The Underdogs by Mariano Azuela
"The Underdogs," written by Mariano Azuela, is a seminal novel that explores the complexities of the Mexican Revolution through the experiences of Demetrio Macías, a peaceful Indian who becomes a reluctant revolutionary. Initially unaware of the broader political landscape, Demetrio's life is upended when he and his family are attacked by federal soldiers, prompting him to flee into the mountains. As he joins a band of rebel outlaws, he grapples with the harsh realities of war, violence, and leadership, while navigating personal relationships, particularly with Camila, a young woman who becomes entwined in his journey.
The narrative captures the struggles of individuals caught in the sweeping tide of a national conflict, portraying both the camaraderie and betrayal that define their experiences. Azuela's work is notable for its character development and for shedding light on the disillusionment faced by many revolutionaries as the initial idealism of their cause clashes with the brutal realities of warfare. Ultimately, "The Underdogs" serves as a reflection on the human cost of revolution and the often-unrecognized contributions of marginalized figures in the historical narrative of Mexico. The novel remains a vital piece of literature for understanding the cultural and historical context of the Mexican Revolution.
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The Underdogs by Mariano Azuela
First published:Los de abajo, 1915, serial; 1916, book, 1916; revised, 1920 (English translation, 1929)
Type of work: Novel
Type of plot: Historical
Time of plot: 1914-1915
Locale: Zacatecas and Jalisco, Mexico
Principal characters
Demetrio Macías , a poor Indian of JaliscoLuis Cervantes , an opportunistic journalist and political turncoatCamila , a villagerLa Pintada , “The Painted Lady,” a prostitute and camp followerWhitey Margarito , a sadistic soldier
The Story:
Demetrio Macías is a peaceful Indian who knows nothing about revolutions. When, as a follower of Francisco Indalécio Madero, he is hounded by the political leader of Jalisco, he flees with his wife and child to the mountains. There, federal soldiers come upon the fugitives at breakfast, and Demetrio runs off. He returns with a gun, however, to prevent the wild and lawless soldiers from raping his wife. Being no killer, Demetrio lets them go free, only to have them come back with reinforcements and burn his fields. Demetrio then joins a band of sixty sharpshooting rebel outlaws and helps them to drive off twice that many soldiers. During the fighting, two of the rebels are killed, and Demetrio is shot in the leg.
For two weeks, the outlaws remain hidden in a native village, looked after by Indians who hate the government. Venancio, a barber-surgeon, tends to Demetrio’s wound, and the village women use poultices of laurel and fresh pigeon blood to heal him. An attractive young woman named Camila is his nurse.
One day, the pseudointellectual Luis Cervantes blunders into the village and explains that he has deserted the government forces because his commanding officer assigned him to menial duty. Distrusting Cervantes’ glib tongue and big words, the rebels pretend to condemn him to death. One outlaw dresses in a priest’s robes and pretends to hear the deserter’s last confession to determine whether he is a spy. Accepted eventually as a revolutionist, Cervantes then urges the rebels to join the great revolutionary leaders of Mexico. Camila falls in love with him. Although she makes her feelings evident, Cervantes never encourages her, not even on the night of the outlaws’ departure. Camila has never responded to Demetrio’s lovemaking—Demetrio is only an Indian.
Hearing from messengers that Victoriano Huerta’s federales have fortified the city of Zacatecas, Cervantes urges the band to hurry to join the besiegers and take part in the capture. He flatters Demetrio by telling the Indian that he is more than a common rebel, that he is a tool of destiny to win back the rights of the people.
Demetrio plans a surprise attack on one of the towns along their march, but an Indian guide betrays the scheme, and the federales are prepared to resist. A friendly citizen shows the rebels a back way into the town, however, and the garrison is overwhelmed. The rebels find and stab the treacherous guard and kill the federal soldiers who survived the attack.
By the time General Natera arrives in the district, Demetrio’s reputation has grown so great that he is made a colonel in the revolutionary army. Failing to take Zacatecas, the rebels are forced to retreat, discarding their booty along the road. Demetrio thinks of going back to Camila, until news of General Pancho Villa’s coming excites the rebels and gives them fresh incentive.
During the next battle, Cervantes and Solis, an idealist, take refuge in a place where they think they will be safe. While they discuss the significance of the revolution, Solis is struck and killed by a stray bullet. Demetrio’s gallant charge turns the tide of battle for Villa and wins Demetrio promotion to the rank of general.
While drinking and boasting in a tavern after the battle, Demetrio meets Whitey Margarito, a vicious soldier, and La Pintada, a prostitute with whom Demetrio goes looking for a hotel room. Her insistence that, as a general, he should occupy a house of his own makes him decide to commandeer a fine residence.
During the ransacking, Cervantes finds a valuable diamond ring and the soldiers tear the pictures from books in the library. Whitey, joining Demetrio’s forces, runs off with Cervantes’ woman companion while Demetrio is arguing the matter of taking her instead of La Pintada, of whom he has tired.
Soon afterward, the rebels raid the house of Don Monico, Demetrio’s landowning enemy, and burn the estate. Cervantes, having collected much loot, suggests that he and Demetrio hide it in case they are forced to leave the country. Demetrio wishes to share it with the others. Still an idealist, he believes the rebel cause will triumph. Cervantes promises to get Camila for his leader, as Demetrio still wants her above all.
Cervantes goes to the village and persuades Camila to return with him. Believing that Cervantes is in love with her, she is surprised to find herself in Demetrio’s bed. The next morning, La Pintada discovers Camila and offers to help her escape. Camila refuses. She has found that she likes Demetrio, and she decides to stay with him and the rebel army.
During the march against General Orozco at Jalisco, Whitey shows his cruelty when he tortures a prisoner by tightening a rope around the man’s neck until his eyes bulge. Later, when kindhearted Camila persuades Demetrio to return ten bushels of confiscated corn to a starving villager, Whitey gives the man ten lashes instead. Camila’s protests at the incident win her the enmity of La Pintada, who has taken up with Whitey since Demetrio and Cervantes discarded her. When Demetrio, siding with Camila, orders La Pintada away from the camp, she becomes enraged and stabs Camila.
When Demetrio and his men reach Aguascalientes, they find Villa and Venustiano Carranza, once allies, fighting each other. The federal forces, taking advantage of the disunity among the rebel generals, defeat Villa at Celaya. The defeat is a terrible shock to Demetrio’s followers, who cannot bring themselves to believe that their idol has been beaten. The rebels are forced to retreat.
Cervantes escapes safely across the border. From El Paso, he writes to Venancio, the barber-surgeon, telling him that Whitey has shot himself. Cervantes invites Venancio to join him in Texas, where, with the barber’s money, they can open a restaurant.
After Villa’s defeat, Demetrio finds the villagers no longer willing to help the rebels. To them, he and his followers have become outlaws once more. Somewhat discouraged, he decides to return home. He has been away two years and has seen much, but he cannot answer his wife’s questions when she asks him why he kept on fighting. He lacks Cervantes’ glib tongue to put his true feelings into words.
Trying to pacify the landowners of the region, the government sends troops into the uplands after the outlaw band. Once more the rebels and the federal troops clash. Outnumbered, the outlaws perish on the spot where two years before they had won their first victory. After the fighting has ended, the soldiers find the body of Demetrio Macías, his dead eyes still sighted along the barrel of his gun.
Bibliography
Azuela, Mariano. “The Underdogs”: Pictures and Scenes from the Present Revolution—A Translation of Mariano Azuela’s “Los de abajo” with Related Texts. Translated by Gustavo Pellón. Indianapolis, Ind.: Hackett, 2006. In addition to the text of the novel, this volume contains chronologies of Azuela’s life and the Mexican Revolution, a map showing the itinerary of Macías’s band, and several essays placing the novel in its historical and literary context. These essays include discussions of Azuela’s views of the Mexican Revolution and the place of The Underdogs in Mexican culture.
Brushwood, John S. The Spanish American Novel: A Twentieth-Century Survey. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1975. Scholarly examination of Latin American works devotes a chapter to Azuela’s best-known novel, comparing and contrasting it with other novels produced in 1916.
Canfield, J. Douglas. “Monsters from Below: Los de abajo.” In Mavericks on the Border: The Early Southwest in Historical Fiction and Film. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2001. Chapter on The Underdogs is part of a larger study of novels and films in which maverick protagonists cross metaphorical boundaries as well as the actual southwestern boundaries dividing Anglo, Mexican, and Native American cultures.
Dabove, Juan Pablo. “Los de abajo: The Feast, the Bandit Gang, the Bola (Revolution and Its Metaphors).” In Nightmares of the Lettered City: Banditry and Literature in Latin America, 1816-1929. Pittsburgh, Pa.: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2007. Chapter on The Underdogs is part of an analysis of the theme of banditry in works of Latin American literature. Argues that the literary representation of the bandit is essential to an understanding the development of Mexico and other Latin American nations in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Griffin, Clive. Azuela: “Los de abajo.” London: Grant & Cutler, 1993. Excellent study of Azuela’s masterpiece presents information on the historical backdrop of the Mexican Revolution and discussion of realism in the novel, its characterization, and its structure.
Leal, Luis. Mariano Azuela. New York: Twayne, 1971. Provides information on Azuela’s life and works. Asserts that Azuela’s novels, especially The Underdogs, offer some of the best depictions in literature of Mexico’s transition from the past to the present.
Parra, Max. Writing Pancho Villa’s Revolution: Rebels in the Literary Imagination of Mexico. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2005. Examines The Underdogs as well as novels by other authors, chronicles, and testimonials written from 1925 to 1940 to examine how these works depict Pancho Villa’s rebellion, either praising or condemning his style of leadership.
Schwartz, Kessel. A New History of Spanish American Fiction. Coral Gables, Fla.: University of Miami Press, 1972. Presents close analysis of the novels of the Mexican Revolution, with an extensive discussion of The Underdogs. Describes the novel as Azuela’s masterpiece and possibly the definitive novel of the Mexican Revolution.