Gabriel Garcia Marquez Hailed As Literary Giant

By E. EDUARDO CASTILLO and FRANK BAJAK, Associated Press, San Antonio Express-News: World
Thu, 04/17/2014 - 10:07pm

MEXICO CITY (AP) — His death mourned around the globe, Gabriel Garcia Marquez is being hailed as a giant of modern literature, a writer of intoxicating novels and short stories that illuminated Latin America's passions, superstition, violence and social inequality. The first sentence of "One Hundred Years of Solitude" has become one of the most famous opening lines of all time: "Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendia was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice." Biographer Gerald Martin told The Associated Press that the novel was the first in which "Latin Americans recognized themselves, that defined them, celebrated their passion, their intensity, their spirituality and superstition, their grand propensity for failure." "Poets and beggars, musicians and prophets, warriors and scoundrels, all creatures of that unbridled reality, we have had to ask but little of imagination, for our crucial problem has been a lack of conventional means to render our lives believable," he added. Other nonfiction pieces profiled Venezuela's larger-than-life president, Hugo Chavez, and vividly portrayed how cocaine traffickers led by Pablo Escobar shredded the social and moral fabric of the writer's native Colombia. After a 1981 run-in with Colombia's government in which he was accused of sympathizing with M-19 rebels and sending money to a Venezuelan guerrilla group, the writer moved to Mexico City, which was his main home for the rest of his life. "A great man has died, one whose works gave the literature of our language great reach and prestige," Vargas Llosa said Thursday in TV interview, his voice shaking and face hidden by sunglasses and a baseball cap. Garcia Marquez turned down offers of diplomatic posts and spurned attempts to draft him to run for Colombia's presidency, though he did get involved in peace mediation efforts between the government and leftist rebels.

NEXT
BING NEWS:
  • Is Gabriel García Márquez’s posthumous offering a feminist novel?
    literary melodrama, historical biography, fictional autobiography and the erotic, among others. Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s posthumous novel possesses some of his trademark qualities.Credit ...
    04/5/2024 - 5:00 am | View Link
  • Posthumous publication: Honoring an author’s wishes or literary grave robbing?
    Still, Until August will undoubtedly sell like hot pastéis all over the world, thanks to its author’s fame and reputation. And in Colombia, where Márquez is still regarded as a secular deity, ...
    04/4/2024 - 6:01 pm | View Link
  • Publish and be damned: The saga of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s last novel
    Should the sons of Gabriel Garcia Marquez have released ... The disappointment is all the more acute because Marquez gave himself such a hard act to follow. Hailed as one of the greatest writers ...
    03/29/2024 - 5:00 am | View Link
  • Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s last novel ‘Until August’ is far from perfect. But we are grateful his sons published it
    Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s sons ... by someone else it might have been hailed as superb. But ‘superb’ is a comedown for a great writer, and that’s Marquez’s fate here. “ ...
    03/25/2024 - 12:38 pm | View Link
  • More

 

NEXT
Welcome to Wopular!

Welcome to Wopular

Wopular is an online newspaper rack, giving you a summary view of the top headlines from the top news sites.

Senh Duong (Founder)
Wopular, MWB, RottenTomatoes

Subscribe to Wopular's RSS Fan Wopular on Facebook Follow Wopular on Twitter Follow Wopular on Google Plus

MoviesWithButter : Our Sister Site

Movies With Butter More Movie News

More World News

  • Ally of Pakistan’s Prime Minister Demands End to Ban on Social Media Platform X
    Time, Friday - 04/19/2024 - 06:47 AM

    ISLAMABAD — An important ally of Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif demanded the government lift a two-month-old ban on the social media platform X, saying on Friday that it violates citizens’ right to speech and expression. The ban on X has been in place since February, when the party of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan announced a nationwide protest against alleged election rigging ahead of the Feb.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • Amid U.S.-China Rivalry, Beijing Agrees to Send Two Furry Diplomats to San Francisco
    Time, Friday - 04/19/2024 - 05:15 AM

    BEIJING — San Francisco is the latest U. S. city preparing to receive a pair of pandas from China, in a continuation of Beijing’s famed “panda diplomacy.” San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced the panda loan in Beijing on Friday, alongside officials from China Wildlife Conservation Association, or CWCA. It will be San Francisco’s first time hosting the beloved animals long-term—the result of a yearlong advocacy campaign, Breed said. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] San Diego previously announced it was receiving two pandas back in February. China is home to the only natural habitat for pandas and owns most of the black-and-white bears in the world.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • The Modi-fication of India Is Almost Complete
    Time, Friday - 04/19/2024 - 04:00 AM

    Earlier this month, two Indian writers published an ode to their Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. Written in lyric form and titled “Forever In Our Hearts,” it recounts his achievements while singing his praises in highly effusive language. “With courage and wisdom/you show citizens the way,” it gushes. “Oh Modi, oh Modi/their hopes never sway/A people’s beacon, in whom they see light/Oh Modi, oh Modi, guiding day and night.” [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Such reverence captures the essence of Modi’s popularity.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • The U.S. Vetoes Resolution to Upgrade Palestine’s U.N. Membership
    Time, Friday - 04/19/2024 - 01:05 AM

    The U. S. blocked on Thursday a draft resolution that would have allowed the United Nations General Assembly to vote on allowing a Palestinian state to become a full member state of the U. N. The move has triggered backlash from other states and pro-Palestinian groups, as global divisions continue to sharpen over Israel’s war on Gaza. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The U.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • Apple Pulls Meta’s WhatsApp and Threads From App Store in China After Government Order
    Time, Friday - 04/19/2024 - 12:50 AM

    Apple Inc. said that it removed Meta Platforms Inc.’s WhatsApp and Threads from its China apps store after an order from the country’s internet regulator, which said the services pose risks to the country’s security. The order comes on the heels of a cleanup program Chinese regulators initiated in 2023 that was expected to remove many defunct or unregistered apps from domestic iOS and Android stores.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • Argentina Requests to Join NATO as President Milei Seeks to Boost Nation’s Global Prominence
    Time, Thursday - 04/18/2024 - 09:45 PM

    BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Argentina formally requested on Thursday to join NATO as a global partner, a status that would clear the way for greater political and security cooperation at a time when the right-wing government of President Javier Milei aims to boost ties with Western powers and attract investment. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The request came as NATO’s Deputy General Secretary Mircea Geoana held talks in Brussels on regional security challenges with visiting Argentine Defense Minister Luis Petri. Geoana said he welcomed Argentina’s bid to become an accredited partner in the alliance—a valued role short of “ally” for nations that are not in NATO’s geographical area and not required to take part in collective military actions.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share