Men of Maize: Analysis of Major Characters
"Men of Maize" is a novel rich in cultural significance, exploring themes of conflict between indigenous peoples and external forces over land and resources, particularly maize cultivation. The story centers on Gaspár Ilóm, an Indian guerrilla leader who resists the destructive practices of maize growers, believing his spirit curses those who harm the sacred forests. Piojosa Grande, his wife, embodies the connection between rain and maize, symbolizing life and sustenance. The narrative also includes Tomás Machojón, an elderly landowner tormented by guilt and madness, who ultimately perishes in a fire he ignites, along with his family and estate.
Other notable characters include Gonzalo "Chalo" Godoy, a military commander considered cursed for his role in the massacre of Ilóm's men, and Goyo Yic, a blind beggar who, after regaining his sight, seeks to reunite with his family. María Tecún, Goyo’s wife, represents the tragic consequences of loss and abandonment. The character of Dionisio "Nicho" Aquino, a postman, highlights personal quests for truth amid broader societal turmoil. Legends entwined with these characters, such as the Deer of the Seventh Fire, enrich the narrative, reflecting the intertwining of myth and reality in the struggles faced by the indigenous community. Overall, the novel underscores the deep connection between people, land, and the cultural narratives that shape their identities.
Men of Maize: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Miguel Ángel Asturias
First published: Hombres de maíz, 1949 (English translation, 1975)
Genre: Novel
Locale: Guatemala
Plot: Social morality
Time: The twentieth century
Gaspár Ilóm (GAHS-pahr ee-LOHM), an Indian guerrilla leader poisoned by the Machojóns. He fought against the maize growers, who were destroying the forests. The Indians believed that he rose from the dead to continue to curse those who burn down the forest to cultivate maize as a cash crop instead of treating it as a sacred food.
Piojosa Grande (pee-oh-HOH-sah GRAHN-deh), the “Great Fleabag,” the wife of Gaspár Ilóm. She tried unsuccessfully to escape the massacre of her husband's men with their son. According to Indian lore, she is the rain and her son is the maize.
Tomás Machojón (toh-MAHS mah-choh-HOHN), an elderly landowner and maize grower. He believes himself and his son to be under the curse of the firefly wizards for having poisoned Gaspár Ilóm. He makes his peons burn land in the hope that he will see his dead son in the fires. In a fit of madness, he sets the maize fields ablaze. He is consumed in the fire, along with his wife, his men, and his hacienda.
Machojón, the son of Tomás Machojón who died in a fire on his journey to claim the hand of Candelario Reinosa. The peons claim that he appears in the flames whenever the forest is burnedtoclearthelandtoplantmaize.
Candelario Reinosa (kahn-dehl-LAHR-ee-oh rra-NOHsah), Machojón's sweetheart. She was convinced that Machojón tried to visit her at night but could not see her.
Colonel Gonzalo “Chalo” Godoy (gohn-SAHL-loh CHAH-loh goh-DOY), the foulmouthed, blue-eyed commander of the Mounted Patrol. The Indians believed that he was cursed by the firefly wizards for having led the massacre of Gaspár Ilóm's men. He died seven years after the massacre in a forest fire that the Indians believe was caused by the Deer of the Seventh Fire.
Goyo Yic (GOH-yoh yeek), an elderly blind Indian beggar abandoned by his wife, María Tecún. After an operation restores his sight, he searches relentlessly for his family, hoping that he can recognize María Tecún by her voice, because he has never seen her. When he and Domingo Revolorio drink all the liquor they have to sell at a fair, they are arrested and imprisoned on an island off the coast. There, Goyo Yic meets his son and María Tecún. After he and his son are released from prison, he returns with them to their village, Pisigüilito. According to Indian legend, a blind Goyo Yic searched for his family. Upon hearing María Tecún's voice, his sight was restored; he then saw her turn into stone on a ridge that bears her name.
María Tecún (teh-KEWN), the freckled, red-haired wife of Goyo Yic, saved by Goyo Yic when the rest of her family was slaughtered. Not wanting any more children, she abandons her husband. She is reunited with him many years later, when she comes to visit their son in prison. Indian lore maintains that a witchcraft spell makes her leave her husband and turns her into stone.
Dionisio “Nicho” Aquino (dee-oh-NEE-see-oh NEE-choh ah-KEE-noh), the postman of San Miguel Acatán. He neglects his postal duties to search for his missing wife. While searching for her, he experiences being guided through a cave into a fantastic subterranean world by an old man who claims to be a firefly wizard. There, he meets the coyote, who is his nagual, or animal protector, and sees Gaspár Ilóm among the Invincible Ones. He realizes that his wife died by falling into a water hole. A fugitive from justice for failing to deliver the town's mail to the capital, he finds work in a hotel on the coast. Through his dealings with the prisoners on the island, he meets Goyo Yic and María Tecún and returns with them to Pisigüilito.
Hilario Sacayón (ee-LAHR-ee-oh sah-kah-YOHN), a mule driver and inventor of stories that become a part of Indian lore. Charged with the task of finding the missing postman, he fails, although he thought he saw Nicho Aquino in the form of a coyote on María Tecún Ridge.
The Deer of the Seventh Fire, who also is identified as the curer and the firefly wizard. When a deer is killed by Gaudencio Tecún, the curer also dies because the deer was the curer's nagual. Indian legend holds that it avenged the death of Gaspár Ilóm and the destruction of the land by killing Godoy and destroying the Machojóns.