Alejo Carpentier Summary

Biography EssayAlejo Carpentier, a major Latin-American novelist with a dense, allusive style that has influenced other writers, was born in Lausanne, Switzerland, on 26 December 1904, St. Stephen's D... Read more

In the following essay, Weber analyzes the narrative structure of Manhunt, identifying various thematic motifs related to character and chronological development. The protagonist of Alejo Carpentie... Read more

In the following review, Keates assesses the thematic and stylistic features of Concierto barroco, calling the work "a notable exemplar" of Latin American narrative. The Latin America... Read more

In the following essay, Foster examines Carpentier's thematic adaptation of the medieval Everyman allegory in "Highroad of St. James," demonstrating its moral significance in the ... Read more

In the following assessment of The War of Time, Good-sell finds Carpentier's tales inferior to his novels, but considers them significant for the light they shed on Carpentier's craft. ... Read more

In the following excerpt, Jiménez-Fajardo details the significance of the inverted temporal progression of "Journey Back to the Source," linking the linguistic implications of the... Read more

In the following essay, Mason studies the thematic links between time, place, and fragmented narration in "Right of Sanctuary," showing the significance of the story's indetermina... Read more

Critical Essay by Helmy F. Giacoman El Acoso, in addition to its many virtues as a novella, is a rare successful attempt meaningfully and consistently to represent in a literary work the complex stru... Read more

Critical Essay by Gregory Rabassa Carpentier digs into the past; it almost seems as if he cannot get away from it, even in his novel The Lost Steps, which is contemporary in time but is really a sear... Read more

Critical Essay by Alan Cheuse [Some] readers may have … decided that indeed the reasons for Carpentier's failure to capture an audience here are those same reasons put forth by the earl... Read more

Critical Essay by Roberto GonzÁlez EchevarrÍa In Carpentier, as in most modern literature, allegory rests on the possibility of carrying the permutations [of allegory] further, to an id... Read more

In the following essay, Stewart traces the dictator's struggle with identity in Carpentier's Reasons of State. Ostensibly Alejo Carpentier's 1974 novel, Reasons of State, conce... Read more

In the following essay, Verzasconi discusses how Carpentier uses the myth of Sisyphus in his portrayal of Juan in "El Camino de Santiago." "¿Qué capitán es... Read more

In the following essay, Kirk analyzes the theme of concientización or consciousness-raising as found in Carpentier's work, focusing on El reino de este mundo, Los pasos perididos, and El... Read more

In the following essay, Bost asserts, "It is in Concierto barroco that Carpentier most imaginatively combines two of his principal concerns in his exploration of historical America: the play of... Read more

In the following essay, Goldberg traces the instances of repetition in Carpentier's El reino de este mundo and discusses what the repetition says about his conception of history. Alejo Carpe... Read more