The Death of Artemio Cruz
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The Death of Artemio Cruz
Carlos Fuentes author of The Death of Artemio Cruz has used his novel to show how Mexico has been transformed and molded into its present state through the use of his character Artemio Cruz. Fuentes uses Cruz to bring together a historical truth about the greedy capital seekers, robber barons, if you will, who after the revolution brought Mexico directly back to into the situation it was in before and during the Revolution. Fuentes wrote the novel in nineteen sixty-two, shortly after the Cuban Revolution. Fuentes is able to express his disappointment from the Mexican Revolution, the revolution by the people in his native land. The revolution seemed to change nothing for the average person in Mexico; the change that took place was merely a shift in power. The power transferred to the money makers, crooked politicians and the business men who ultimately practiced on the same ideas that the revolution tried to end.
Carlos Fuentes was born on November the eleventh, nineteen twenty-eight; he was the son of a Mexican diplomat. Carlos was very well educated; he attended schools in Washington D.C., later went on to get a law degree from the University of Mexico in Mexico City, and even studied abroad at the Institute of Advanced International Studies in Geneva. He was always inspired by writing; his law degree was merely a way to satisfy his parents. His parents did not see a future in being a writer. Fuentes was also a very well rounded traveler, because of his fathers career Fuentes was able to get a look at other cultures and governments. His travels took him throughout Mexico, the United States, Cuba, into Europe, and most importantly throughout Latin America. He was able to come to understand how governments worked, the way big business used people for their own wealth and power. Fuentes was rather disgusted by corrupt governments and big businesses and actively stood up for what he believed was right. He was very liberal and at one point even joined the communist party. He used his writings to display to people from around the world the way that business and government used and betrayed the average citizen. He was revolutionary in the way he was able to use characters in his writings to disclose the big picture and history of his own home land, the country of Mexico. Fuentes was able to reach out to people of all walks of life, his writings were eventually all translated, and he became known worldwide. Fuentes wrote many controversial books, some of those were: Terra Nostra, The Campaign, The Old Gringo, Where the Air Is clear, The Death of Artemio Cruz, The Good Conscience, The Orange Tree, etc. I believe Carlos Fuentes published nineteen books altogether, many of the books seem to be almost chapters of one large novel; a novel that was an idea to bring information to the people, to help people think about things outside of the box, the way he saw things. His work was very insightful and helped to show the struggle of Mexico throughout history and even to the present day. Fuentes also wrote many essays of social protest and several short stories. He had a love of history, a desire to show the truth and the want to enlighten people to believe in a better way of life, all of these things he was able to due in his writings. I believe he just wanted the average person to understand how and why their economy, Government and their basic existence came to be. . . He was trying to reach the average Mexican. I believe Fuentes basically blamed the people of Mexico for letting these things happen to themselves, he was trying to shine some light and understanding on the topic. I believe he succeeded.
The book The Death of Artemio Cruz was rather hard for me to read. His writing style is very different, the book looks into one mans life with no apparent course. He seemed to jump around; every chapter was another look back in time. There