Narrative
El pez de oro
Not translated into English
Gamaliel Churata · 1957
Synopsis
An unclassifiable work, at once narrative, philosophical essay, poetry and epic, organised in ten "retablos", after the manner of Andean altarpieces, without a linear plot or characters in the usual sense. In a universe where the pre-Hispanic past, the colony and modernity mingle, appear the golden fish, emblem of Andean knowledge, the golden puma, the siren of Titicaca, the llama-headed man and Wiracocha. The text interweaves Spanish, Quechua and Aymara, with many neologisms.
Context
Published in La Paz in 1957, during the author's long Bolivian exile, the book extends and goes beyond the adventure of the Orkopata group of Puno. It seeks not so much to represent the Indian as to enter into dialogue with his world, mixing Andean myths and concepts with Western thought and inventing a mestizo language; critics find its only equivalent in José María Arguedas. Long little known, reissued in Puno in 1987 and in Madrid in 2012, it was declared cultural heritage of the Peruvian nation in 2024. It has not been translated.
Who it is for
For readers ready for a demanding work, which thinks Andean culture from the inside, in an invented language.
Prizes and reception
Nicknamed by some critics the "Bible of indigenism", it is regarded as one of the most complex works of Andean literature.