Description
Book SynopsisExplores the language of wonder in the history of the New World. Traces the preoccupation with this concept in the history of the Americas from the colonial era to the twentieth century, with the emergence of so-called magical realism.
Trade Review“A rare and brilliant book where exceptionally wide scholarship leads the Anglophone reader into a deeper understanding of some of the wondrous resources of Spanish-speaking cultures.”
—David Tracy,University of Chicago
“Wonder and Exile in the New World is a truly exciting scholarly contribution with some profound insights into the soul of Spain and Latin America. Indeed, once I began reading this book, I could not put it down and read it in one day-long sitting. This is simply a mesmerizing work, which itself provokes the very sense of wonder that the author so painstakingly examines.”
—Roberto Goizueta,Boston College
“It is rare to find scholarly works that incorporate the qualities of profundity, novelty, and beauty in prose. Nava’s Wonder and Exile in the New World is one of these rare finds. And this says nothing of its most important achievement. Through a creative use of the concepts of wonder and exile, this work opens up possibilities for a new understanding of the creation of the Americas. And as if this were not enough already, it also helps us comprehend the religious dimensions in the works of classic Latin American writers. I can honestly say that I highly recommend reading this book.”
—Benjamin Valentin,Andover Newton Theological School
“Alex Nava traces the multiple and inextricable operations of wonder—awe and puzzlement, marvel and mystery, exuberance and exile—in Spain and Latin America over almost five centuries. Wonder is historicized, beginning with European wonderment at unknown territories and peoples in the Americas, moving to the very different kinds of wonderment in Cervantes and Sor Juana, and arriving at the magical realism of our own time. The Baroque and New World Baroque overarch this far-reaching study, underpin its comparative cultural insights, and amplify our own sense of wonder at the dimensions of our shared experience.”
—Lois Parkinson Zamora,University of Houston
Table of ContentsContents
Acknowledgments
List of Abbreviations
Introduction
1 Wonder and Exile: Mystical and Prophetic Perspectives
2 Wanderers and Wonderers in the New World: Voices of the Dispossessed
3 The Hidden God of the Baroque: Baroque Wonders, Baroque Tragedies
4 Baroque Artists in Exile: Cervantes and Sor Juana
5 Mysticism and the Marvelous in Latin American Literature
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index
