After reading a brief description of Fidel Castro and Gabriel Garcia Marquez's relationship in our homework, I decided that I would have to dig deeper. I was not disappointed. I bet you didn't know that Castro edited many works composed by a Nobel Prize-winning author (Marquez, of course) or that he was a seafood connoiseur.
(My source was an article written by Stéphanie Panichelli-Batalla. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/fidel-castro-gabriel-garcia-marquez-a7474596.html)
Marquez and Castro might not have seen eye-to-eye on political issues, but according to author Panichelli-Batalla, their relationship flourished as a result of "their common interest in literature."
It's intriguing to me that two people who came from very different backgrounds and who had vastly different perspectives of the world could find common ground by use of literature. We've seen other evidence of the power of language throughout history; it can drive people apart or unite them.
Castro actually noticed a factual error one of Marquez's books, and from then on, Castro fact-checked many of Marquez's books before they were published (according to Marquez). Don't you wish the President of Cuba could read your English papers before you turned them in to Ms. King?
According to author Panichelli-Batalla, Marquez impacted some of Castro's political decisions. Marquez likely played a role in the freeing of prominent political prisoners Padilla, Norberto Fuentes, and Armando Valladares. That's wild!
What do you think of Castro and Marquez's unconventional friendship? It spanned four decades...
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| Best Buddies Fidel Castro (right) and Gabriel Garcia Marquez (middle) smile(?) for the camera |
1 comment:
I'm intrigued to read such a well-written account on the collaborative work Castro and Marquez participated in throughout each of their individual careers. It's thought-provoking to think of an author as an influence to a political leader and vice versa. In thinking of the influence Castro and Marquez both had on each other's work and decisions, it is comforting to know that their relationship was one based on mutualism, one in which they both benefited. Otherwise, it is plausible to say that Castro's political decisions may have been even more radical without the practical, nicotine-ridden blood of Gabriel Garcia Marquez. The same goes for Castro's influence on Marquez, for without the factual backup Castro provided for him on multiple accounts, Marquez's well-respected foundation by which a lot of Latin-American literature is written, may not have ever been in place. The thing I find most interesting about Castro and Marquez's relationship in more ways than not is that although they were both Latin American, they came from very different countries in Latin America: Cuba and Colombia. Although much of both countries' histories are strongly rooted in violence, Colombia recovered in a way that was more beneficial to their people and government in the form of a democracy. Cuba continues to follow a totalitarian way of government in communism, seemingly controversial to Marquez, a Colombian writer. Therefore, Marquez can clearly be labeled an open-minded, well-rounded man who proves his characteristics in his ingenious writing. Another interesting situation to consider in order to continue exploring the intriguing nature of Marquez's relationships and position in global society, specifically towards the end of his life, is that of his friendship with Bill Clinton. Clinton lifted the travel ban that was placed on Marquez for many years. Marquez, formerly offering significant criticisms on U.S. foreign policy, was happy to attend dinners at the White House and speak with Clinton closely, even by defending him throughout the Monica Lewinsky scandal. The latter example may have just been him returning to his Latin American roots of machismo, but nonetheless, Marquez proved himself throughout his career and lifetime as a versatile and respectable man, author, and friend.
Article URL:
https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/04/17/gabriel-garcia-marquez-bill-clintons-favorite-fiction-writer-has-died
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