Famous Latin American writers. The best books by Latin American writers of the twentieth century. Topic: Japanese literature

Let's move on to another equally talented literature - Latin American. Edition The Telegraph has created a selection of the 10 best novels by writers from Latin America and works set there. The selection is truly worth a summer read. Which authors have you already read?

Graham Greene "Power and Glory" (1940)

This time, a novel by British writer Graham Greene about a Catholic priest in Mexico in the 1920s and 30s. At the same time, brutal persecution of the Catholic Church by the military organization “Red Shirts” took place in the country. The main character, contrary to the orders of the authorities, under pain of execution without trial or investigation, continues to visit remote villages (his wife and his child live in one of them), serve masses, baptize, confess and give communion to his parishioners. In 1947, the novel was filmed by John Ford.

Ernesto Che Guevara "The Motorcycle Diaries" (1993)

The story is about how a young Che Guevara, a 23-year-old medical student, sets off from Argentina on a motorcycle trip. He returns as a man with a mission. According to his daughter, he returned from there even more sensitive to the problems of Latin America. The journey lasted nine months. During this time he covered eight thousand kilometers. In addition to motorcycles, he traveled by horse, boat, ferry, bus, and hitchhiking. The book is a story of a journey of self-discovery.

Octavio Paz "Labyrinth of Loneliness" (1950)

“Loneliness is the deepest meaning of human existence,”- wrote the Mexican poet Octavio Paz in this famous collection of poems. “A person is always longing and searching for belonging. Therefore, every time we feel like a person, we feel the absence of another, we feel lonely.” And many more beautiful and deep things about loneliness were comprehended by Paz and turned into poetry.

Isabel Allende "House of Spirits" (1982)

Isabel Allende's idea for this novel began when she received news that her 100-year-old grandfather was dying. She decided to write him a letter. This letter became the manuscript of his debut novel "House of Spirits" In it, the novelist created the history of Chile using the example of a family saga through the stories of female heroines. "Five years", Allende says, I was already a feminist, but no one knew this word in Chile.” This novel is written in the best traditions of magical realism. Before becoming a bestseller in the world, it was rejected by several publishers.

Paulo Coelho "Alchemist" (1988)

A book that was included in the Guinness Book of Records for the number of translations by a modern author. The allegorical novel by the Brazilian writer tells the story of the journey of an Andalusian shepherd to Egypt. The main idea of ​​the book is that if you really want something, it will happen.

Roberto Bolaño "Wild Detectives" (1998)

“Born in 1953, the year Stalin and Dylan Thomas died,” Bolaño wrote in his biography. This is the story of the search for a Mexican poet in the 1920s by two other poets - Arturo Bolaño (the prototype of the author) and the Mexican Ulises Lima. For it, the Chilean author received the Romulo Gallegos Prize.

Laura Esquivel "Like water for chocolate" (1989)

“We are all born with a box of matches inside, and since we cannot light them ourselves, we need, as happens during the experiment, oxygen and a candle flame,” writes Esquivel in this charming and realistic Mexican melodrama. The main feature of the work is that the emotions of the main character Tita fall into all the delicious dishes that she prepares.

Dictatorships, coups, revolutions, terrible poverty of some and fantastic wealth of others, and at the same time - exuberant fun and optimism of ordinary people. This is how most Latin American countries in the 20th century can be briefly described. And we shouldn’t forget about the amazing synthesis of different cultures, peoples and beliefs.

The paradoxes of history and the riotous color inspired many writers of this region to create genuine literary masterpieces that enriched world culture. We will talk about the most striking works in our material.

Captains of the sand. Jorge Amado (Brazil)

One of the main novels of Jorge Amado, the most famous Brazilian writer of the 20th century. “Captains of the Sand” is the story of a gang of street children who engaged in theft and robbery in the state of Bahia in the 1930s. It was this book that formed the basis of the film “Generals of the Sand Quarries,” which was extremely popular in the USSR.

Adolfo Bioy Casares (Argentina)

The most famous book by Argentine writer Adolfo Bioy Casares. A novel that deftly balances on the brink of mysticism and science fiction. The main character, fleeing persecution, ends up on a distant island. There he meets strange people who pay absolutely no attention to him. Watching them day after day, he learns that everything that happens on this piece of land is a holographic movie recorded a long time ago, virtual reality. And it is impossible to leave this place... while the invention of a certain Morel is working.

Senor President. Miguel Angel Asturias (Guatemala)

Miguel Angel Asturias - winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature for 1967. In his novel, the author portrays a typical Latin American dictator - Señor President, in which he reflects the whole essence of cruel and senseless authoritarian rule, aimed at enriching himself through oppression and intimidation of ordinary people. This book is about a man for whom ruling a country means robbing and killing its inhabitants. Remembering the dictatorship of the same Pinochet (and other no less bloody dictators), we understand how accurate this artistic prophecy of Asturias turned out to be.

Kingdom of the Earth. Alejo Carpentier (Cuba)

In his historical novel “Earthly Kingdom,” Cuban writer Alejo Carpentier talks about the mysterious world of the Haitians, whose lives are inextricably linked with the mythology and magic of Voodoo. In fact, the author put this poor and mysterious island on the literary map of the world, in which magic and death are intertwined with fun and dancing.

Mirrors. Jorge Luis Borges (Argentina)

A collection of selected stories by the eminent Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges. In his short stories, he addresses the motives of searching for the meaning of life, truth, love, immortality and creative inspiration. Masterfully using symbols of infinity (mirrors, libraries and labyrinths), the author not only gives answers to questions, but makes the reader think about the reality around him. After all, the meaning is not so much in the search results, but in the process itself.

Death of Artemio Cruz. Carlos Fuentes (Mexico)

In his novel, Carlos Fuentes tells the life story of Artemio Cruz, a former revolutionary and ally of Pancho Villa, and now one of the richest tycoons in Mexico. Having come to power as a result of an armed uprising, Cruz begins to frantically enrich himself. To satisfy his greed, he does not hesitate to resort to blackmail, violence and terror against anyone who gets in his way. This book is about how, under the influence of power, even the highest and best ideas die out, and people change beyond recognition. In fact, this is a kind of answer to Asturias’ “Señor President”.

Julio Cortazar (Argentina)

One of the most famous works of postmodern literature. In this novel, the famous Argentine writer Julio Cortazar tells the story of Horacio Oliveira, a man in a difficult relationship with the world around him and pondering the meaning of his own existence. In “The Hopscotch Game,” the reader himself chooses the plot of the novel (in the preface, the author offers two reading options - according to a plan he specially developed or according to the order of the chapters), and the content of the book will depend directly on his choice.

City and dogs. Mario Vargas Llosa (Peru)

"The City and the Dogs" is an autobiographical novel by the famous Peruvian writer, winner of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Literature, Mario Vargas Llosa. The book takes place within the walls of a military school, where they are trying to make “real men” out of teenage children. The methods of education are simple - first, break and humiliate a person, and then turn him into a thoughtless soldier living according to the rules.

After the publication of this anti-war novel, Vargas Llosa was accused of treason and aiding Ecuadorian emigrants. And several copies of his book were solemnly burned on the parade ground of the Leoncio Prado cadet school. However, this scandal only added to the popularity of the novel, which became one of the best literary works of Latin America of the 20th century. It has also been filmed several times.

Gabriel Garcia Marquez (Colombia)

The legendary novel by Gabriel García Márquez, the Colombian master of magical realism and winner of the 1982 Nobel Prize in Literature. In it, the author tells the 100-year history of the provincial town of Macondo, located in the middle of the jungle of South America. This book is recognized as a masterpiece of Latin American prose of the 20th century. In fact, in one work, Marquez managed to describe an entire continent with all its contradictions and extremes.

When I want to cry, I don’t cry. Miguel Otero Silva (Venezuela)

Miguel Otero Silva is one of Venezuela's greatest writers. His novel “When I Want to Cry, I Don’t Cry” is dedicated to the lives of three young people - an aristocrat, a terrorist and a bandit. Despite the fact that they have different social backgrounds, they all share the same destiny. Everyone is in search of their place in life, and everyone is destined to die for their beliefs. In this book, the author masterfully paints a picture of Venezuela under military dictatorship, and also shows the poverty and inequality of that era.

The victory over fascism entailed disruptions and the collapse of the colonial system in a number of formerly dependent countries of the African continent and Latin America. Liberation from military and economic domination and mass migrations during the Second World War led to an increase in national self-awareness. Liberation from colonial dependence in the second half of the 20th century led to the emergence of new literary continents. As a result of these processes, such concepts as the new Latin American novel, modern African prose and ethnic literature in the USA and Canada entered into reading and literary usage. Another important factor was the growth of planetary thinking, which did not allow for the “silence” of entire continents and the exclusion of cultural experience.

It is noteworthy that in the 1960s. In Russia, the so-called “multinational prose” is emerging - writers from among the indigenous peoples of Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Siberia.

The interaction of traditional literatures with new realities has enriched world literature and given impetus to the development of new mythopoetic images. Around the mid-1960s. It became clear that ethnic literatures, previously doomed to extinction or assimilation, could survive and develop in their own way within the dominant civilizations. The most striking phenomenon of the relationship between the ethnocultural factor and literature was the rise of Latin American prose.

Even in the first half of the 20th century, the literature of Latin American countries could not compete with the countries of Europe (and even the East), because were mostly aesthetic epigones. However, starting from the second half of the 20th century, many young writers began to build their creative path, focusing on local traditions. Having absorbed the experience of the European experimental school, they were able to develop an original national literary style.

For the 1960-70s. This is the period of the so-called “boom” of the Latin American novel. During these years, the term “magical realism” spread in European and Latin American criticism. In a narrow sense, it denotes a certain movement in Latin American literature of the second half of the 20th century. In a broad sense, it is understood as a constant of Latin American artistic thinking and a general property of the culture of the continent.

The concept of Latin American magical realism is intended to highlight and distinguish it from European mythology and fantasy. These features were clearly embodied in the first works of Latin American magical realism - the story by A. Carpentier “The Dark Kingdom” (1949) and the novel by M.A. Asturias "The Corn People" (1949).

In their heroes, the personal element is muted and does not interest the writer. The heroes act as carriers of collective mythological consciousness. It is this that becomes the main object of the image. At the same time, writers replace their view of a civilized person with that of a primitive person. Latin American realists highlight reality through the prism of mythological consciousness. As a result of this, the depicted reality undergoes fantastic transformations. Works of magical realism are built on the interaction of artistic resources. “Civilized” consciousness is comprehended and compared with the mythological one.

Throughout the 20th century, Latin America moved towards a flourishing of artistic creativity. A wide variety of trends have developed on the continent. Realism actively developed, an elitist-modernist (with echoes of European existentialism) and then a postmodernist direction arose. Jorge Luis Borges, Julio Cartazar Octavio Paz developed techniques and methods of “stream of consciousness” borrowed from Europe, the idea of ​​the absurdity of the world, “alienation”, and playful discourse.

Elite Latin American writers - Octavio Paz, Juan Carlos Onetti, Mario Vergas Llos - had a conversation with themselves, trying to identify personal uniqueness. They sought national identity within the confines of well-established European storytelling techniques. This gave them very limited fame.

The task of the “magical realists” was different: they directly addressed their message to humanity, combining the national and the universal in a unique synthesis. This explains their phenomenal success around the world.

The poetics and artistic principles of Latin American magical realism were formed under the influence of European avant-gardeism. The general interest in primitive thinking, magic, and primitive art that gripped Europeans in the first third of the 20th century stimulated the interest of Latin American writers in Indians and African Americans. In the bosom of European culture, the concept of the fundamental difference between pre-rationalistic thinking and civilized thinking was created. This concept will be actively developed by Latin American writers.

From the avant-garde artists, mainly the surrealists, Latin American writers borrowed some principles of the fantastic transformation of reality. The European abstract “savage” acquired ethnocultural concreteness and clarity in the works of magical realism.

The concept of different types of thinking was projected into the area of ​​cultural and civilizational confrontation between Latin America and Europe. The European surreal dream was replaced by a real-life myth. At the same time, Latin American writers relied not only on Indian and South American mythology, but also on the traditions of American chronicles of the 16th and 17th centuries. and their abundance of miraculous elements.

The ideological basis of magical realism was the writer’s desire to identify and affirm the originality of Latin American reality and culture, which is combined with the mythological consciousness of an Indian or African American.

Latin American magical realism had a significant impact on European and North American literature, and especially on the literature of the Third World.

In 1964, Costa Rican writer Joaquín Gutierrez wrote in an article “On the Eve of the Great Bloom” reflected on the fate of the novel in Latin America: “Speaking of the characteristic features of the Latin American novel, we should first of all point out that it is relatively young. A little more than a hundred years have passed since its inception, and in Latin America there are countries where the first novel appeared only in our century. During the three-hundred-year colonial period of Latin American history, not a single novel was published - and, as far as we know, not written!... Over the past twenty years, the Latin American novel has moved forward with great momentum... While remaining Latin American, our novel has recently become more universal. And I think we can safely predict that he is on the eve of an era of great prosperity... A colossal novelist has not yet appeared in our literature, but we are not trailing behind. Let’s remember what we said at the beginning - that our romance dates back a little over a hundred years - and let’s wait some more time.”.

These words became prophetic for the Latin American novel. In 1963, the novel “Hopscotch” by Julio Cortazar appeared, in 1967, “One Hundred Years of Solitude” by Gabriel García Márquez, which became a classic of Latin American literature.

Topic: Japanese literature.

In 1868, events took place in Japan called the “Meiji Restoration” (translated as “enlightened rule”). There was a restoration of the power of the emperor and the fall of the system of samurai rule of the shogunate. These events led Japan to follow the path of the European powers. Foreign policy is changing sharply, the “opening of doors” is announced, the end of external isolation that has lasted more than two centuries, and the implementation of a number of reforms. These dramatic changes in the life of the country were reflected in the literature of the Meiji period (1868-1912). During this time, the Japanese went from being overly enthusiastic about everything European to disappointment, from boundless delight to despair.

A distinctive feature of the traditional Japanese method is the author's indifference. The writer describes everything that comes into view in everyday reality, without giving judgment. The desire to depict things without introducing anything from oneself is explained by the Buddhist attitude towards the world as non-existent, illusory. One's own experiences are described in the same way. The essence of the traditional Japanese method lies precisely in the author’s non-involvement in what is being discussed, the author “follows the brush,” the movement of his soul. The text contains a description of what the author saw or heard, experienced, but there is no desire to understand what is happening. There is no traditional European analyticism in them. The words of Daiseku Suzuki about Zen art can be attributed to all classical Japanese literature: “They sought to convey with their brush what moves them from within. They themselves were not aware of how to express the inner spirit, and expressed it with a cry or a blow of the brush. Maybe this is not art at all, because there is no art in what they did. And if there is, it is very primitive. But is it? Could we succeed in “civilization,” in other words, in artifice, if we strived for artlessness? This was precisely the goal and basis of all artistic quests.”

In the Buddhist worldview, which underlies Japanese literature, there could be no desire to explore human life, to understand its meaning, because the truth lies on the other side of the visible world and is inaccessible to understanding. It can only be experienced in a special state of mind, in a state of highest concentration, when a person merges with the world. In this system of thinking there was no idea of ​​​​creating the world; Buddha did not create the world, but understood it. Therefore, man was not looked at as a potential creator. From the point of view of Buddhist theory, a living being is not a being living in the world, but a being experiencing the world. In this system of values, a method of analysis that presupposes separation could not appear. Hence the indifferent attitude towards what is depicted, when the writer feels himself both a participant and a spectator of the events described.

Therefore, traditional Japanese literature is not characterized by torment, lamentation, and doubt. There are no internal struggles in it, no desire to change fate, challenge fate, all that permeates European literature, starting from ancient tragedy.

For many centuries, the aesthetic ideal has been embodied in Japanese poetry

Yasunari Kawabata (1899-1975)- a classic of Japanese literature. In 1968, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for “writing that expresses with great force the essence of Japanese thought.”

Yasunari Kawabata was born in Osaka into the family of a doctor. He lost his parents early, and then his grandfather, who raised him. He lived with relatives, bitterly feeling the orphanhood. During my school years I dreamed of becoming an artist, but my passion for literature turned out to be stronger. His first writing experience was “The Diary of a Sixteen-Year-Old,” which conveyed sentiments of sadness and loneliness.

His student years were spent at the University of Tokyo, where Kawabata Yasunari studied English and Japanese philology. At this time, an acquaintance with the works of the greatest Japanese and European writers and Russian literature took place. After graduating from university, he works as a reviewer, publishing reviews of published books. During these years, he was part of a group of “neosensualist” writers who were sensitive to new trends in the literature of European modernism. One of Kawabata Yasunari’s stories “Crystal Fantasy” (1930) was often called “Joycean”; in its structure and style of writing, the influence of the author of “Ulysses” was felt. The story is a stream of memories of the heroine, her whole life emerges in a series of “crystalline” moments flashing in her memory. Reproducing the stream of consciousness, conveying the work of memory, Kawabata was largely guided by Joyce and Proust. Like other writers of the 20th century, he did not ignore modernist experiments. But at the same time, he remains an exponent of the originality and originality of Japanese thinking. Kawabata maintains strong ties to the national Japanese tradition. Kawabata wrote: " Having become fascinated by modern Western literature, I sometimes tried to imitate its images. But I am fundamentally an Eastern person and have never lost sight of my own path ».

The poetics of Kawabata Yasunari's works are characterized by the following traditional Japanese motifs:

Spontaneity and clarity of conveying a heartfelt feeling for nature and man;

Merging with nature

Close attention to detail;

The ability to reveal enchanting beauty in everyday and small things;

Laconism in reproducing the nuances of mood;

Quiet sadness, wisdom bestowed by life.

All this allows you to feel the harmony of existence with its eternal secrets.

The originality of Kawabata Yasunari’s poetic prose was manifested in the stories “The Dancer from Izidu” (1926), “Snow Country” (1937), “A Thousand Cranes” (1949), “Lake” (1954), in the novels “The Moan of the Mountain” (1954), "Old Capital" (1962). All works are imbued with lyricism and a high level of psychologism. They describe Japanese traditions, customs, features of life and behavior of people. For example, in the story “A Thousand Cranes” the ritual of tea drinking, the “tea ceremony”, which is important in the life of the Japanese, is reproduced in every detail. The aesthetics of the tea ritual, as well as other customs that are always written out in detail, by no means isolate Kawabata from the problems of the modern era. He survived two world wars, the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by atomic bomb explosions, and the Japanese-Chinese wars in his memory. Therefore, traditions associated with the concept of peace, harmony and beauty, and not with the exaltation of military power and samurai valor, are especially dear to him. Kawabata protects the souls of people from the cruelty of confrontation

Kawabata's work developed under the influence of Zen aesthetics. In accordance with the teachings of Zen, reality is understood as an indivisible whole, and the true nature of things can only be comprehended intuitively. It is not analysis and logic, but feeling and intuition that bring us closer to revealing the essence of phenomena, the eternal mystery. Not everything can be expressed in words and not everything needs to be said to the end. A mention or a hint is enough. The charm of understatement has an impressive power. These principles, developed over the centuries in Japanese poetry, are also realized in the work of Kawabata.

Kawabata sees the beauty of the ordinary, his life surroundings. He depicts nature, the world of plants, and scenes of everyday life in a lyrical way, with the insightful wisdom of humanity. The writer shows the life of nature and the life of man in their commonality, in continuous interpenetration. This reveals a feeling of belonging to the absolute of nature, the universe. Kawabata has the ability to recreate the atmosphere of reality, for this he accurately selects authentic colors and smells of his native land.

One of the central aspects of the aesthetics of Japanese art is the idea of ​​the sad charm of things. The beautiful in classical Japanese literature has an elegiac tone, poetic images are imbued with a mood of sadness and melancholy. In poetry, as in a traditional garden, there is nothing superfluous, nothing unnecessary, but there is always imagination, a hint, a certain incompleteness and surprise. The same feeling arises when reading Kawabata’s books; the reader discovers the author’s complex attitude towards his characters: sympathy and sympathy, mercy and tenderness, bitterness, pain. Kawabata's work is full of traditional Japanese contemplation, humor, and a subtle understanding of nature and its impact on the human soul. It reveals the inner world of a person striving for happiness. One of the main themes of his work is sadness, loneliness, and the impossibility of love.

In the most ordinary, in a small detail of boring everyday life, something essential is revealed, revealing a person’s state of mind. Details are constantly in the focus of Kawabata's vision. However, his objective world does not suppress the movement of character; the narrative contains psychological analysis and is distinguished by great artistic taste.

Many chapters of Kawabata’s works begin with lines about nature, which seem to set the tone for the subsequent narrative. Sometimes nature is just the backdrop against which the characters’ lives unfold. But sometimes it seems to take on an independent meaning. The author seems to encourage us to learn from her, to comprehend her unknown secrets, seeing in communication with nature unique ways of moral and aesthetic improvement of man. Kawabata's work is characterized by a sense of the grandeur of nature and the sophistication of visual perception. Through images of nature, he reveals the movements of the human soul, and therefore many of his works are multifaceted and have hidden subtext. Kawabata's language is an example of Japanese style. Brief, succinct, deep, it has imagery and impeccable metaphor.

The poetry of the rose, high literary skill, humanistic thought about caring for nature and man, for the traditions of national art - all this makes Kawabata’s art an outstanding phenomenon in Japanese literature and in the global art of words.

BBK 83.3(2 ros=rus)

Anastasia Mikhailovna Krasilnikova,

postgraduate student, St. Petersburg State University of Technology and Design (St. Petersburg, Russia), e-mail: [email protected]

Latin American literature in Russian book publishing

Latin American literature is popular all over the world, the history of its publication in Russia goes back 80 years, during which time a large amount of editorial experience has been accumulated, which needs to be analyzed. The work examines the reasons for the appearance of the first editions of Latin American literature in the USSR, changes in the choice of authors, circulation, preparation of the publishing apparatus in Soviet times and perestroika, as well as the state of publishing Latin American literature in modern Russia. The results of the work can be used in the preparation of new publications by Latin American authors, and can also become the basis for studying reader interest in Latin American literature in Russia. The paper concludes that readers have a strong interest in Latin American literature and suggests several ways in which its publication can develop.

Key words: Latin American literature, book publishing, publishing history, editing.

Anastasia Mikhailovna Krasilnikova,

Postgraduate Student, St. Petersburg State University of Technology and Design (St. Petersburg, Russia), e-mail: [email protected]

Latin American Literature in Russian Book Publishing

Latin American literature is popular all other the world, history of its publishing in Russia numbers 80 years, during this time the great experience of editing was accumulated, which is needed to be analyzed. The paper deals with the reasons for the appearance of the first publications of Latin American literature in the Soviet Union, changes in the selection of authors, number of printed copies and editing the secondary matter of publications in the Soviet period, as well as the state of publishing Latin American literature in modern Russia. The results of the research could be used in preparing new publications of Latin American authors as well as become a basis for research of the reader's interest in Latin American literature in Russia. The paper concludes that reader's interest in Latin American literature is strong and proposes several ways in which publishing of Latin American literature can develop.

Keywords: Latin American literature, book publishing, history of publishing, editing.

Latin American literature made itself known to the whole world in the middle of the 20th century. The reasons for the popularity of the “new” Latin American novel are many; In addition to cultural reasons, there were also economic reasons. Only in the 30s. last century, an extensive system of book publishing and, most importantly, book distribution began to emerge in Latin America. Until this moment, if something interesting could have appeared, no one would have known about it: the books were not published, let alone beyond the continent, beyond the borders of a single country.

However, over time, literary magazines and publishing houses began to appear. Thanks to the largest Argentine publishing house, Sudamericana, many authors have gained fame: for example, from this publishing house

The world fame of García Márquez began. One of the channels through which Latin American literature penetrated into Europe was, of course, Spain: “It is appropriate to emphasize here that at this time, despite the activities of the Sudamericana publishing house, it was Spain, or more precisely, Barcelona, ​​that followed all the processes taking place in literature , and served as a showcase for boom authors, most of whom were published by the Seik-Barral publishing house, which occupied a leading position in this sense. Some of the writers lived in this city for a long time: García Márquez, Vargas Llosa, Donoso, Edwards, Bruce Echenique, Benedetti and, finally, Onetti." The role of the Pre-mio Bibliotheca Brive award, established by this Barcelona publishing house, is also important: since in Spain

© A. M. Krasilnikova, 2012

No significant authors appeared at the institute; they tried to choose winners from Spanish-speaking countries (the winners of this prestigious prize were Vargas Llosa, Cabrera Infante, Haroldo Conti, Carlos Fuentos). Many Latin American writers have traveled widely, some of them lived in Europe for quite a long time. So Julio Cortazar lived for 30 years in Paris, and the French publishing house Gallimard also contributed to the spread of Latin American literature.

If with Europe everything is more or less clear: once translated, a book became famous and was translated into other European languages, then with the penetration of Latin American literature into the USSR the situation is much more complicated. European recognition of this or that author was not authoritative for the Soviet Union; rather, on the contrary, approval by ideological enemies could hardly have a positive impact on the publishing fate of the writer in the USSR

However, this does not mean that Latinos were banned. The very first book edition appeared back in 1932 - it was Cesar Vallejo’s novel “Tungsten” - a work in the spirit of socialist realism. The October Revolution attracted the attention of Latin American writers to the Soviet Union: “In Latin America, left-wing communist movements formed independently, practically without emissaries of the USSR, and left-wing ideology took a particularly strong position among the creative intelligentsia.” Cesar Vallejo visited the USSR three times - in 1928, 1929 and 1931, and shared his impressions in Parisian newspapers: “Driven by passion, enthusiasm and sincerity, the poet defends the achievements of socialism with propaganda pressure and dogmatism, as if borrowed from the pages of the newspaper Pravda ".

Another supporter of the Soviet Union was Pablo Neruda, about whom translator Ella Braginskaya said: “Neruda is one of those great dramatic figures of the 20th century.<...>, who became ideological friends of the USSR and in some incomprehensible, fatal way were happy to be deceived, like many of their peers in our country, and saw with us what they dreamed of seeing.” Neruda's books were actively published in the USSR from 1939 to 1989.

sideways, as a rule, they could not be identified with exemplary works of socialist realism, however, the political views of their authors made it possible for translators and editors to publish such works. The memoirs of L. Ospovat, who wrote the first book in Russian about Neruda’s work, are very indicative in this regard: “When asked whether he could be called a socialist realist, the Chilean poet grinned and said understandingly: “If you really need it, then you can.”

If in the 30s and 40s only a few publications appeared, then in the 50s more than 10 books by Latin American writers were published, and then this number increased.

Most of the publications that were prepared in Soviet times are distinguished by high-quality preparation. In relation to Latin American literature, this is important in two aspects. Firstly, Latin American realities, unknown and therefore incomprehensible to the Soviet reader, require commentary. And secondly, Latin American culture as a whole is characterized by the concept of “transculturation”, proposed by the Cuban anthropologist Fernando Ortiz, “... which does not mean the assimilation of one culture by another or the introduction of foreign elements of another into one of them, but the emergence as a result of cultural interaction of a new culture". In practice, this means that any Latin American author turns in his work to the world cultural heritage: the work of European writers and philosophers, the world epic, religious dogmas, reinterprets it and creates his own world. These references to a variety of works require intertextual commentary.

If intertextual commentary is important in scientific publications, then real commentary is an urgent need for any mass publication. These do not necessarily have to be notes; an introductory article can also prepare readers for getting to know the work.

Soviet publications can be accused of being too ideological, but they were produced very professionally. Famous translators and literary scholars participated in the preparation of the books, who were passionate about what they did, so most of the translations made in Soviet times, although imperfect, are in many ways superior to later ones. The same applies to

comments. Such famous translators as E. Braginskaya, M. Bylinka, B. Dubin, V. Stolbov, I. Terteryan, V. Kuteyshchikova, L. Sinyanskaya and others worked on the publications of Latin American authors.

The works of more than thirty Latin American writers have been translated into Russian and published in separate editions. Most of the authors are represented by two or three books, for example, Augusto Roa Bastos, the author of the famous anti-dictatorship novel “I, Supreme,” published only two books in the Soviet Union: “Son of Man” (M., 1967) and “ I, the Supreme" (M., 1980). However, there are authors who continue to be published today, for example, Jorge Amado's first book was published in 1951, and the last in 2011. His works have been published for sixty years without any significant interruptions. But there are few such authors: Miguel Angel Asturias was published in the USSR and Russia in 1958-2003, Mario Vargas Llosa in 1965-2011, Alejo Carpentier in 1968-2000, Gabriel García Márquez in 1971-2012, Julio Cortazar in 1971-2011, Carlos Fuentes in 1974-2011, Jorge Luis Borges in 1984-2011, Bioy Casares in 1987-2010.

The principles for selecting authors often remain unclear. First of all, of course, the writers of the “boom” were published, but not all of their works, and even not all of their authors, have yet been translated. Thus, the book by Lewis Harss “On the crest of a wave” (Luis Harss Into the mainstream; conversations with Latin-American writers), which is considered to be the first work that shaped the very concept of the “boom” of Latin American literature, includes ten authors. Nine of them have been translated into Russian and published, but the works of João Guimarães Rosa remain untranslated into Russian.

The “boom” itself took place in the 60s, but publications by Latin American writers in the USSR, as already mentioned, began to appear much earlier. The “new” novel was preceded by a long development. Already in the first half of the 20th century. Such venerable writers as Jorge Luis Borges and Jorge Amado worked, anticipating the “boom.” More writers, of course, are published in the 20th century, but not only. Thus, in 1964, poems by the Brazilian poet of the 18th century were translated and published into Russian. Thomas Antonio Gonzaga.

ny prizes awarded to him. Latin American writers include six Nobel Prize winners: Gabriela Mistral (1945), Miguel Angel Asturias Rosales (1967), Pablo Neruda (1971), Gabriel García Márquez (1982), Octavio Paz (1990), Mario Vargas Llosa (2010). All of them have been translated into Russian. However, the work of Gabriela Mistral is represented by only two books; Octavio Paz published four of them. This can be explained, first of all, by the fact that Spanish-language poetry is generally less popular in Russia than prose.

In the 80s, hitherto banned authors who did not share communist views began to appear. In 1984, the first edition by Jorge Luis Borges appeared.

If until the 90s the number of publications by Latin American writers grew steadily (more than 50 books were published in the 80s), then in the 90s there was a noticeable decline in everything: the number of publications sharply decreased, circulation fell, and the printing performance of books deteriorated. In the first half of the 90s, the usual for the USSR circulations of 50, 100 thousand were still possible, but in the second half the circulations were five, ten thousand and remain so to this day.

In the 90s There is a sharp reassessment of values: there are only a few authors left who continue to be published very actively. Collected works of Marquez, Cortazar, and Borges appear. The first collected works of Borges, published in 1994 (Riga: Polaris), are distinguished by a fairly high level of preparation: it included all the works translated at that time, accompanied by a detailed commentary.

During the period from 1991 to 1998, only 19 books were published, and the same number were published in 1999 alone. 1999 was a harbinger of the 2000s, when there was an unprecedented increase in the number of publications: in the period from 2000 to 2009. Over two hundred books by Latin American authors have been published. However, the total circulation was incomparably less than in the 80s, since the average circulation in the 2000s was five thousand copies.

Marquez and Cortazar are the constant favorites. The work that has been published in Russia more than any other work by a Latin American author is undoubtedly “One Hundred Years of Solitude.” Borges and Vargas Llosa continue to publish quite actively. Popularity by

The latter was facilitated by receiving the Nobel Prize in 2010: in 2011, 5 of his books were immediately published.

Publications of the early 21st century. distinguished by a minimum of preparation: as a rule, there are no introductory articles or comments in books - publishers prefer to publish a “bare” text, devoid of any accompanying apparatus. This is due to the desire to reduce the cost of the publication and reduce the time of its preparation. Another innovation is the publication of the same books in different designs - in different series. As a result, an illusion of choice appears: on the shelf in a bookstore there are several editions of “The Hopscotch Game,” but in reality it turns out that they are the same translation, the same text without an introductory article and without comments. It can be said that large publishing houses (AST, Eksmo) use names and titles known to readers as brands and do not care about wider familiarity of readers with the literature of Latin America.

Another topic that needs to be addressed is the lag of several years in the publication of works. Initially, many writers began to be published in the USSR when they had already become world famous. So “One Hundred Years of Solitude” was published in Argentina in 1967, in the USSR in 1971, and this was Marquez’s first book in Russia. Such a lag is typical for all Latin American publications, but for the USSR this was normal and was explained by the complex organization of book publishing. However, much later, even when the writers were well known in Russia and created new works, the delay in publication remained: Cortazar’s last novel, “Farewell Robinson,” was written in 1995, but it was published in Russia only in 2001.

At the same time, Marquez’s last novel, “Remembering My Sad Whores,” published in Spanish in 2004, was published in Russia a year later - in 2005. The same thing happened with Vargas Llosa’s novel “Adventures of a Bad Girl,” completed in 2006 . and published in Russia already in 2007. However, the novel by the same author “Paradise on the Other Corner”, written in 2003, was never translated. The interest of publishers in works imbued with eroticism is explained by an attempt to add scandal to the work of writers and to attract the attention of unprepared readers. Often this approach leads to a simplification of problems and incorrect presentation of works.

The fact that interest in Latin American literature continues even without artificial heating on the part of publishers is evidenced by the appearance of books by authors who were not published in the USSR. This is, for example, a writer of the early 20th century. Leopoldo Lugones; two authors who anticipated the emergence of the “new” Latin American novel - Juan José Arreola and Juan Rulfo; poet Octavio Paz and prose writer Ernesto Sabato - authors of the mid-20th century. These books were published both in publishing houses that periodically published Latin American literature (“Amphora”, “ABC”, “Symposium”, “Terra-Book Club”), and in those that had never previously been interested in Latin American writers (“Swallowtail” , “Don Quixote”, “Ivan Limbach Publishing House”).

Today, Latin American literature is represented in Russia by the works of prose writers (Mario Vargas Llosa, Ernesto Sabato, Juan Rulfo), poets (Gabriela Mistral, Octavio Paz, Leopoldo Lugones), playwrights (Emilio Carballido, Julio Cortazar). The vast majority are Spanish-language authors. The only actively published Portuguese-language author is Jorge Amado.

The first publications of Latin American authors in the USSR were caused by ideological reasons - the writers’ loyalty to the communist government, but thanks to this, Soviet readers discovered the world of Latin American literature and fell in love with it, which is confirmed by the fact that Latin Americans continue to be actively published in modern Russia.

During the Soviet years, the best translations and commentaries of Latin American works were created; with perestroika, much less attention was paid to the preparation of publications. Publishing houses were faced with a new problem for them in making money, and therefore the approach to book publishing completely changed, including changes in the publishing of Latin American literature: preference began to be given to mass publications with a minimum of preparation.

Today, print publications compete with the increasingly popular e-books. The text of almost any published work can be downloaded for free from the Internet, so it is unlikely that publishers will be able to exist without changing their strategy in preparing books. One of the ways is to improve printing performance and release expensive exclusive publications. So,

for example, the Vita Nova publishing house released in 2011 a luxurious leather-bound gift edition of “One Hundred Years of Solitude” by Gabriel Marquez. Another way is to release high-quality publications with detailed, conveniently structured

Foreign literature of the twentieth century. 1940–1990: textbook Loshakov Alexander Gennadievich

Topic 9 The phenomenon of “new” Latin American prose

The phenomenon of “new” Latin American prose