Winner! Nobel Prize for Literature. Guatemalan diplomat and writer Miguel Angel Asturias (1899-1974) began this award-winning work while still a law student. It is a story of ruthless dictator and his schemes to dispose of a political adversary in an unnamed Latin American country usually identified as Guatemala. The book has been acclaimed for portraying both a totalitarian government and its damaging psychological effects. Drawing from his experiences as a journalist writing under repressive conditions, Asturias employs such literary devices as satire to convey the government's transgressions and surrealistic dream sequences to demonstrate the police state's impact on the individual psyche. Asturias's stance against all forms of injustice in Guatemala caused critics to view the author as a compassionate spokesperson for the oppressed. "My work," Asturias promised when he accepted the Nobel Prize, "will continue to reflect the voice of the people, gathering their myths and popular beliefs and at the same time seeking to give birth to a universal consciousness of Latin American problems."
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"Asturias has achieved in a splendid manner a grotesque and almost asphyxiating conception of the total state. When the reader puts down the novel, he does so with a feeling of compassion and, at the same time, relief that he has not had to live through similar circumstances." -- T. B. Irving, Inter-American Review of Bibliography
"Asturias leaves no doubt about what it is like to be tortured, or what it is like to work for a man who is both omnipotent and depraved." -- Times Literary Supplement
"Asturias leaves no doubt about what it is like to be tortured, or what it is like to work for a man who is both omnipotent and depraved." -- Times Literary Supplement
From the Publisher
Titles of related interest from Waveland Press: Arguedas (trans. by Barraclough), Deep Rivers (ISBN 9781577662440); Arguedas (trans. by Barraclough), Yawar Fiesta (ISBN 9781577662457); Azuela, Los de Abajo: Novela de la Revolucion Mexicana (ISBN 9780881336627); Azuela (trans. by Fornoff), The Underdogs (ISBN 9781577662419).
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
El Presidente,
This review is from: The President (Paperback)
I thought The President by Miguel Angel Asturias was a beautiful work, but better read in its original language. The English translation was at some times difficult to read and didn't make sense, it was done without care or consideration to the moral the work was trying to portray. The pages where filled with powerful images and symbols Asturias himself could have witnessed. You could tell the author knew what he was talking about and felt passionate about what he wrote, that passion drove the story on and really showed accurately the political oppression the poor where shown at that time. The characters were dynamic, intense and could have represented easily some political figures of the time. He described each and every character as being guilty of something and didn't shine a godly light on anyone, even the victims of the government. He didn't romanticize the world of fear and constant oppression he strove to show, but presented it plainly as what it was. This is a moving read and I would recommend it to anyone. But you have to be prepared to stick with it because I found the way it is written somewhat different from more common novels. It would be best if read in Spanish because then you wouldn't have to deal with the poorly done translation. I had read some information on Asturias and that really gives new insight into the work. Being able to understand the parallels between the life the author lead and the difficulties he went through gave deeper meaning to what happened to the characters.
9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Favorite...,
By Elyzabeth (Massachusetts, United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The President (Paperback)
Poetic. Artful. Devastating. The best aspect of this book lies in the author's ability to so deftly articulate the psychological, nightmare-ish, indeed, surreal aspects of living under a dictatorship. To an outsider such as myself, it was deeply moving to see inside and realize how everyone's actions can be justified under such an extreme system. That's terrifying.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
great book! best read in Spanish if you have the oportunity,
By
This review is from: The President (Paperback)
I have read this book in spanish and in english, and like the author, Im Guatemalan too, soo I've seen the places he describes and I know the historical events behind this book, so my advice to you is to read it, you will love it, even if it is difficult to read sometimes, its worth the effort, but if you want to fully absorb the book, investigate the XX century guatemalan history, that will help you read this book in an easier way.
By the way in spanish the book's name is "El Senor Presidente" wich means "Mr. President", not "The President".
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First Sentence:
"BOOM, bloom, alum-bright, Lucifer of alunite!" The sound of the church bells summoning people to prayer lingered on, like a humming in the ears, an uneasy transition from brightness to gloom, from gloom to brightness. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
ten thousand pesos, little mule Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Angel Face, General Canales, Advocate General, President of the Republic, Don Juan, Lucio Vasquez, Cathedral Porch, Doņa Chon, Niņa Fedina, Casa Nueva, Major Farfan, Genaro Rodas, General Eusebio Canales, The Sweet Enchantment, Uncle Juan, Abel Carvajal, Don Miguelito, Two-Step Tavern, Colonel Parrales Sonriente, Doņa Judith, Doņa Venjamon, Don Benjamin, New York, Don Lucho, Virgin of Carmel New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
"BOOM, bloom, alum-bright, Lucifer of alunite!" The sound of the church bells summoning people to prayer lingered on, like a humming in the ears, an uneasy transition from brightness to gloom, from gloom to brightness. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
ten thousand pesos, little mule Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Angel Face, General Canales, Advocate General, President of the Republic, Don Juan, Lucio Vasquez, Cathedral Porch, Doņa Chon, Niņa Fedina, Casa Nueva, Major Farfan, Genaro Rodas, General Eusebio Canales, The Sweet Enchantment, Uncle Juan, Abel Carvajal, Don Miguelito, Two-Step Tavern, Colonel Parrales Sonriente, Doņa Judith, Doņa Venjamon, Don Benjamin, New York, Don Lucho, Virgin of Carmel New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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