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Indigenista Novels


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Questions | Bibliography

Chapter Reference: Neocolonialism; Nationalism; Revolution

Novels about indigenous people and their relationship with national societies constitute an important genre in Latin American literary history. Indigenista novels were written from the 1880s to the 1950s, and their authors were often political activists. Indigenistas sought to advocate for indigenous people, and to interpret them sympathetically to national reading audiences. Often, indigenista novels display a paternalistic attitude toward indigenous people, protective but superior. Ultimately, they promoted assimilating indigenous people into mainstream national cultures. From a multiculturalist point of view, that approach leaves a lot to be desired, although it has long been standard procedure for nationalists the world over. If students are careful to read with this controversial aspect in mind, indigenista novels provide a vivid and provocative approach to Andean society.

Questions for Analysis and Further Reflection:

  1. Indigenista novels were written during the moments of both neocolonialism and nationalism. What contrasting features of these years were motivating factors for the authors of the novels? It will be helpful to think about the forms of labor that made neocolonialism possible and then about the goal of nationalists to search for an indigenous identity that contrasted with European influence.


  2. What examples of a protective, paternalistic attitude can you find in the novels? What does this suggest about the general characteristics of indigenismo, specifically regarding the reconciliation of sympathy for indigenous populations with the goal of integrating them into the national fabric?


  3. Up to the 1800s, writing was almost uniquely an activity practiced by elites. During and after the wars of independence, other groups gained access to the power of writing and often used it to oppose those who held political power. Where do indigenista novels fit into the broad history of writing as a social practice in Latin America, and who were their authors?

Bibliography: (Titles with ** are good starting places.)

Alegría, Ciro. Broad and Alien is the World. Translated by Harriet de Onís. New York:
           Farrar & Rinehart, 1941.

This novel by Alegría is, in literary terms, probably the best among the texts listed here. A powerful, engrossing novel, despite the translation. Alegria's vision exemplifies the romanticizing tendencies of nationalist indigenistas in search of an authentic national essence.

Arguedas, José Maria. Yawar Fiesta. Translated by Frances Horning Barraclough. Austin:
           University of Texas Press, 1985.

Yawar Fiesta is the highly informed vision of a Peruvian anthropologist who grew up in the provincial Andean city he describes in the novel.

Matto de Turner, Clorinda. Birds without a Nest. Translated by J. G. Hudson; emended by
           Naomi Lindstrom. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1996.

Birds without a Nest is not a gripping read, but it is easy to interpret. Just as one would expect of a novel written in 1889, this is an indigenista vision with marked neocolonial tones.

Muñoz, Braulio. Sons of the Wind: The Search for Identity in Spanish American Indian
           Literature.
New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1982.

Chapters two and three of this monograph provide a general introduction to the indigenista novel.


Other Resources:
Bolivia
Chile
Ecuador
Peru
Culture
Boom Novels