File spoon-archives/postcolonial.archive/postcolonial_1996/96-07-14.151, message 54


Date: Tue, 11 Jun 1996 11:29:07 +0200
From: "ana l. valdés" <agora-AT-algonet.se>
Subject: Re: Allende, Esquivel and the poetics of the best-seller....


You get us in a very tricky discussion, because, who are the best judges 
of the term "populae"? Are we, intellectuels, academics, writers, 
supposed to etablish esthetic and literary values who apply to who 
"others" (readers) must read? I think yes, this is a part of our mission 
or of our vocation, but I know this is a very dangerous position, often 
misunderstood as elitistic.
The problem with Allende is her lack selfinsight, and her consequent 
lack of self critical view. She writes as she believe the "popular 
classes" speaks, thinks and act, but, she doe´sn really undertand their 
codes and their values. Her writing is a mixture of political 
correctness and mimickal catcopy of the slang, voacabulary and syntax of 
the "people". I guess the nearest she was from the people was in the 
contact with her servants and maids (present as "part of the family" in 
her book about the death of her daughter Paula).
I think Esquivels book "Like Water for Chocolate" is a more challenging 
book, a book who combines politics, genderissues and good literature in 
a very succesful recipe. (The use of the kitchen, the recipes, the 
matriarchys repressive role, is a proof of talent and good esthetical 
norms).
The problem with Allendes writing is her explicity, she want so bad be 
political correct, so representative for the "poor", that she kills her 
prose, who bacames unauthentical, flat and full av stereotypes.
Take other writer who did the same, Manuel Puig, the argentinian writer 
who wrote "The Kiss of the Spider Woman", "The Betrayal of Rita 
Hayworth" and "Boquitas Pintadas" (no idea about the english 
translation, "painted mouths"?).
He did a wonderful reconstruction of the language and esthetical values 
of the argentinian lower classes, in love with Hollywoods stars, 
imitating their make-up and haircuts. But he never pretend he was one of 
them, he wrote a pastiche, he raised the "kitsch" to a esthetized and 
very attractive "metalanguage", plenty of love, tenderness and closeness 
to his subjects.
As I wrote before, the problem with Allende is (in my point of view)m 
she lacks credibility and she is not enoogh gifted to use the same tool 
as Puig did.
Greetings from Ana L. Valdés, latinamerican writer in Sweden



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