The War of the End of the World
Encyclopedia
The War of the End of the World is a 1981
novel
written by Peruvian novelist Mario Vargas Llosa
. It is a novelization
of the War of Canudos
conflict in late 19th-century Brazil
.
and the end of slavery
— in the province of Bahia
in Northeastern Brazil, the poor of the backlands are attracted by the charismatic figure and simple religious teachings of Antonio Conselheiro
, the Counselor, who preaches that the end of the world
is imminent and that the political chaos that surrounds the collapse of the Empire of Brazil and its replacement by a republic
is the work of the devil.
Seizing a hacienda
in an area blighted by economic decline at Canudos
the Counselor's followers build a large town and defeat repeated and ever larger military expeditions designed to remove them. As the state's violence against them increases they too turn increasingly violent, even seizing the modern weapons deployed against them. In an epic final clash a whole army is sent to extirpate Canudos and instigates a terrible and brutal battle with the poor while politicians of the old order see their world destroyed in the conflagration.
), La Casa Verde (The Green House
) and Conversación en la Catedral (Conversation in the Cathedral
), though many critics agree that The War of the End of the World should also be included among these three. The author is famously known for considering this his most accomplished novel — an opinion shared by the Chilean novelist Roberto Bolaño
, as well as the American critic Harold Bloom
, who even includes the novel in what he calls the "Western canon
."
As he did later on with La Fiesta Del Chivo (The Feast of the Goat
), Vargas Llosa tackles a huge number of characters and stories caught during a time of strife, interweaving these in way that gives us a picture of what it was to live in those times.
1981 in literature
The year 1981 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction given for the first time...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
written by Peruvian novelist Mario Vargas Llosa
Mario Vargas Llosa
Jorge Mario Pedro Vargas Llosa, 1st Marquis of Vargas Llosa is a Peruvian-Spanish writer, politician, journalist, essayist, and Nobel Prize laureate. Vargas Llosa is one of Latin America's most significant novelists and essayists, and one of the leading authors of his generation...
. It is a novelization
Novelization
A novelization is a novel that is written based on some other media story form rather than as an original work.Novelizations of films usually add background material not found in the original work to flesh out the story, because novels are generally longer than screenplays...
of the War of Canudos
War of Canudos
The War of Canudos was a conflict between the state of Brazil and a group of some 30,000 settlers who had founded their own community in the northeastern state of Bahia, named Canudos...
conflict in late 19th-century Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
.
Plot summary
In the midst of the economic decline — following droughtDrought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
and the end of slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
— in the province of Bahia
Bahia
Bahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
in Northeastern Brazil, the poor of the backlands are attracted by the charismatic figure and simple religious teachings of Antonio Conselheiro
Antônio Conselheiro
Antônio Conselheiro was a Brazilian religious leader, preacher, and founder of the village of Canudos, the scene of the War of Canudos , a civil rebellion against the central government which was brutally stamped out with the loss of more than 15,000 lives.-Early...
, the Counselor, who preaches that the end of the world
End of the world
End of the world may refer to:* End time, in religion* List of places described as the end of land or the world* Expected tidal destruction of Earth when Sun becomes red-giant star-Albums:* End of the World , 1968 work by Aphrodite's Child...
is imminent and that the political chaos that surrounds the collapse of the Empire of Brazil and its replacement by a republic
Republic
A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...
is the work of the devil.
Seizing a hacienda
Hacienda
Hacienda is a Spanish word for an estate. Some haciendas were plantations, mines, or even business factories. Many haciendas combined these productive activities...
in an area blighted by economic decline at Canudos
Canudos
Canudos was a town founded in the racially diverse Bahia state of northeastern Brazil in 1893 by Antônio Vicente Mendes Maciel. Antonio was an itinerant preacher from Ceara who had been wandering through the backroads and lesser-inhabited areas of the country from the 1870s onwards, followed by a...
the Counselor's followers build a large town and defeat repeated and ever larger military expeditions designed to remove them. As the state's violence against them increases they too turn increasingly violent, even seizing the modern weapons deployed against them. In an epic final clash a whole army is sent to extirpate Canudos and instigates a terrible and brutal battle with the poor while politicians of the old order see their world destroyed in the conflagration.
Analysis
It is generally believed that Vargas Llosa's three milestone novels are La Ciudad y Los Perros (The Time of the HeroThe Time of the Hero
The Time of the Hero was the first novel published by Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa. Set among a community of cadets in a Lima military school , it is notable for its experimental and complex employment of multiple perspectives...
), La Casa Verde (The Green House
The Green House
The Green House is the second novel by the Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa, published in 1966. The novel covers more than forty years...
) and Conversación en la Catedral (Conversation in the Cathedral
Conversation in the Cathedral
Conversation in the Cathedral is a 1969 novel by Peruvian writer and essayist Mario Vargas Llosa, recognized as one of his major works. It is a portrayal of Peru under the dictatorship of Manuel A. Odría in the 1950s, and deals with the lives of characters from different social strata...
), though many critics agree that The War of the End of the World should also be included among these three. The author is famously known for considering this his most accomplished novel — an opinion shared by the Chilean novelist Roberto Bolaño
Roberto Bolaño
Roberto Bolaño Ávalos was a Chilean novelist and poet. In 1999 he won the Rómulo Gallegos Prize for his novel Los detectives salvajes , and in 2008 he was posthumously awarded the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction for his novel 2666, which was described by board member Marcela Valdes...
, as well as the American critic Harold Bloom
Harold Bloom
Harold Bloom is an American writer and literary critic, and is Sterling Professor of Humanities at Yale University. He is known for his defense of 19th-century Romantic poets, his unique and controversial theories of poetic influence, and his prodigious literary output, particularly for a literary...
, who even includes the novel in what he calls the "Western canon
Western canon
The term Western canon denotes a canon of books and, more broadly, music and art that have been the most important and influential in shaping Western culture. As such, it includes the "greatest works of artistic merit." Such a canon is important to the theory of educational perennialism and the...
."
As he did later on with La Fiesta Del Chivo (The Feast of the Goat
The Feast of the Goat
The Feast of the Goat is a novel by the Peruvian Nobel Prize in Literature laureate Mario Vargas Llosa. The book is set in the Dominican Republic and portrays the assassination of Dominican dictator Rafael Leónidas Trujillo, and its aftermath, from two distinct standpoints a generation apart:...
), Vargas Llosa tackles a huge number of characters and stories caught during a time of strife, interweaving these in way that gives us a picture of what it was to live in those times.
Characters
- Antônio Conselheiro (The Little Blessed One)
- The Lion of Natuba
- João Abade (Abbot João)
- The Dwarf
- Father Joaquim
- Barón de Cañabrava
- Pajeú
- Rufino
- Galileo Gall
- María Quadrado
- Moreira César
- Jurema
- The Near-Sighted Journalist
- João Grande (Big João)
- Pires Ferreira
- Antônio Vilanova
- Antônio el Fogueteiro