Call for Papers 2018

A Call for Papers and Art

Latin American Boom: English and Spanish Colloquium 2018

A High School Colloquium Celebrating El Boom Latinoamericano

 A Collaboration of English and Spanish Departments

Cistercian Preparatory School—Irving, Texas—February 7, 2018

Theme:

Boom writers, inspired by the poetic giants of Latin American modernismo and the early 20^th century works of storytellers such as Jorge Luis Borges, Alejo Carpentier, and Juan Rulfo, brought lo real maravilloso to a worldwide audience in the 1960s and 1970s. Magical realism grew in popularity at a time when the Latin American world was in unprecedented flux, as postcolonial countries wrestled with differing political ideologies, social injustice, national identities, and economic ups and downs.

The colloquium organizers have selected four very different short stories as the focus of the HSC. These stories have been chosen either for their handling of realismo mágico and/or their unique narrative styles, all of which laid the groundwork for The Boom’s global success. Ferré’s piece, which was published well after the other three, undoubtedly serves as an example of classic Boom literature.   

 The stories are as follows:

1.       “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings" by García Gabriel Márquez

2.       “Axolotl” by Julio Cortázar

3.       “Chac Mool” by Carlos Fuentes

4.       “The Youngest Doll” by Rosario Ferré

We encourage interested teachers to incorporate at least three of the four stories into their curriculum in either English or Spanish (or both). The extent to which English teachers and language teachers collaborate is up to each individual school.  Students are invited to submit an essay on one story, writing in English or Spanish. The essay should be 1000-1500 words. Essays should represent the student-author’s own writing and insight, and should conform to whatever citation format is standard for your school. A few other specifics about format are highlighted below:

A.      Papers should be double-spaced with 1” margins and use a standard font such as 12 pt. Times New Roman.

B.      English submissions should be sent ELECTRONICALLY to gnied@cistercian.org; Spanish submissions, to lhernandez@cistercian.org. Schools may instruct their students to submit papers directly or via a faculty sponsor.

C.      All electronic submissions should be either a Word file (.doc/.docx) or pdf file.

D.      The obligatory cover sheet should contain the essay’s title, student’s name, grade, school, and the name of the teacher/faculty sponsor. The student’s name should not appear as a header within the body of the paper.

While students are encouraged to make use of the large body of scholarly, secondary literature, this is NOT a requirement for making a submission.

ESSAY PROMPTS

A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings

·         The advent of the old man with wings provokes a variety of reactions from the people, both personal and communal. The man’s status in the community seems to evolve over the course of time. What do the peoples’ reaction to him tell us about the cultural values and societal conventions?  What critique of society might García Márquez be offering through this story?

·         Identify the ways in which García Márquez uses humor as well as realismo mágico to relate this tale. Does the narrative style and story structure contribute to the tale’s meaning, and if so, how?

·         García Márquez chose not to use the word “angel” in the title. In the story, various characters try to classify the old man. Identify the ways in which he is labeled. Is “angel” the best term for him? Is the old man an angel after all?  Why or why not?

Axolotl

·         What defines the appeal of the axolotl for the young man? Why does he find himself compelled to commune with them so intimately? What is the significance of their apparent union?

·         Explore the mythological references in the story. For example, what is the significance of the reference to the Aztec god Xolotl?

·         How does the narrative style and the story’s subject matter call the certainty of reality into question? Elaborate on the fantastical elements in the story.

Chac Mool

·         In the story, there is an exchange of power between characters. As one grows weaker, another grows stronger. Looking at the conclusion of the story, what do you think Fuentes is saying about the social stratification of post-Revolutionary Mexico? What can we learn from the humanization of Chac?  

·         Investigate the connection between Mayan history/Aztec mythology (i.e. the Aztec god Tláloc) and the statue of Chac Mool. How does the incorporation of history and Mexican sites in the story help weave reality and fantasy together? How and why does Fuentes use humor in his narration?

The Youngest Doll

·         Analyze the fantastical elements of this story and how realismo mágico is used. How does Ferré use the chágara and the dolls to drive the plot?

·         How does the presence of the chágara criticize society’s objectification of women? What does the story’s conclusion express about machismo?

A Call for 2D Art Illustrations of the Stories

Students are invited to submit 2-D artwork in any medium that is inspired by or that illustrates one or more of the four stories of the colloquium. Selected artwork will be showcased on campus.

Any submitted artwork should be accompanied by a typed Artist's Statement (up to one page in length) along with an image of the work of art you intend to display. The image should be of high enough quality so that the nature of the artwork’s form/subject matter is apparent.

We hope you join us in this celebration of magical realism!

¡Esperamos que participen en la celebración del realismo mágico!