Pedro Páramo
"Pedro Páramo" is a seminal Mexican novel written by Juan Rulfo, recognized as one of the most significant literary contributions of the latter half of the twentieth century. The story follows Juan Preciado, who embarks on a quest to find his estranged father, Pedro Páramo, guided by the memories and voices of the dead in the ghostly town of Comala. The narrative intertwines themes of identity, family, and unfulfilled love as Juan navigates a world where the past heavily influences the present.
Pedro Páramo is depicted as a powerful figure whose legacy casts a long shadow over the inhabitants of Comala, particularly through his obsessive love for his childhood sweetheart, Susana San Juan. Susana's tragic life, shaped by her tumultuous relationships and mental turmoil, further complicates the search for identity and connection. The novel's structure is non-linear, featuring two distinct sections: the first from Juan's perspective after his death, and the second offering an omniscient view of Comala's history prior to his arrival.
Rulfo's narrative style employs fragmented storytelling that challenges readers to piece together the characters' identities and their interconnected fates, reflecting broader themes of memory and loss. "Pedro Páramo" was also adapted into a film in 1967, showcasing its lasting impact on Mexican culture and literature.
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Subject Terms
Pedro Páramo
Writer
- Born: May 16, 1918
- Birthplace: Barranca de Apulco, Sayula, Jalisco, Mexico
- Died: January 7, 1986
- Place of death: Mexico City, Mexico
First published: 1955 (English translation, 1959)
The Work
Writer. Pedro Páramo is one of the most important Mexican novels of the second half of the twentieth century. In episodes that recall a number of universal myths, and with Mexican characters who recall Odysseus, Telemachus, Oedipus, Electra, and others, author Juan Rulfo tells about people searching for identity in love, family origins, and interpersonal relationships.
Juan Preciado is sent by his mother, Dolores, to find Pedro Páramo, the father he never knew. Páramo abandoned Juan and Dolores before Juan was born. Juan’s half-brother Abundio guides him to Comala, located “at the mouth of Hell,” where ghosts speak from the grave to describe the sinister influence of Pedro Páramo on the town and its inhabitants. Juan dies without discovering his identity, since he never meets his father. Páramo died years before Juan’s arrival, murdered by his son Abundio.
Among the ghostly voices of Comala is that of Susana San Juan, Páramo’s childhood sweetheart and the obsession of his life. When young Susana left Comala in the company of her father, Bartolomé, Páramo waited thirty years for her return. When she reappeared, she was psychologically disturbed by an incestuous relationship forced upon her by Bartolomé. In her delirium, Susana confuses Bartolomé and Páramo with a third man: Florencio. Florencio is Susana’s husband, or perhaps he is a sublimation of the father figure in Susana’s mind. Susana finds happiness and fulfillment in fantasies about her relationship with Florencio. Her madness makes her inaccessible to Páramo. As does Juan, Páramo dies without finding the identity sought, in Páramo’s case, in the love of Susana San Juan.
Rulfo’s novel is presented in two sections. In the first, which has no chronology, the point of view is Juan Preciado’s, who is dead when the novel begins. The second section has an omniscient narrator who gives the history of Comala from Páramo’s childhood to the moment of his death. Thus, the time of the second section is prior to that of the first one.
The fragments of Pedro Páramo are like the shards of a broken mirror. They reflect the characters, their relationships, and their identities. It is up to the reader to reconstruct the mirror in order to discover the truth reflected in it. The novel was produced as a film in 1967.
Bibliography
Brotherston, Gordon. The Emergence of the Latin American Novel. Cambridge UP, 1977.
Harss, Luis, and Barbara Dohmann. Into the Mainstream: Conversations with Latin-American Writers. Harper & Row, 1967.
Leal, Luis. Juan Rulfo. Twayne, 1983.
McMurray, George R. Spanish American Writing Since 1941: A Critical Survey. Frederick Ungar, 1987.
"Pedro Páramo." IMDb, www.imdb.com/title/tt0062108. Accessed 1 May 2023.
Sommers, Joseph. After the Storm: Landmarks of the Modern Mexican Novel. U of New Mexico P, 1968.