A Visit to the Ranquel Indians [Paperback]

Lucio V. Mansilla (Author), Eva Gillies (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 28, 1997

Lucio V. Mansilla (1831–1913), the widely traveled and cultured scion of a famous family, was a colonel in the Argentine army when he undertook an “excursion” to the Argentine interior in 1870 to visit natives in areas then largely unknown. Mansilla’s uncle, dictator Juan Manuel de Rosas, dominated most of Argentina from 1829 to 1852 and had led successful military expeditions against the frontier Indians in 1852. Mansilla set out for a reconnaissance into the tense border region just after a peace treaty had been signed with the Indians. Over the course of this expedition, Mansilla sent to a friend in the capital a series of letters which were then serially published in a leading Buenos Aires newspaper. His careful observations offer valuable ethnographic data, as Argentina’s Indians were almost totally extinguished or assimilated within a few generations of Mansilla’s expedition. Furthermore, his account, which contains thoughtful perspectives on the “Indian question” and the dichotomy of civilization and barbarism, stands as a lasting contribution to Argentine and Spanish-American literature. Mansilla’s work both in this account and elsewhere made him a leading figure in the Argentina “Generation of 1880,” a group crucial in the development of Argentine literary and intellectual life.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"One of the finest and subtlest books ever written on an American frontier. . . . [A] many layered and ironical masterpiece."—Malcolm Deas, Times Literary Supplement

(Malcolm Deas Times Literary Supplement )

"I find Eva Gillies’s translation of Mansilla’s work simply superb. . . . [It] provides an excellent reconstruction of Mansilla’s momentous journey as well as of his times."—Saul Sosnowski, University of Maryland

(Saul Sosnowski )

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Spanish --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 467 pages
• Publisher: University of Nebraska Press (August 28, 1997)
• Language: Spanish
• ISBN-10: 0803282354
• ISBN-13: 978-0803282353
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,175,637 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #56 in Books > Libros en español > Historia > Las Américas > Estados Unidos
  • #57 in Books > Libros en español > No-Ficción > Ciencias Sociales > Antropología

More About the Author

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

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars the classic dilemma, September 5, 2001

By 

mli1648 "lm" (Buenos Aires, Argentina) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Visit to the Ranquel Indians (Paperback)

A visit to the ranquel indians(Una excursion a los indios ranqueles)is the most famous novel of the argentine "dandy" writer Lucio Mansilla.
Nephew of the ex dictator Rosas, Mansilla grew up as any other nobleman at his age. He used to be haughty, scorn the culture of the aboriginal as "barbarism" and" uncouth".
But his opinion changed completely after visiting the ranquel indians during a mission send by the federal government.His original motive was oblige the indians to concede the territory for the construcion of railroad, but while he lived along side the indians, he realized that the problems the indians have were mostly because of their povertry, and they are neither uncouth, imbecil and bellicose as the government described.
The indians were really brave, smart and loyal to the friendship.
Mansilla felt that himself was also converted to a inseparable part of the indian community. At the same time, he also know clearly that his mission was to destroy the indian's hacienda.
The today he complete his mission must also be the final of the peaceful life of these ingenuous poor people.
It was really a painful option for Mr Mansilla...

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A classic nonfiction work, not a "novel"..., April 11, 2005

By 

Beyond-Is-Within Also (Pennsylvania, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Visit to the Ranquel Indians (Paperback)

Just to put the prior review in context, this is a very worthwhile work of nonfiction -- specifically, socio-econo-politico-anthropological reportage. Apparently the reviewer meant "book" rather than "novel"....