Borrow it
Coverart for item
The Resource The buried mirror : reflections on Spain and the New World, Carlos Fuentes

The buried mirror : reflections on Spain and the New World, Carlos Fuentes

Creator
Summary
In his introduction to this passionate history of Spain and the Spanish-speaking peoples of the Americas, Carlos Fuentes asks the necessary question: What do we really have to celebrate on the five hundredth anniversary of Columbus's historic voyage to the New World? After all, the quincentennial of the "discovery of America" finds the Latin American republics in a state of deep crisis, with inflation, unemployment, and excessive foreign debt threatening their still precarious economic and political institutions. But Fuentes finds much consolation in an amazingly rich cultural heritage, one that has been created with "the greatest joy, the greatest gravity, and the greatest risk" and that lives in art, in literature, and above all in the vital societies of Central and South America. From the mysterious cave drawings at Altamira to the explosive graffiti on the walls of East Los Angeles, images of Spain and the Americas speak to us of the great variety of Spanish culture. Carlos Fuentes knows this culture intimately. Combining a sophisticated perspective on world events and a novelist's eye for irony and metaphor, he weaves a historical narrative of dazzling color and vibrancy. Sweeping across centuries of tumultuous history, Fuentes gives new life to monarchs and conquistadors, to Indian cultures and revolutions, and finally to modern-day Spain, Latin America, and the Hispanic United States. History and its players come alive on every page, in the stories of the famous and the little-known, the heroes and tyrants, martyrs and saints, virgins and kings. Using the illuminating metaphor of mirrors, inspired by mirrors found in ancient burial caches in the Americas, Fuentes challenges us to think in new ways about how a national character is formed, how a stereotype evolves, and what continuities are discovered when a human community truly understands its roots. Illustrated with more than 160 stunning drawings, paintings, and photographs, The Buried Mirror celebrates a culture of enormous wealth and diversity, as Carlos Fuentes fulfills the poet Pablo Neruda's resounding cry, "I am here to sing this history."
Language
eng
Work
Publication
Extent
1 online resource (399 pages
Contents
  • Pt. 1: The Virgin and the bull. Sun and shadow ; The conquest of Spain ; The reconquest of Spain ; 1492 : the crucial year
  • Pt. 2: The conflict of the gods. The rise and fall of the Indian world ; The conquest and reconquest of the New World
  • Pt.3: Children of La Mancha. The age of empire ; The century of gold ; The baroque culture of the New World ; The age of Goya ; Toward independence
  • Pt. 5: The price of freedom. Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín ; The time of tyrants ; The culture of independence ; Land and liberty
  • Pt. 5: Unfinished business. Latin America ; Contemporary Spain ; Hispanic U.S.A
Link
Instance
Label
The buried mirror : reflections on Spain and the New World
Title
The buried mirror
Title remainder
reflections on Spain and the New World
Statement of responsibility
Carlos Fuentes
Creator
Subject
Language
eng
Summary
In his introduction to this passionate history of Spain and the Spanish-speaking peoples of the Americas, Carlos Fuentes asks the necessary question: What do we really have to celebrate on the five hundredth anniversary of Columbus's historic voyage to the New World? After all, the quincentennial of the "discovery of America" finds the Latin American republics in a state of deep crisis, with inflation, unemployment, and excessive foreign debt threatening their still precarious economic and political institutions. But Fuentes finds much consolation in an amazingly rich cultural heritage, one that has been created with "the greatest joy, the greatest gravity, and the greatest risk" and that lives in art, in literature, and above all in the vital societies of Central and South America. From the mysterious cave drawings at Altamira to the explosive graffiti on the walls of East Los Angeles, images of Spain and the Americas speak to us of the great variety of Spanish culture. Carlos Fuentes knows this culture intimately. Combining a sophisticated perspective on world events and a novelist's eye for irony and metaphor, he weaves a historical narrative of dazzling color and vibrancy. Sweeping across centuries of tumultuous history, Fuentes gives new life to monarchs and conquistadors, to Indian cultures and revolutions, and finally to modern-day Spain, Latin America, and the Hispanic United States. History and its players come alive on every page, in the stories of the famous and the little-known, the heroes and tyrants, martyrs and saints, virgins and kings. Using the illuminating metaphor of mirrors, inspired by mirrors found in ancient burial caches in the Americas, Fuentes challenges us to think in new ways about how a national character is formed, how a stereotype evolves, and what continuities are discovered when a human community truly understands its roots. Illustrated with more than 160 stunning drawings, paintings, and photographs, The Buried Mirror celebrates a culture of enormous wealth and diversity, as Carlos Fuentes fulfills the poet Pablo Neruda's resounding cry, "I am here to sing this history."
Cataloging source
DLC
http://library.link/vocab/creatorName
Fuentes, Carlos
Dewey number
946/.02
Illustrations
illustrations
Index
index present
LC call number
DP48
LC item number
.F84 1992
Literary form
non fiction
Nature of contents
  • dictionaries
  • bibliography
http://library.link/vocab/subjectName
  • Spain
  • Spain
  • Latin America
  • Espagne
  • Espagne
  • Amérique latine
  • Beeldvorming
  • Kultur
  • Rezeption
  • Geschichte
  • Kontinuität
  • Spanien
  • Lateinamerika
  • USA
  • Hispanos
Label
The buried mirror : reflections on Spain and the New World, Carlos Fuentes
Link
Instantiates
Publication
Bibliography note
Includes bibliographical references (p. 366-384) and index
Contents
Pt. 1: The Virgin and the bull. Sun and shadow ; The conquest of Spain ; The reconquest of Spain ; 1492 : the crucial year -- Pt. 2: The conflict of the gods. The rise and fall of the Indian world ; The conquest and reconquest of the New World -- Pt.3: Children of La Mancha. The age of empire ; The century of gold ; The baroque culture of the New World ; The age of Goya ; Toward independence -- Pt. 5: The price of freedom. Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín ; The time of tyrants ; The culture of independence ; Land and liberty -- Pt. 5: Unfinished business. Latin America ; Contemporary Spain ; Hispanic U.S.A
Extent
1 online resource (399 pages
Form of item
online
Other physical details
illustrations (some color))
Specific material designation
remote
System control number
(OCoLC)1028871825
Label
The buried mirror : reflections on Spain and the New World, Carlos Fuentes
Link
Publication
Bibliography note
Includes bibliographical references (p. 366-384) and index
Contents
Pt. 1: The Virgin and the bull. Sun and shadow ; The conquest of Spain ; The reconquest of Spain ; 1492 : the crucial year -- Pt. 2: The conflict of the gods. The rise and fall of the Indian world ; The conquest and reconquest of the New World -- Pt.3: Children of La Mancha. The age of empire ; The century of gold ; The baroque culture of the New World ; The age of Goya ; Toward independence -- Pt. 5: The price of freedom. Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín ; The time of tyrants ; The culture of independence ; Land and liberty -- Pt. 5: Unfinished business. Latin America ; Contemporary Spain ; Hispanic U.S.A
Extent
1 online resource (399 pages
Form of item
online
Other physical details
illustrations (some color))
Specific material designation
remote
System control number
(OCoLC)1028871825

Subject

Library Locations

  • Internet ArchiveBorrow it
    300 Funston Ave, San Francisco, CA, 94118, US
    37.7823215 -122.4716373

Library Links

Zepheira Logo
Structured data from the Bibframe namespace is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License by Internet Archive - Open Library. Additional terms may apply to data associated with third party namespaces.
Processing Feedback ...