Reviews
Ballvé, Teo
The Argentina Reader: History, Culture, Politics. Edited by Gabriela Nouzeilles and Graciela Montaldo. Durham: Duke University Press, 2002, 580 pages, $74.95 (cloth), $23.95 (paper). Conveying...
...Taussig describes how the implicit-and sometimes explicit-understanding between the town and the paras has led to the institutional entrenchment of the paras by filling the void that provides them with the societal means for reproducing fear, violence and social control...
...He explains how on this trip he came to identify that "imaginary" world developed in his writing...
...By now, most people are aware that violence has become a part of daily life in Colombia, but the repercussions of that reality for everyday people are rarely effectively communicated in human rights reports, articles or books...
...Vivir para contarla...
...The Spanish word "limpieza" means many things depending on the context...
...Knopf published the original Spanish version of Garcia Mdrquez's autobiography a year prior to the release of its English translation, slated for release this November...
...More recent events are also aptly covered, including an entire chilling section on "State Violence" and another on "Democracy and Neoliberalism...
...And women permeate the pages of the book as they do Argentine history with such selections as "Women in the Fatherland," "Modem Women" and "Feminist Awakenings...
...an anonymous author parodies Argentina's obsession with psychoanalysis...
...Law in a Lawless Land: Diary of a Limpieza...
...And with the help of informative introductions to each thematic section and short descriptions of each piece, the editors provide ample context for any reader to appreciate Argentina's rich culture and history...
...The editors collected a wide swath of pieces including speeches, essays, articles and poems...
...After reading about his experiences in the towns and cities of Colombia, it is easy to understand why he has always been irked by the classification of his work under the label of "magical realism...
...The paras, for example, post death lists or carry a laptop with an extensive list of names with such detailed information as to make it obvious these lists are provided by official government bodies, local or otherwise...
...As he writes in one poignant phrase, "The story is true, but it's not farfetched in a region and a profession in which what is considered natural is truly astonishing...
...Multiple selections in the book, for instance, demonstrate the influence of AfroArgentines and indigenous peoples despite their positions at the margins of society...
...From sports and arts to history and politics this is a welcome and timely addition to our understanding of Argentina...
...Throughout the book the reader learns of the vast network of accomplices supporting the paramilitary machine, including the armed forces, police, local administrators and common townspeople seduced by tiresome fear...
...Defining what Argentina isan impossible task in itself-is not the purpose of this book...
...The Spanish version made it to the Los Angeles Times bestseller list...
...The enormous European immigration is given notice, and with it, the importation of a variety of political philosophies...
...Throughout the book several anecdotes, characters, names, events and places come to life that are readily recognizable from the pages of his novels and stories...
...The murder unleashed years of political violence, leaving Colombia reeling to this day...
...In 1948, he was just blocks away from the assassination of Liberal presidential candidate Jorge Eli6cer Gaitin...
...With the benefit of hindsight, he skillfully moves between the past and present, adding to the reader's understanding of the trajectory of Colombian history, his life and his writing...
...With the conflict completely out of control, a valuable perspective is provided on the lives of these unfortunate souls paralyzed by fear and caught in the middle of the chaos...
...The event was not only a political marker for Garcia Mdrquez, but it also made him flee the capital for the coast where he got a series of reporting jobs and solidified himself as a writer...
...The book dispels some of these oversimplifications-bordering on misconceptions-by giving voice to often historically neglected sectors of the population...
...In one humorous selection called "Are We All Neurotic...
...New York: The New Press, 2003, 256 pages, $24.95 (cloth...
...By Gabriel Garcia Mdrquez...
...But there is no denying the country's European semblance either...
...Instead, one of its great strengths is that it challenges the standard overarching generalizations of Argentina as a European poser...
...This format allows an onthe-ground look at life in a town where all that's certain is fear and violence...
...The journalistic piece on the rise of the radical left in the early 20th century and the story of the legendary anarchist assassin, Sim6n Radowitzky, accomplish this task nicely...
...Conveying the complex enigmatic contradiction that is Argentina in the pages of a book is accomplished in this installment of Duke's "Latin America Readers" series (Peru 1995, Brazil 1999, Mexico 2003, Cuba 2003...
...As a cultural anthropologist, he adeptly relates the "multiple realities" of those around him and-with over 30 years experience in Colombia--adds his own valuable insights and reflections on the day's events...
...New York: Knopf, 2002, 592 pages, $25 (cloth...
...By Michael Taussig...
...He stunningly describes the complexity of paramilitary predominance and its evolution by demonstrating how the pistoleros or paras, as they are often referred to, are seen by many townspeople as a welcome, albeit heavy-handed force of law and order...
...This memoir-projected as the first of a series-spans the author's most important years in his formation as a writer, up to about age 30...
...The contradiction between law and lawlessness represented by the paramilitaries is sharply portrayed in their seemingly primary role as exterminators of delincuentes, literally "delinquents," a category that includes common criminals, young gang members, drug addicts, prostitutes and other "undesirables...
...At 23 he accompanies his mother to sell their old house in the coastal town of Aracataca, Colombia, where he was born...
...Here we learn the origins of Macondo, the fictional town where he set many of his stories...
...One of the recurring definiNACIA REPORT ON THE AMERICAS 46REVIEWS tions implied in this chronicle is that of a social "cleansing...
...He describes his days as a young man at bars and cafes with friends conversing for hours about literature and writing...
...Through the diary format, Taussig recounts two weeks in a paramilitary-besieged town near Cali in the Cauca Valley of Western Colombia...
Vol. 37 • September 2003 • No. 2
