards, and Goths settled in the ruins of Europe, and the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes migrated to Britain displacing native Celts into Scotland, Ireland, and Wales.  Moreover, Old English is the earliest form of the English language, and this is the language of Anglo-Saxons.

==One of the early old English poems is== ^^Beowulf^^ (the longest epic poem), which is ==known for the use of kennings== (phrases or compound words used to name persons, places, and things indirectly); and other noted works are The Wanderer, and The Seafarer originated sometime late in the Anglo-Saxon period.

(For Further Reading about English Literature: https://mc.libguides.com/eng/literaryperiods)

The core values of Anglo-Saxon literature

  • loyalty
  • bravery
  • generosity

and the overall idea is that the characters are all going on a path pre-made, and they must learn to accept it. \n \n

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EUROPEAN LITERATURE \n \n

European Literature

  • also known as Western Literature, the literature written in the context of Western culture

  • in the languages of Europe including the ones belonging to the Indo-European language family as well as several geographically or historically related languages such as Basque and Hungarian.

  • Romanticism (most noted literature)

\ Languages used: English, Spanish, French, Dutch, Polish, German, Italian Modern Greek, Czech, Russian, and works by the Scandinavians and Irish

\  Key characteristics

  • an interest in the common man and childhood,  emotions, and feelings, the awe of nature, emphasis on the individual, myths, and the importance of the imagination.

 of this period/literature include

\  Romanticism

  • Totally different from Romance Novels
  • The belief that emotions and intuition are more important than logic and facts
  • Contrasts with Realism (it's polar opposite) and Dark Romanticism-wherein both emphasize Taylor Coleridge's human fallibility (they are pessimists).

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which is, for this is ; the individual comes first and is primarily good, and nature is meant to be worshipped. Furthermore, this

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Notable authors of European Literature: \n

Latin Literature

%%Marcus Tullius Cicero%%  (106 BCE-43 BCE): was ==the greatest Roman orator==. The first part of the Golden Age of Latin Literature (70 ~C-AD 18) named after him, the Ciceronian period (70-43 BC). Using Latin as a literary medium, he was able to express abstract and complicated thoughts clearly in his speeches. One of his Well-known speeches is Pro Cluentio.

\ %%Virgil%% (70 BCE-19 BCE): ==the greatest Roman poet==, was ==known for Aeneid, an epic poem.== He wrote it during the Augustan Age (43 BC-AD 18), the second part of the Golden Age.

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Greek Literature

%%Homer:%% ==known for The Iliad and The Odyssey== -These epics are about the heroic achievements of Achilles and Odysseus, respectively.

\ %%Sophocles%% (496 BC-406 BC):  was ==a tragic playwright. He was known for Oedipus the King,== which marks the highest level of achievement of Greek drama.

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Italian Literature

%%Francesco Petrarca, or Petrarch (1304-1374)%%: ==perfected the Italian sonnet==, a major influence on European poetry. Written in the vernacular, his sonnets were published in the Canzoniere.

%%Giovanni Boccaccio:%% (1313-1375) is ==known for Decameron a classic Italian masterpiece.== The stories were written in the vernacular.

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Spanish Literature

Two well-known Spanish writers of Siglo De Oro (1500-1681) are Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616) and Lope de Vega (1562-1635)

%%Miguel de Cervantes:%% was ==known for his novel Don Quixote==, one of the widely read works of Western Literature. Its titular character's name is the one of the word "quixotic," meaning hopeful or romantic in a way that is not practical.

%%Lope de Vega:%% an outstanding dramatist; ==wrote as many as 1800 plays during his lifetime,== including cloaked and sword drama, which are plays of upper-middle-class manners and intrigue.

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French Literature

%%Gustave Flaubert%% (1821-880): a novelist, was a major influence on the realist school. His masterpiece, ==Madame Bovary== (1857) marked the beginning  of a new age of realism.

%%Guy de Maupassant%% (1850-893): is ^^considered as the greatest French short story writer^^.  A Naturalist, he wrote object tive stories which present a real "slice of life”

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Russian Literature

%%Leo Tolstoy%% (1828-1910): is ==known.for his novel War and Peace== (1865-1869) and ==Anna Karenina== (1875-1877). A master of realistic fiction, he is considered as one of the world's greatest novelists.

%%Anton Chekhov%% (1860-1904): is ==a master of the 11 mode short story and Russian playwright==. His works such as, "The Bet and The M1sfortune reveal his clinical approach to ordinary life.

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