Bello and Bolívar: Poetry and Politics in the Spanish American Revolution (Cambridge Studies in Latin American and Iberian Literature) [Hardcover]

Antonio Cussen (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 052141248X | ISBN-13: 978-0521412483 | Publication Date: May 29, 1992

In June 1810, the Venezuelans, fearful of French aggression, sent a diplomatic mission to London in search of an ally. The mission was headed by Símon Bolívar; the secretary was Andres Bello. Bello remained in London through the Spanish American Revolution and became one of the most accomplished members of the Spanish-speaking intelligentsia. In this book, Antonio Cussen reconstructs Andres Bello's account of the Revolution. The official history of the Revolution, the heroic history of Bolívar, is replaced by the account of a poet, who was first Bolívar's teacher, and later his critic. Through a detailed study of the manuscripts of Bello's unfinished poem "América" the author argues that Bello recorded the disintegration of the Augustan model of power and culture and intimated the inevitable approach of liberalism with a certain longing for the classical culture of his youth.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is a terrific book. The dramatic and forceful personalities of Spanish America's independence period have been well documented and their place in the world military history amply secured. With this book, Antonio Cussen resurrects the intellectual and cultural milieu within which Spanish America's independence generation existed, and reminds us just how much ideas and words mattered to them." H-Net Reviews

"...a fascinating and eminently readable narrative about two historical figures (yes, even the bookish Bello) that I and many others find profoundly seductive." Elizabeth Garrels, Latin American Literary Review

Book Description

Antonio Cussen reconstructs Bello's account of the Spanish American Revolution arguing that the unfinished poem América records the disintegration of an essentially Augustan model of power.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 222 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (May 29, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 052141248X
• ISBN-13: 978-0521412483
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,503,207 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.