El censo
Encyclopedia
A play and comedy by Mexican dramatist Emilio Carballido
that opens in an unregistered sewing shop in La Lagunilla in 1945. A wealthy upper-class woman, Remedios, is being fitted for a new dress by two sisters, Herlinda and Dora. The third seamstress, Concha, represents the overworked and underpaid lowest class. Concha resents her position and strikes out at the sisters by trying to undermine the economic exchange between the sisters and Remedios. Although struggling to make ends meet, Herlinda and Dora are able to survive on their profits by not registering with the government, which would require them to pay taxes on their earnings. When a census-taker arrives at the door, the sisters panic and try all sorts of methods to get rid of him. Herlinda tries to bribe the census-taker with money with the hope that the shop's information will not end up in the department of tax collection. The census-taker is frustrated with the inability to acquire the information from the sister's and we soon learn that he, too, is a victim of an economic depression
and is only trying to make ends meet himself.
Voces De Hispanoamérica Antología Literaria Rachel Chang-Rodriguez, Malva E. Filer 3rd Ed.
English Translation
Emilio Carballido
Emilio Carballido was a Mexican writer who earned particular renown as a playwright....
that opens in an unregistered sewing shop in La Lagunilla in 1945. A wealthy upper-class woman, Remedios, is being fitted for a new dress by two sisters, Herlinda and Dora. The third seamstress, Concha, represents the overworked and underpaid lowest class. Concha resents her position and strikes out at the sisters by trying to undermine the economic exchange between the sisters and Remedios. Although struggling to make ends meet, Herlinda and Dora are able to survive on their profits by not registering with the government, which would require them to pay taxes on their earnings. When a census-taker arrives at the door, the sisters panic and try all sorts of methods to get rid of him. Herlinda tries to bribe the census-taker with money with the hope that the shop's information will not end up in the department of tax collection. The census-taker is frustrated with the inability to acquire the information from the sister's and we soon learn that he, too, is a victim of an economic depression
Recession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction, a general slowdown in economic activity. During recessions, many macroeconomic indicators vary in a similar way...
and is only trying to make ends meet himself.
Themes
- Class conflictClass conflictClass conflict is the tension or antagonism which exists in society due to competing socioeconomic interests between people of different classes....
- Between the various characters in the play
- Corruption
- Of the people
- Of the government: not effective.
- Machismo
- In the drunk character Paco
Sources
Voces De Hispanoamérica Antología Literaria Rachel Chang-Rodriguez, Malva E. Filer 3rd Ed.
External links
An English translation of the playEnglish Translation