Perspectives of Children`s Literature in Guatemala

Perspectives of Children's Literature in Guatemala
Author(s): Sue Misheff
Source: Hispania, Vol. 77, No. 3 (Sep., 1994), pp. 524-531
Published by: American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese
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SCHOOLS/
PEDAGOGY: ELEMENTARY
THE HISPANICWORLD
Preparedby GladysC. Lipton/ T. EdwardHarvey
Perspectives of Children's Literature in Guatemala
Sue Misheff
Malone College,Canton,OH
Abstract: This articlereportson the state of children'sliteracyand literaturein Guatemalabased largelyon
first-handobservation,interviews,and conversationswith writers,publishers,booksellers, and educators.
Includedis informationon populartitles andauthors.Attitudestowardreadingand social issues are also discussed.
Key Words: literacy,Guatemala,children'sliterature,Mayans,indigenouspeoples,reading
Writers
generallywriteforone erallyattendprivateschoolfromkindergar-
major purpose-to be read.
Thatwhich drivespeople to put
on paper the thoughts that are in their
heads is the need to share the ideas with
anotherhumanbeing. Certainly,best-selling authorsenjoythe serendipityof a wide
readershipand the satisfactionin knowing
thattheirlonelyendeavoris not in vain.But
whataboutthose authorswhose workis not
read by millions of people? Guatemalan
writers, particularlythose who write for
children, are such as these, not because
their writingis inferior,but because the illiteracyrate and the utter povertyof their
countryprohibitthe artof readingas a natural pastime.Why,then, do they bother?
I visited Guatemalaearlyin the summer
of 1992 to learn more about the state of
children'sliteraturethere.I wantedto know
what motivates the writers, publishers,
booksellers, and educators in this field to
work the miraculous feat of bringing literacy to a countryin which only 2/3 of the
populationever gets a primaryeducation.A
full66%of the adultpopulationin Guatemala
cannotread, and the illiteracyrate is often
as high as 81%in the ruralareas (Melville
and Lykes 536). The wealthyclass is comprised of Latinosfrom Spanishdescent or
from mixed ancestry.These childrengen-
ten through college. However,of the predominantMayanpopulation,most children
attend school only through the second
grade,or throughthe age of nine.Ina study
conducted by Bogin and MacVean,it was
evidentthat Mayanparents (usuallymothers) wantedtheir childrento attendschool
to "learnto read and to learn 'manners'"
(571). Presumably,once the child passes
first and second grades, he or she has
gained sufficientliteracyskills to function
in a society which is 60%agrarian.After
children reach the age of nine, they are
more likely to be useful outside of school
than in so that they may tend the younger
childrenat home (of which there are likely
to be several) and/or to assist the family's
financesby selling goods in a marketor by
begging on the street (BoginandMacVean
511).
Not only are manyGuatemalanchildren
placed at a disadvantagebecause of their
families'economicneeds; the act of surviving in a countrythathas been anythingbut
politicallystable serves a detrimentalpurpose for the cause of literacyas well. Survivalbecomes morecrucialthanreadingin
the face of guerillaattackson individualsas
well as on entirecommunities.The Mayan
community,whichcomprisesnearly50%of
PEDAGOGY: ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS / THE HISPANIC WORLD 525
the entire population of Guatemala,has their nativelanguage.A few books are acbeen particularlyvictimizedby mass mur- cessible that are mainlyreprintsof Mayan
ders and torturesbeyond descriptiondur- codices, written in hieroglyphics, which
ing the past thirtyyears of a state of insur- contain passages of the sacred book, the
gency. Thus, it is littlewonderthatthe chil- Popol Vuk(Saravia).These glyphs are writdrenoftensufferfrompost-traumatic-stress ten withina phonologicaland grammatical
syndrome (Melvilleand Lykes 535) which system which combinessounds, ideas, and
affects their physical, emotionaland intel- syllables. While there is a move afoot
lectual well-being. Although Mayanrefu- amongmodernMayansto bringthe role of
gees, manynow located in Mexico, are ea- writingback intofashionin Mayanculture,
ger for education beyond the sixth grade the progress is slow. Most indigenous
(MelvilleandLykes546), the opportunities people wouldrathertry to move up the sofor schooling are minimalat best.
cial ladder in their educationby learning
it
that
the
Interestingly, appears
major- Spanish and English. If the social ladder
who
literate
are isn't their goal, then many Mayans fail to
of
are
ity indigenouspeople
women and children (Green, Rick, and see the need for readingand writingat all.
Nesman 320). And, because familyloyalty The currentliteracymovementinvolvesreis far more importantthan any other at- educatingpeopleaboutthe need forwriting
tribute in Guatemala, literacy is often to restorethe traditionalMayancultureand
shared, so that family members who can to bring back stories that were destroyed
readallocatewhatthey know,oftenby read- after the Conquest. While many stories
ing to others in the family or community havebeen keptaliveviathe oralstorytelling
who cannotread.
tradition,and others have been translated
The universalpower of story, however, into otherwrittenlanguages,few havebeen
remains strong, both in the Mayan and preserved in Mayan glyphs. The Mayan
latino cultures of Guatemala.There are a Academyof Language,in conjunctionwith
fair number of books availablein Spanish interestedcitizens and educators,is workand many in English for those who have ing to educatechildrenin bilingualclasses
access to these languagesandto the books which use Spanish and indigenous lanthemselves. And the Mayan tradition of guages and to help to unify the linguistic
storytellingis still aliveandwell. Evenchil- problems inherent in a language with as
drenwho havebeen traumatizedin guerilla many dialectsas Mayan.Perhapsmost imwarfarefind healing in the sharingof their portantto the movement is the aspect of
personalnarrativeswithothers.As Melville handingdownthe Mayanculturesto future
and Lykes point out, "childrenneed con- generations.In spite of the Conquistadors'
texts in which they can, as safely as pos- attemptsto destroy Mayanliterature,parsible, encountertheir stories and come to ticularlyin the infamousbook burningsof
better understandtheir reality"(541). Ac- the late 1500s, Mayanwritinghas enjoyed
cordingto Sexton, Mayanstories "arenar- a longevity,if not popularity,which points
rated to pass the time after a hard day's out the tenacity of the Mayan cultures to
work away from home, to keep mourners endure.
awake at night duringwakes, to exchange
EarlyMayanswrotewithpen andink on
informationwith and entertaina guest or a folded bark. The Mayanterms for "read"
host, to educate listeners aboutthe values and"write"are oftenclosely relatedto each
andbeliefs of the culture,to commemorate otherin context,attestingto the long-standspecific historical events, and to entertain ing historyof the importanceof readingand
both children and adults" (xxiv). Thus, sto- writingin these cultures.One connotation
involves"asense
ries are an integral part of the social tapes- of the conceptof "reading"
of looking,"as if one were to look at a piece
try.
In terms of reading material, however, of papercoveredwithwords (Tedlock217).
It is evident,then, that reading,writing,
there is little for Mayan children to read in
526 HISPANIA 77 SEPTEMBER1994
and storymakingare andhave been impor- ation myth about the origin of white corn;
tant to both the latino and the indigenous Martiny las pifnatas,a story of a boy who
peoples of Guatemala.However,the abject learns to share;Elgato diablo,a storywith
poverty and the volatile politicalsituation strongreligiousovertonesof a littlegirlwho
have put damperson the spreadof literacy learns to obey; Cuandolos perrosawuw,a
and have muted the people's desires to ghostlytaleaboutthe powerof dogs'songs;
read,especiallyfor somethingas luxurious Eljardinero, a dreamfantasyabout a garas a pastime activity.As one Guatemalan den that is also writtenin play form at the
publisherput it, people do not go into the end of the book;Elsapito hablador,an anipublishingbusiness there to make money, mal fantasyabouta toad who learns not to
because very few books are sold. Rather, gossip; andMamd Cud-cud,a storyabouta
the motivatingfactor is the love of books motherduckandher ducklingsthatis also
(Le6n Castillo,interview).This is particu- dramatized.Herstoriesare stronglyindicalarly true in children's book publishing; tive of the majorityof children'sbooks availtherefore, most companies produce text- able in Guatemalain thatthey are didactic
booksbecausethereis verylittlemarketfor and moralisticin theme and tone. The stochildren'stradeliterature.
ries areobviouslymeantto leavean impresthere
no
sion on young minds.
are
bookstores
that
Currently,
cateronlyto children'sbooks in Guatemala.
Barbucminby DanielArmashas been a
In GuatemalaCity,where most of the pub- best seller for years in Guatemalaand relishinghouses arelocated,thereareseveral mains PiedraSanta'sprideandjoy.
ratherlarge,well-stockedbookstoreswhich
The only children'smagazineproduced
sizeable
numbers
of
in
children's
Guatemala,Chiquirin,was publishedby
carryfairly
textbooks and trade books. For example, Piedra Santa. Now availableonly in back
scattered throughout the city are several issues becauseproductionwas stoppeddue
satellitestores of the PiedraSantapublish- to low sales, Chiquirinis a curiousmixture
ing companywhich carryeducationalma- of Guatemalanand North American culterials includingbooks, maps, globes, and tures. In one issue, Supermanis featured,
research material. They also offer trade and in another,the Frenchchildren'sbook
books which are oftentranslationsof West- character,Babar,takes the spotlight.
ern classics or books which have been
Also availableat the PiedraSantabookfrom
other
stores
are English and bilingualtitles. El
transplanted
Spanish-speaking
countries.Forinstance,Tianqzuide nombres juego de la felota/The Ball Game(Franco)
(Ortiz),publishedin Mexico,is abouta cock- is an English text about an Aztec game,
roach who tries to give everyone new called poc-a-toc, that was also played by
nameswithdisastrousresults.Cuentospara Mayans.And Dise)os mayas (Turner)is a
vivirin az (Gemmell)is a collectionof sto- bilingualcoloring book designed to teach
ries aboutpeace publishedby UNICEFin young readers about hieroglyphics and
an effort to promote internationalunder- Mayanartisticpatterns.
standing.
Youngadultfiction,folklorecollections,
Therearealso a numberof bookscarried joke books, books about children'sliteraby PiedraSantathatwere writtenby Oralia ture,andpoetrycollectionscan also be purDiaz,the wife of one of the company'sown- chased at PiedraSantastores.
The VistaHermosabookstorein Guateers, which, along with a few other titles, include retellings of folklore and realistic stories that are meant to teach a lesson. Diaz
is rather prolific and has published the following titles: Los coneyitos de don Julio, a
fantasy story with talking rabbits, based on
the people and animals on the Piedra Santa
family farm;Elorzgen delmaiz blanco, a cre-
mala City offers selections in English and
Spanish; however, most of the store's offerings are in the English language. For
wealthy latinos,it is consideredvery prestigious to be fluent in English, or at least to
be able to read English texts. Helen Brose,
who owns the store and runs a small pub-
PEDAGOGY: ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS I THE HISPANIC WORLD 527
lishing business, said that some of her
best-selling books were those by Judy
Blume and Beverly Cleary, as well as the
BabysitterClub and Sweet ValleyHigh series books. Televisiontie-inbooks are also
popularthere. Of the store's Spanishholdings, most are retellings of English books
(including a lot of Walt Disney stories)
and books published in Spain, reflecting
a distinctly Western culture. PForla calle
(Berridge) is one of a series of books from
Spain featuringlatino families doing daily
routines.Brightcolorsandlargeprintmake
these stories eye-catchingand accessible
for young readers. mQuieres
contar?(Dijs)
is a colorfulbook with illustrationsof multiracial children published by the enormously popularEditorialNorma press in
Colombia.This entertainingpop-upbook
is well-made, as is the pop-up U/navisita
a la casa embrujada(Walley). Animales
(Sanchez), published in Spain and designed by RicardoSAnchez,is an interactive
strip book designed to teach children to
matchanimals'heads, bodies, andlegs. Finally, Hora de comer (Pienkowski), also
published by EditorialNorma, is a translated version of Jan Pienkowski'spopular
toy book.
The Ministryof Educationpublishes a
numberof textbooksforchildren,including
concept books and retellings of folk tales.
These books are availableat minimalcost
at a small outlet store across from the NationalPalace,andare generallypoorlyconstructed with few illustrations.Jugandoy
cantando(Tinoco)is a book of poems and
prayersmeant to "enrichthe souls of children"(n.p.), and El venado(Flores) is another collectionof stories and poems used
to teach literature,manners, and vocabulary, and to "educatechildren'sminds and
hearts"(n.p.).The latterbook is specifically
meantfor students in the fifthgrade.
In smaller,more"touristy"
townssuch as
Antiguaand Panajachel,the bookstoresoffer farfewerchildren'sbooks, butthese are
generally of a very high quality. Many of
these are beautifully illustrated picture
books, all in Spanish, which are visually
appealingand sell well to the touristtrade.
There are very few English titles sold outside of GuatemalaCity because the economy cannot sustain a bilingual market.
Again,most of the books areWesterntranslations or are Spanish originals imported
from Spain, Mexico, or EditorialNorma.
The best-selling Serendipity series from
NorthAmericais representedin Antiguaby
Folinguchi(Cosgrove)and is publishedin
Mexico. Cuentosy leyendasde amorpara
niffos(deCuello),Cuentosde lugaresencantados (Bello), and Cuentospicarescospara
nifos deAmericaLatina(Pefia)areallbeautifullybound books printedin Brazil.The
stories are copyrightedby variouspublishers throughout LatinAmerica, including
PiedraSanta.In each book, there is at least
one storyfrom Guatemala,but other Latin
Americancountriesare also represented.
The selection of children's books becomes increasinglyscarce the fartherone
venturesintothe countryside.Insuch small
townsas Chiquimula,the only"bookstores"
are actuallypart of neighborhoodvariety
stores, much like the Ben Franklinstores
found in the United States.The children's
books thatare sold there are cheaplymade
paperbacksthat are generallyeducational
in nature.As always,the ever-presentWalt
Disneybooks andnotebookcoversabound.
In the ruralareas, no bookstores are to
be found, although books have been
placed in the schools by such gracious
donors as Hofstra University, Harcourt
Brace Jovanovich (which donated over
700 pounds of books in 1991), the Nassau
Reading Councilfrom New York, and private Guatemalanfoundationssuch as the
Pediatrics Foundationand the Education
Foundation(Morales,personalinterview).
There are also mini-librariesthat have
been established by publisher Oscar de
Le6n Castillo,who, accordingto his calculations, has given over $2,000.00worth of
books to peasantvillages,establishing"Oscarde Le6nCastillolibraries"whichinclude
both children'sandadultbooks (interview).
The father of Oscar de Le6n was a prominentteacherin Guatemala,andhe received
his educationat the Universityof Pennsylvania.Before his death,he was instrumen-
528 HISPANIA 77 SEPTEMBER1994
tal in increasingthe professionalstance of
teachers in his country,and he left behind
a legacy of poetryand prose which his son
continuesto publishin books for children,
many of which are distributedto the minilibraries.Recopilacidnde poesias escolares
(Le6nCastillo)is a collectionof such work
whichincludespoetryby otherGuatemalan
writersas well. The book is intendedto be
a textbook for common themes that are
studied in school. Oscar de Le6n Castillo
himselfwritesforchildren,andmanyof his
pieces are published in his book Cuentos
para patajos.
Oscar de Le6n Castillo's offerings are
uniquein thathe is attemptingto bringauthenticGuatemalanstoriesto the Guatemalan people. The graded poems and stories
in Lecturitas(Le6nCastillo)have distinctly
Guatemalansettings and characters. Los
cuentos del tio
(Rosales) are small
books for smallTaoo
hands with stories akin to
North American Uncle Remus stories.
Whatis more,there are stories to act out in
Cuentospara ser contados(Rosales), and
riddles to tell in Adivina (A. Castillo).
In contrast,it was evidentin my visits to
bookstores throughout the country that
there were very few books actually published in Guatemala,and that those books
that were readily availablewere strongly
indicative of Western and westernized
latinocultures.There were no books to be
foundin a Mayanlanguage,exceptfora facsimileof a codex of the
Vuh(Saravia),
Poapol
norwere there anypieces
of realisticfiction
that portrayed indigenous families. The
only Mayan stories were retellings of ancient tales whichwere translatedby people
in the dominantculture.This stateof affairs
speaks volumes about the lack of validity
possibleforindigenouschildrenin the reading materialprovidedfor them. Further,it
points to the importance of the current
move toward higher levels of literacy for
Mayansandtowarda resurgenceof writing
in Mayandialectsbeyondthe limitedscope
of the Wickliffetranslators.
Oscar de Le6n Castillois a man with a
missionwho hopes to bringthe joy of reading to all Guatemalansby providingthem
with quality stories about their own cultures.In an interviewconductedon June18,
1992,he said thatthe textbookshe used to
publishwere too didacticand notmuch fun
to read.Childrenwho couldreadchose not
to in favor of radio, television, or outdoor
activities.Therefore,his more recent offerings are more literaryand use more metaphoricallanguage (i.e., "histeeth were like
ears of corn,"and "theriverlicking at you
like a dog") to help children picture the
images. He also stated that there are few
illustrationsin his children'sbooksbecause
he wants childrento use their imagination
more, and "see"the stories in their minds
without the benefit of visual aids. When
Oscar de Le6n Castillotalks about giving
books awayto childrenin the ruralareashis
largefacebeamsas he describesthese little
ones hugging the books to their bodies,
even though they cannot read. More than
likely, one or two people in the community
areliterate,andthey in turnreadthe stories
to the entire village, over and over again,
untilthe stories are memorized.
Obviouslythe lackof accessiblebooks is
a majordilemmain Guatemala.Aside from
the limitednumberof bookstores,thereare
few librariesin the country,and the libraries that do exist are rarelyused. According
to Helen Brose, the concept of borrowing
books is strangeto Guatemalans,although
librariansdo have the problem of people
stealing the libraries'holdings!The upper
class does not like to readbooks that other
people have used, and the lower class cannot read the books. The holdings of the
National Libraryare therefore mainly for
museum-typepurposesratherthanfor use
as in a lending institution.
The situationis no better in the public
schools, where there are few librariesand
where teachers oftenhave to use one book
to teach sixty children. Maria Morales,
presidentof the newlyformedGuatemalan
ReadingCouncil,told me thatwhile teachers there are becoming more interestedin
using whole languagepractices (involving
the use of literatureacross the curriculum
andintegratinginstructionof reading,writing, speaking,and listening skills) in their
PEDAGOGY: ELEMENTARYSCHOOLS I THE HISPANIC WORLD 529
classrooms, their efforts are hamperedby
a severe lack of funds to buy books. There
arefew books andno teachers'guides available, so teachers oftenimproviseby having
the children write their own books. This
techniquegets literatureby young authors
into the hands of young readers and provides a classroom of sixty children with
sixty books in no time.
I learned another interesting facet of
teaching while I was shopping one day. A
teacherI met in the PiedraSantabookstore
told me that she was buyinga book for her
class. When I asked her how she intended
to use it, she said she wouldcopy it for her
entire class. She was glad that Guatemala
is opento loose interpretationsof copyright
laws!
Manychildrenhaveneverowneda book,
andbecause of the lack of a librarysystem,
have no access to books outside of school.
Books are expensive in Guatemala,other
than the dime store books which are still
exorbitantfor much of the population,and
so book-buying is a luxury for the more
well-to-do latinos. Teachers who are attemptingto make learningmore enjoyable
and meaningful by using literature and
newspapershave certainlygot their work
cut out for them. It is nearlyimpossible in
such a situation.
To add to the difficulties,there are few
writersforchildrenin Guatemala,because,
as Oscar de Le6n Castillo stated, no one
wantsto write on "children'slevels" (interview). Writing, especially for children, is
anythingbut a lucrativebusiness, not only
because of the illiteracyrate, but also because there are so few publishers and a
dearth of marketing and communication
strategies. Helen Brose told me that many
authorsproducethe books themselves,and
then take their work to shops or distributors. However,unless authorshave a number of good contacts,their books "justdie"
one such author,Sagarmenaga,who publishes with his firm). Further,publishers
glean much of their materialfromfolklore
and Bible stories which the publishers
themselves or staffwriters then retell for
publication.
Because of the ratherlow-keynatureof
authorshipin Guatemala,it is rare to find
the sortof "favoredauthor"statusthatmany
school childrenin the UnitedStatesbestow
upon popularwriters.Authorsdo not visit
the schools much, nor do childrenwriteto
their favoriteauthors. Certainly,the concept of a children's author as a celebrity
figure is foreign there. Ann Cameron, a
popular author from New York who now
lives in Panajachel,was asked to visit a local private school. But when she arrived,
she found that the school's personnel had
forgottenthat she was coming and hadn't
prepared the children for her visit. This
rather lackadaisical attitude is typical in
Guatemala;fortunatelyCameronwas not
offended and made the best of her time at
the school (Cameron,interview).
Perhapsthe reason for the state of near
oblivionfor manywritershas to do with affairsin LatinAmericanliteratureas a whole
over the past two centuries.Traditionally,
LatinAmericanartists have received little
or no supportfrom the governmentor the
public (Franco 12). While some inroads
were made in the mid-1800swhich helped
to pavethe wayfor nationalbodies of literature and thus elevate the status of indigenous andlatinoartists,it remainsthe norm
for artists to produce work which will express and promoteparticularpoliticaland
social movements.Artistsand books fallin
and outof publicfavorrapidlythere (Brose,
interview), and personal artistic expressions are subordinatedin favorof those that
keep "alivethe vision of a more just and
humane form of society" (Franco 311).
Manyof these socialvisions stem fromthe
(Brose, interview), and this, unfortunately,
happens frequently.
Some authors who are already established as writers in the adult market sell
their stories for publishers to adapt for children (Oscar de Le6n Castillo mentioned
folklore derived from Mayan, Spanish, Portuguese, and African sources. The voices of
these early storytellers can still be heard in
their call for humans to remain close to the
land and to the traditional ways of the culture, and in the concept that one's happi-
530 HISPANIA 77 SEPTEMBER1994
ness andwell-beingis dependentuponthe
capriceof divinespirits (De Onis ix).
a
et thereis a curiousdichotomy,
sort of flirtingwith the ancienttraditionswhile scorningthem at the
same time. This ratherpatronizingview of
indigenous people and their stories keeps
the social status of latinos and Mayansintact. The recent upsurge of interest in folk
art may help the cause of Mayanliterature
along somewhat (Brose, interview);however, it is unlikelythatlatinoswill easily allow indigenous voices to be heard very
strongly. Mayans have accommodated
themselves to the CatholicSpanishculture
since the Conquest,butthey haveremained
trueto theiroriginalbelief systems andtraditions to a great degree. The social tensions thathavebeen buildingtherehaveyet
to be playedout,but it is almostcertainthat
children'sbooks will be a large partof the
enculturationof the people, as they have
been in any society thathas producedeven
a smallbodyof children'sliterature(Norton
227).At the presenttime, the latinoculture
remainsat the forefrontin the images presented in children'sbooks, but the Mayan
peoplearebecomingmoreliterate,andthus
more vocal in their presentationof themselves to the public.It is possibleand,hopefully, probablethat a truly reflectivebody
children'sliteraturewill begin to grow in
Guatemala.
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