Arguedas: Hope, Violence, and Despair

The Pongo's Dream reads almost like a parable. We are introduced, early on, to the lord and his lowly servant, the pongo, whom the lord treats, quite literally, like a dog. Ironically, most of the scenes in the story involve the lord's household in its daily prayers, led, of course, by the lord. The lord insists on humiliating the pongo before the rest of his household during these prayers, something which seems entirely at odds with the purpose of prayer itself. Indeed, rather than use prayer as a way of equalizing the household, of making himself one more member of his community, the lord uses these times to remind everyone of the hierarchy, and of their immutable place within it. His sadistic pleasure in the humiliation of others is palpable.

When the quiet pongo finally speaks, it is to let his master know of a dream he has had, a dream of the hereafter in which St. Francis, who is popularly associated with both animals and the downtrodden, plays a key role. In this dream, the role of master and servant in the afterlife at first appear very much as they had in this world. Then comes the almost comical twist: the pongo is to lick the sweet honey in which the master's body has been covered for eternity, while the master is to literally eat shit for all time. This subversive tale is softened somewhat when cast in religious overtones. Indeed, it is reminiscent of the Lucan parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). In a society as hierarchical as the one in which Arguedas lived and died, however, where church and state long conspired to keep people "in their place" (with notable exceptions, of course), this tale must have been shocking, indeed.

Puppy Love is shocking for entirely different reasons. Here, we see Arguedas integrating Quechua language and culture beautifully into the story, without ever romanticizing the subject-matter. Indeed, the snippet of time and place that we see in this short story is almost unbearably painful. A young girl, only 14 years old, has been raped by the landowner. There is nothing anyone can do about it. The young men who are in love with her (each in his own way), contemplate murdering her because that's what white men would do. The violence, it seems, flows downward. One of the young men takes out his anger and frustrations on the tenderest calfs, whipping them until they are half-dead. There is no reprieve, no escape in this world of suffering and grief, where love and connection are impossible. Violence is all these characters see, and some, it seems, choose to emulate it blindly, unthinkingly, while others simply abandon all hope.