- The man who looked like a horse
- The subject of the sphinx
- The monkeys of San Telmo
- Old P.
- The cursed clock
- The Shadow. Thirteen Stories in Opposition
- Facts and wonders
- In a little motel
- Improbable tales
- Shining gray weather
- References
Today there are records of an infinity of Central American stories made impeccably by authors from the middle part of America and that are usually unknown even in their own country.
The story is a short narrative characterized by being real or fictitious stories with few characters. The argument of the stories is usually concise, easily understood and with an intention on the part of the author.
The monkeys of San Telmo, a story by Lizandro Chávez en.m.wikipedia.org
The stories of Central American authors usually touch on themes related to the political situation that was experienced as an anecdote; In addition, it was a resource to incorporate criticism of different issues of the society of the moment.
Although a daily lexicon typical of each region was used, Central American storytellers focused on using universal words in order to more clearly convey the message or moral of each story.
The man who looked like a horse
The Man Who Looked Like a Horse is one of the masterpieces of the Guatemalan writer Rafael Arévalo Martínez, published in 1915.
The first version was born out of the enthusiasm of a group of friends. In the first version, it presented several spelling errors, so Arévalo decided to edit it again.
This work was recognized in its time for its originality, as was the brilliant personality of the protagonist, Mr. Aretal. Through this work, it was possible to meet the Colombian writer Porfirio Barba Jacob, who was fleeing the Mexican Revolution.
At the time he had harsh criticism for presenting a drug addict and bisexual character; however, it did not transcend much thanks to its originality. According to various interpretations that have been given to the story, it is possible that Arevalo has had a relationship with the Colombian.
The subject of the sphinx
The subject of the sphinx is a story written by the Guatemalan Rafael Arévalo Martínez, published in March 1933. This story, along with others by the same author, was dedicated to the poet Gabriela Mistral, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Within this story, the author makes a thesis of the animal identity of man and the explanation of the divisions of the human race: the oxen of passive instinct, the lions as passionate and violent beings, and the eagles as intellectual beings and artists.
The monkeys of San Telmo
Los monos de San Telmo is a book of stories written by Nicaraguan Lizandro Chávez Alfaro, published in 1963. In all the stories in this book there are many themes related to anti-imperialism, this being a concern for the author.
The story is based on the story of a man accompanied by his servant, who wishes to embark 50 monkeys bound for the United States; however, two of them are lost, having to find a replacement for them.
The desperate man kidnaps two colored and naked children to be substitutes for the apes. Throughout the story, the protagonist verbally abuses his servant by threatening him with the payment he gives him for his services.
In this sense, the author makes a criticism of the abuse issues accompanying the work with a social moral.
Old P.
Old P. is one of the stories of the Salvadoran Melitón Barba, whose first edition was published in 1987.
When the Salvadoran short story writer wrote this work, his country was facing a civil war. For that reason, this story presents tones of sadness, loneliness and poverty, reflecting the landscape that was lived in the Central American country.
The tale tells the story of an elderly, scruffy woman who got lost after being abandoned by a man she met in her times as a prostitute. The woman swears loyalty to him, to the point of spending 25 years remembering her youthful love, looking at an old photograph of the man.
The cursed clock
The cursed clock is the first literary work of the Costa Rican Alfonso Chacón Rodríguez, published in 1996. Although Chacón had worked as an electronic engineer, he successfully entered the world of literature.
Through this work, the author hints at the flashes of the realistic mixed with the unusual or magical. The author uses clear language, but in some cases with certain messages and contextuality typical of the Costa Rican.
It is composed of a variety of short stories or pocket tales, with the intention of flying the imagination of readers through their originalities.
The Shadow. Thirteen Stories in Opposition
The Shadow. Thirteen Stories in Opposition, (in Spanish: La Sombra. Thirteen stories in opposition) are part of a compendium of stories written by Panamanian Enrique Jaramillo Levi, which was published in the United States in 1996.
The Panamanian, from several short stories, explains the strange and hidden in life using a surrealist style in order to eliminate the barrier between life and death. It is a story that goes beyond the limits of everyday reality.
All the stories in the play deal with individuals whose lives are entangled in a confrontation of political, sexual, and existential realities within a world of fantasy.
Facts and wonders
Facts and Prodigies is the last story by Nicaraguan Lizandro Chávez Alfaro, published in 1998.
It is a story that is characterized by having fresh and impeccable narratives. The work makes a count of remote places within the territory of Nicaragua. In addition, it describes the paradisiacal places of the Nicaraguan coast.
In a little motel
In a small motel is the last story written by the Salvadoran Melitón Barba, in 2000. In this story, Barba alludes to a dark tone, but at the same time tender, with a mixture of the romantic with the sensual. It is a story characterized by a prose full of simple and easy to understand words.
Improbable tales
Cuentos improbables is a work by the Costa Rican Alfonso Chacón Rodríguez published in 2000. As stated in the foreword to the story, Chacón is a realistic writer who deforms reality in order to demonstrate its mistakes.
It is a work that is characterized by the search for humor and eroticism. Through the use of hyperbole, seek that reality and unreality are the same. Within its improbable tales, anything is possible. It is a work that consists of several stories with the same tone and meaning.
Shining gray weather
Luminoso tiempo gris is made up of a compendium of stories, made by the Panamanian Enrique Jaramillo Levi in 2002. The work was published by the Spanish publisher Pages de Espuma; specialized in the genre of the story.
The characters are constituted so that the reader feels that they are part of the story. Through all the narrative routes, the reader accompanies the characters in the experiences of childhood, adolescence, sexuality, heartbreak, routine and death.
As in all Panamanian stories, the everyday is combined with the magical, the romantic and the erotic.
References
- Old P., by Melitón Barba, Moreno Hernández, (2012). Taken from sdl.librosampleados.mx
- The man who looked like a horse and other stories, Rafael Arévalo Martínez, (nd). Taken from books.google.co.ve
- In a small motel, by Melitón Barba, Moreno Hernández, (2011). Taken from sdl.librosampleados.mx
- Unlikely tales: the tasty reality of the gallo pinto, Froilán Escobar, (nd). Taken from achaconr.wordpress.com
- The cursed clock, Website of Alfonso Chacón Rodríguez, (nd). Taken from achaconr.wordpress.com
- Anti-imperialism and despair in four stories from Los monos de San Telmo, by Lizandro Chávez Alfaro, Mirella Quintana Arévalo de Guido, (1992). Taken from library.usac.edu.gt
- Anthology of the Central American story, Miguel de Cervantes Virtual Library Portal, (nd). Taken from cervantesvirtual.com