"La Vorágine": Circling the Triangle

Author(s): Seymour Menton

Source: Hispania, Vol. 59, No. 3 (Sep., 1976), pp. 418-434
Published by: American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/340513
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 "LA VORAGINE": CIRCLING THE TRIANGLE
SEYMOUR MENTON
University of California, Irvine

tic label often applied disparagingly to

LIKE ITS PREDECESSORS
LOMBIAN OUTSTANDING Ma- CO-
Rivera's novel.
ria and Frutos de mi tierra, La vordgine
I. THE TRIANGLE
(1924) by Jose Eustasio Rivera (1888-
1928) has often been wrongly faulted In keeping
for with Christian theology in
general
its apparent lack of unity,x and for having and with Dante's Divine Comedy
in
spawned a whole series of geographical particular, the number three is struc-
turally significant in Rivera's vision of the
novels.2 La vordgine, however, should not
be compared with the many unsophisti- world. La voragine is divided into three
cated telluric novels that followed in its parts, each one of which is introduced by
an overture dedicated to one of the novel's
footsteps. In addition to being a strong
novel of social protest, La vordgine is alsothree basic themes of love, nature, and the
a complex pessimistic Christian vision of exploitation of the rubber gatherers. Co-
lombia also is divided in the novel into
man's fall from Paradise and his punish-
ment and ultimate death in the concen- three parts, by altitude: the sierra, the
tric circles of Hell. In realistic and histori- plains, and the tropical rain forest, which
cal terms,3 Rivera's Hell is located in thiecorrespond respectively to Dante's Para-
rubber-producing Colombian jungle, butdise, Purgatory, and Inferno. To Rivera's
this does not preclude its identificationcredit, however, the thematic, geographic,
with the "dark wood" of Dante's Inferno and symbolic trios do not fit neatly into
or with the black whirlpool of Vergil's each of the three parts of the novel.
Aeneid: "By the Stygian stream of hisRather they overlap each other and at
brother, by banks full of pitch, / And thattimes offer contradictions in keeping with
the chaotic tone which reflects Rivera's
whirlpool so black. . . ."4 In a kind of re-
buttal to Dante's Divine Comedy in whichvision of the jungle and the world in gen-
eral.
the pilgrim-poet starts his journey in the
Inferno and gradually works his way up Love, Sierra, Paradise
through the concentric circles to Paradise, Arturo Cova is ostensibly forced to flee
Arturo Cova descends from the Paradisefrom Bogotai because of an amorous adven-
of the cordillera, ambiguous as it may be,ture with Alicia. On the symbolic level,
and does not stop spinning downward until however, he is punished for aspiring to the
he falls unredeemed into the bottomless divine gift of ideal love: "ambicionaba el
pit of the infernal jungle, personified bydon divino del amor ideal" (p. 11).7 Like
Zoraida Ayram, the Jungian prototype ofAdam, he is cast out of The Garden of
the Terrible Mother. If Dante is saved Eden because he succumbed to Eve the
with the aid of his poet-guide Vergil andTemptress in the person of Alicia, whose
his idealized Beatrice, Arturo and his alter- name suggests the adjective aliciente 'se-
egos are condemned precisely because ofductive.' Like Lucifer and Don Juan, Ar-
women, while poets are considered utterly turo's pride, la soberbia, causes his fall
helpless in dealing with the problems offrom Grace. Like Prometheus, he would
reality: "Pobre fantasia de los poetas querob the divine fire of ideal love: "el don
s6!o conocen las soledades domesticadas."5 divino del amor ideal, que me encendiera
The importance of The Divine Comedy espiritualmente, para que mi alma deste-
to the basic structure of La vordgine, asilara en mi cuerpo como la llama sobre el
well as the clear presence of The Iliad,lefio que la alimenta" (p. 11).
The Odyssey, The Aeneid,6 Orlando Furi- Throughout the novel, Arturo is cast in
oso, and Don Quixote belie the regionalis-the role of the fallen angel but this identi-

418

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 "LA VORAGINE": CIRCLING THE TRIANGLE 419

ty is nowhere more clearly established than In Part One, having recently fled from
during the finale of Part One. Earlier, Bogota
in with Alicia, Arturo dreams of his
a reprise of the novel's first paragraph, successful return to Bogoti, the archetypal
Arturo, shortly before crossing the river return of the hero after a voyage fraught
with perils. His return would be accom-
into Purgatory (or the first circle of Hell),
suffers a fit of mad delirium. He imagines panied by financial, family, and literary
himself an eagle like Icarus and like Dantesuccess. His mother, the Good Mother,
in Canto IX of Purgatory, who in his anx-would forgive him and would gradually
induce his father to do the same:
iety to save Alicia from evil, flies too close
to the sun: "Queria descender para levan-Me vi de nuevo entre mis condiscipulos, con-
tar en las garras a Alicia y llevarla sobre
tAndoles mis aventuras de Casanare, exagerin-
doles mi repentina riqueza, viendolos felicitarme,
una nube, lejos de Barrera y de la maldad.
entre sorprendidos y envidiosos. Los invitaria a
Y subia tan alto, que contra el cielo ale-
comer a mi casa, porque ya para entonces ten-
teaba, el sol me ardia el cabello y yo as-
drna una propia, de jardin cercano a mi cuarto
piraba el igneo resplendor" (p. 55). de estudio. Con frecuencia, Alicia nos dejaria
solos, urgida por el llanto del pequefiuelo, lla-
In the final lines of Part One, Arturo's
mado Rafael en memoria de nuestro compafiero
reactions to Fidel Franco's setting his house de viaje.
on fire reaffirm his soberbia as the cause of
Mi familia, realizando un antiguo proyecto,
his fall from Paradise, from the world he se radicaria en Bogota; y aunque la severidad de
knew, from Bogota: mis padres los indujera a rechazarme, les man-
El traquido de los arbustos, el ululante coro daria a la nodriza con el pequefio los dias de
de las sierpes y de las fieras, el tropel de los fiesta. Al principio se negarian a recibirlo, mas
ganados pav6ricos. el amargo olor a carnes luego, mis hermanas, curiosas, alzandolo en los
quemadas, agasajironme la soberbia; y senti de- brazos, exclamarian: "iEs el mismo retrato de
leite por todo lo que moria a la zaga de mi ilu-
Arturo!" Y mi mam,, bafiiada en llanto, lo mi-
si6n, por ese oc~ano purpiireo que me arrojaba ranra gozosa, llamando a mi padre para que lo
entre la selva aislAndome del mundo que conoci, conociera; mas el anciano, inexorable, se re-
por el incendio que extendia su ceniza sobre tiraria a sus aposentos, tr6mulo de emoci6n.
mis pasos. Poco a poco, mis buenos exitos literarios irian
cQul restaba de mis esfuerzos, de mi ideal conquistando el indulto. Segi6n mi madre, de-
y de mi ambici6n? Que habia logrado mi per- bia tenerseme listima. Despubs de mi grado en
severancia contra la suerte? iDios me desam- la facultad se olvidaba todo. Hasta mis amigas,
paraba y el amor huia! . .. intrigadas por mi conducta, disimularian mi
iEn medio de las llamas empece a reir como
pasado con esta frase: iEsas cosas de Arturo.
. !(pp. 44-45)
Satanas! (p. 94)
In addition to its altitude, the sierra is Although the sierra may represent Para-
identified with Paradise because of its be- dise on the symbolic level, neither the nar-
ing the location of Arturo's innocent pastrator nor the author has any illusions about
and his dreams of the future. In Part Two, Bogota or indeed about any city at all. As
during the voyage from Purgatory to In- barbaric as life may be in the jungle, the
ferno, the sight of the herons' white feath- city is not represented in this novel as the
ers turns Arturo's thoughts to religious repository of civilization. Alicia's relatives
memories of his childhood, in the moun- in Bogota, aided by the priest and the
tainous province of Tolima: "Y por en-judge, conspire to force Arturo to marry
cima de ese alado tumulto volvia a girar la her. Don Rafo's brother had an unhappy
corona eucaristica de garzas, se despertaba marriage because of the social pretentions
sobre la cienaga, y mi espiritu sentiaseof his upper-class wife, "esclava de los per-
deslumbrado, como en los dias de su can- gaminos y de las mentiras sociales" (p. 23).
dor, al evocar las hostias divinas, los coros Arturo confronts Petardo Lesmes with his
angelicales, los cirios inmaculados" (p. bank theft of $100,000 in terms that in-
104). dict other bank employees and by implica-

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 420 SEYMOUR MENTON Hispania 59 (Sept. 1976)

cordillera
tion the Bogota bourgeoisie in forever
generaland "set
assail" across the
embezzlers and hypocrites:plains guided by the first of Arturo's three
guides, Zutano
Fulano de tal falsific6 cheques; Don Rafo: "Y nos sefial6 don Rafo
adul-
ter6 cuentas y dep6sitos, Perencejo se diciendo-:
la cordillera puso por Despidimonos de
la derecha un sueldo adecuado
ella,aporque
su categoria de
no la volveremos a ver. S61o
novio elegante, en lo cual procedi6 muy bien,
quedan llanos,
pues no es justo ni humano trajinar con llanos
talegasy llanos" (p. 18).
Don Rafo's
y mazos de billetones, padeciendo identification as the archetypal
necesidades,
con el suplicio de Tintalo diagoodpor
guidedia,is clearly
y ser established by his
como el asno que marcha hambriento
position in front Ilevando
of the fire: "Arrodillado
la cebada sobre su lomo. Vine por
ante ellaaqui
como mientras
ante una divinidad, don
olvidan el desfalco; tornar' presto, diciendo que
Rafo la soplaba
andaba por Nueva York, y Ilegard vestido a la
con su resuello" (p. 16).
moda, con abrigo de pieles His archetypalde
y zapatos rolecafia
is also confirmed by
blanca, frecuentar mis relaciones,
his name miswhichamistades,
is a rearrangement of the
y a obtener otro empleo fructuoso. (p. 212)
letters of faro 'searchlight.'8
This is expressed more succinctly in the the plains of
Like Dante's Purgatory,9
popular wisdom of the old mulata
Casanare ProvinceSebas-
have both good and bad
tiana: "-Que el yanero eselements.
el sincero;
However,quewhereas Dante's Pur-
al serrano, ni la mano" (p. 47).
gatory affords sinners the opportunity to
purify their souls and ascend to Paradise,
Nature, Plains, Purgatory
in La vorigine the direction of the voyage
Part Two of La vorigine begins with
is reversed. The plains offer some positive
Arturo Cova's rather long apostrophizing
aspects but also provide the setting for
of the jungle. Besides alluding to various
the first crossing of a Stygian river. It is
themes that are developed more fully in
on the plains that Arturo enjoys the noble
both Parts Two and Three, this overture
friendship of Don Rafo and Fidel Franco,
echoes the first page of Part One. Arturo
and the loyalty of Antonio Correa. The
again blames Alicia for his fall from Para-
poet in Arturo is inspired by his first dawn
dise: "jD6jame tornar a la tierra de donde
on the plains to launch into a typically
vine, para desandar esa ruta de ligrimas y
Modernist conversion of reality into art:
sangre, que recorri en nefando dia, cuando
"un vapor sonrosado que ondulaba en la
tras la huella de una mujer me arrastr6
atm6sfera como ligera muselina . . . un
por montes y desiertos, en busca de la Ven-
celaje de incendio . .. un co~gulo de rubi
ganza, diosa implacable que s61o sonrie so-
bre las tumbas!" (p. 96). . . las garzas morosas como copos flotan-
tes. . ." (p. 20). However, in the next mo-
However, in longing for the
ment, unforget-
Alicia, terrified by the bright sun,
table plains and the snow-capped
brings Arturo back peaks,
to reality. Insignificant
he once again reveals his mansoberbia "hacia
is doomed to sink down into the im-
el lado de mi pais, dondemensity
hay of Ilanuras in-nosotros, pro-
nature: "Luego,
olvidables y cumbres de corona
siguiendo blanca,
la marcha, nos hundimos en la
desde cuyos picachos meinmensidad"
vi a la (p. altura de
20). Later, even after his
las cordilleras!" (p. 95). first encounter with the diabolical Narciso
Actually, it is not PartBarrera,
TwoArturobutmuses
well romantically about a
over ninety percent of possible
Part pastoral
One that is plains in the
life on the
devoted to Arturo's adventures on the beatus ille tradition:
plains. After their first encounters with
Hasta tuve deseos de confinarme para siempre
en esas
the hypocritical Pipa, who robs their lianuras fascinadoras, viviendo con Ali-
cia en una casa risuefia. . . . Alli, de tarde, se
horses, and with the equally hypocritical
congregarian los ganados, y yo, fumando en el
and lecherous Villavicencio Chief of Po-
umbral, como un patriarca primitivoe . . . y libre
lice G~mez, Arturo and Alicia leave the
ya de las vanas aspiraciones, del engaiio de los

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 "LA VOI~kGINE": CIRCLING THE TRIANGLE 421
triunfos efimeros, limitaria mis anhelos a cuidar freckles, red hair, scaled swollen hands,
de la zona que abarcaran mis ojos, al goce de clad in underwear, and straddling a ham-
las faenas campesinas, a mi consonancia con la
soledad. mock: "Acaballado en el chinchorro y ten-
dido de espaldas en camiseta y calzoncillos
(Para qu6 las ciudades? (p. 74)
estaba el hacendado de barriga protuber-
This vision complements Arturo's earlier ante, ojos de lince, cara pecosa, y pelo
dream of the successful return to Bogotai rojizo. Alargindome sus manos, que ade-
and places the plains between the sierra mas de ser escabrosas parecian hinchadas,
and the selva, between Paradise and Hell. hizo rechinar entre los bigotes una risa
Although it could be argued that Arturo ." (p. 56).
does not really descend into Hell until he
Old, one-eyed Mauco, with his earth-
enters the jungle province of Vichada in
colored skin, drooping cheeks, livid lips,
Part Two, a strong case could be made for
dropsical stomach, leaning on a staff, and
locating the River Styx between Fidel
Franco's ranch "La Maporita" and Old dressed in rags, completes the trio of
Man Zubieta's ranch where Barrera is Graces that witness Arturo's challenging
the diabolical Barrera to a game of dice:
staying. Although Arturo fords the chan-
"Admirado yo, observaba al hombruco, de
nel on horseback, the crossing by boat the
color terroso, mejillas fofas y amoratados
night before is effected by the peon Mi-
labios. Puso en el suelo, con solicitud mi-
guel in a typical setting of howling dogs,
darkness, stillness and mystery: nuciosa, el bord6n en que se apoyaba, y
encima el sombrero grasiento de roidas alas,
. Afuera, en alguna senda del pajonal,
que tenia como cinta un mazo de cabuyas
aullaron los perros.
Aqui va la sangrecita
a medio torcer. Por entre los harapos se le
por donde se la llev6. velan las carnes hidr6picas, principalmente
.. La vieja Tiana, como un inima e- pena, el abdomen, escurrido en rollo sobre el em-
asom6 al umbral ... peine" (p. 60). When Arturo accuses Ba-
rrera of using loaded dice, all hell breaks
Lo vi alejarse en la embarcaci6n, sobre el agua
enlutada donde los Arboles tenian sus sombras
loose. During the fight in the darkness,
inm6viles. Entr6 luego en la zona oscura del Arturo is stabbed. The use of the verbs
charco, y s6lo percibi el cabrilleo del canalete
rdtilo como cimitarra anchurosa. sumir and hundir, which recur throughout
Esper6 hasta la madrugada. Nadie volvi6. the novel, stress the continuity of Arturo's
iDios sabe lo que hubiera pasado! (pp. 53-54) descent into Hell: "Quedamos sumidos en
Once in the land of the Inferno, theel mais pavoroso silencio.. ." (p. 59);
"Tuve la impresi6n de que me hundia en
infuriated Arturo is confronted by a series
un hoyo profundo a cuyo fondo no llegaba
of grotesque characters. Clarita, Barrera's
mistress, has a falcon-like, overly rougedjamis" (p. 61).
face, peroxide blond hair, skinny arms, Later, while riding across the parched
and a gaudy dress which make her quite aplains with Antonio Correa, Arturo meets
different specimen from Arturo's pre-In-still another grotesque figure, the hypo-
ferno feminine contacts, Alicia, Griselda, critical judge mounted on a mule and
and Tiana: "Tal dijo una mujercilla hal-holding a red umbrella: "El tisico rostro
conera, de rostro envilecido por el colorete, del sefior juez era bilioso como sus espejue-
cabello oxigenado y brazos flacuchos, pues- los de celuloide y repulsivo como sus dien-
tos en jarras sobre el cintur6n del traje tes llenos de sarro. Simiescamente risible
vistoso" (p. 56). ." (p. 79).
The old ranchowner Zubieta is por- In addition to the grotesque characters,
trayed in equally unflattering colors: rasp- two grotesque deaths reinforce the inter-
ing voice, protruding belly, lynx-like eyes, pretation of the post-channel-crossing

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 422 SEYMOUR MENTON Hispania 59 (Sept. 1976)

plains as the equivalent of the by

lombians first circle Narciso Ba-
labor contractor
of Hell. Millin is hookedrrera
on (along
onethe ear
samebylinesa as in Horacio
charging bull, pulled off Quiroga's famous story
his horse, and"Los mensi"
decapitated. Once again, [1914]).
Arturo's poetic
After overwhelming his victims
imagination makes the scenewith falsethat much
promises, music, food, and
drink, Barrera delivered them disarmed
more grotesque:
cayeron? Colgarian"Aquellos
de alguna ojos,
brefia,
into slavery. .d6nde
Tied in ad-
pairs, they were taken
heridos al frontal roto, vaciado,
by boat torepulsivos,
the remote rubber-producing
goteantes?" (p. 87). Zubieta's
areas ofdeath, prob-
the jungle. A crying baby was
ably at the hands of Barrera, is equally
tossed overboard to the hungry crocodiles
cruel: "Colgado por lasand
mufiecas
was immediatelyen el by his fran-
followed
lazo del chinchorro, balanceaibase
tic mother. el ve-
jete, vivo todavia, sin quejarse ni articular,
The actual details of life in the rubber
porque en la raiz de la lengua
campsleareamarraron
narrated by Clemente Silva
un cfiiamo" (p. 92). After he
whose nameisemphasizes
buried, through irony the
the pigs disinter him and chew
jungle's up one
ferocity. Man isoftormented by
his arms.
heat, darkness, mosquitoes, tropical dis-
Exploitation, Jungle, Hell eases, giant carnivorous ants, and the dead-
The overture to Part Three is mostly piranhas-recapitulating some of the
purgatorial
likely "sung" by Arturo Cova disguised as and infernal punishments of
The Divine Comedy. The jungle's bar-
the exploited rubber worker. In his typical
barie stimulates man's barbaric nature.
highly poetic, delirious language, Cova re-
affirms the reasons for his fall from Any protest against the system is met with
death or sadistic torture. Hands are sev-
Heaven: "iQuien estableci6 el desequili-
ered, eyelids are sewed shut, and ears are
brio entre la realidad y el alma incolmable?
?Para qub nos dieron alas en el vacio?filled
... with hot wax, as narrated by Bal-
bino
Por mirar la altura tropezibamos en la tie- Jacome. Clemente Silva's vain quest
rra . . . el que busc6 la novia, hall6 forel help from the Colombian consul in
Iquitos, Peru; Balbino Jicome's indictment
desden; el que sofi6 con la esposa, encon-
tr6 la querida; el que intent6 elevarse of
cay6the Lima and Bogotai politicians; and
Ramiro Est6vanez' account of the historical
vencido..." (p. 169). In his satanic state,
massacre of the rubber workers perpe-
Arturo would dare to challenge the cosmic
order: "iQuisiera librar la batalla detrated
las by Venezuelan Colonel Tomis
especies, morir en los cataclismos, verFunes in- on May 8, 1913 indicate the com-
vertidas las fuerzas c6smicas! Si Satin diri- plicity of all levels of politicians and of
giera esta rebeli6n!" (p. 171). society in general with the rubber empre-
sarios: "Funes es un sistema, un estado de
However, in order to lend greater cre-
dence to his denunciation of the rubber alma, es la sed de oro, es la envidia s6r-
dida. Muchos son Funes, aunque Ileve uno
exploiters, Rivera wisely resorts to other
more stable narrators: Clemente Silva, solo el nombre fatidico" (p. 218).
Heli Mesa, Balbino Jaicome, and Ramiro Thus, in Rivera's Christian, non-Marx-
Est~vanez. In spite of the fact that the ist1o vision of the world, the rubber work-
plight of the rubber workers constitutesers are punished because of their greed
the main theme of the overture to Part (their desire for quick riches) and their
Three, their tragic story actually beginsenvy, and they are not clearly distin-
toward the middle of Part Two. guished by social class from their rapacious
Hell Mesa tells how Alicia and Griselda exploiters who are even more guilty of the
were deceived along with many other Co-
capital sins of greed, lust, fury, and sloth.

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 "LA VOR~iGINE": CIRCLING THE TRIANGLE 423

Not only the workers but two of crificaria

the lead-por aliviar a mis conterrineos.
ing empresarios, El Cayeno and iHoy no! iPlegaria la salud de Alicia!
Barrera,
meet horrible deaths. Because of the over- iPueden contagiar a mi hijo!
powering force of the jungle, all men are Es imposible convencer a estos impor-
dehumanized and transformed into Dan-
tunos que me apellidan su redentor" (p.
tesque denizens of the Underworld. 248).
If Don Rafo and Antonio Correa were
In a final act of pride, Arturo decides
Arturo Cova's guides through the Purga-
to abandon camp and lead his group into
tory and first circle of Hell on the plains
the jungle-"Yo marchard delante, con mi
in Part One, Clemente Silva is clearly his
primogenito bajo la ruana" (p. 249)-thus
guide through the Inferno. Arturo and his
attempting to succeed where the experi-
friends discover Clemente after a second
enced Clemente Silva had failed in the
symbolic crossing of a river: "pasamos a la
Brazilian escape episode. Arturo's death in
opuesta riba, sobre la onda apacible que the vortex of the jungle is not unlike that
ensangrentaba el sol" (p. 131). Although
of Ulysses whose ship is whirled around
the setting is less infernal than the cross-
three times by the tempest before being
ing of the stream into Zubieta's land, the
swallowed up by the sea, as recounted by
discovery of Silva obviously ushers Arturo Dante in Canto XXVI of Inferno. Both
into the next circle of the Inferno where
men pay with their lives for their pride
the warring factions of Colonel Funes and
(Ulysses, for sailing beyond the Pillars of
El Cayeno are responsible for the corpses Hercules) which deludes them into think-
hanging from the cliffs overlooking the
river.
ing that they are capable of defying the
dangers of nature. The fact that Arturo's
Horror follows horror as Arturo contin-
pride is somewhat attenuated by his in-
ues to descend through the infernalforming the lepers of his lack of provi-
depths. Unredeemed, he dies the most sions and by his note to Silva reminding
agonizing death of all: tantalized by thehim of the tragic fate of the Brazilians is
illusion of victory-he found his woman, further proof of the work's complexity and
proved his manliness by killing his rival, subtlety. Arturo is still the fallen angel
and exulted at the birth of his first child,
but, sobered by his experiences and the
a son. Although the birth of a child is of-
birth of his son, he is no longer as de-
ten a redemptive event in the archetypal
liriously defiant as at the beginning of
pattern," in the case of Arturo, it confirms his odyssey.
his continuing pride. Alicia gives birth
prematurely because of Arturo's lifting her Three
up proudly to see Barrera's skeleton: The final death march of Arturo, Alicia,
"Alli qued6, alli estaba cuando corri a bus- and child accompanied by Fidel Franco,
car a Alicia, y, alzindola en mis brazos, se Griselda, and Hell Mesa is only one of
lo mostr6. Livida, exinime, la acostamos en several groupings of three which constant-
el fondo de la curiara, con los sintomas del ly reinforce the Christian aspect of the
aborto" (p. 248). novel's structure. The basic triangular love
Arturo's role as the fallen angel and conflict between Arturo and Barrera over
false redeemer is further confirmed when Alicia is also repeated in the cases of Gri-
he refuses to risk the health of his woman selda and Clarita. Other groups of three
and child to alleviate the sufferings of aare formed by Arturo, Alicia, and Pipa
floating Colombian leper colony: "Alli es-(p. 15); Arturo, Alicia, and Don Rafo (p.
cucho toser la flotilla mendiga, que me16); Arturo, Alicia, and General Gaimez
clama ayuda, pretendiendo alojarse aqui. (p. 17); Arturo, Clarita, and Mauco (p.
jImposible! En otra circunstancia me sa- 60); Arturo, Fidel, and Don Rafo (p. 45).

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424 SEYMOUR MENTON Hispania 59 (Sept. 1970)
lino,abajo
A triangular smoke signal (p. 96), tri-el iris que abria sus petalos
angular cooking fire (p. 32), a como
departure
la mariposa de la indiecita Mapiri-
pana" three
within three days (p. 44), an escape (p. 126).
weeks ago (p. 237), a three-year wait for of the jungle as a vortex is
The image
Luciano's bones (p. 168), the thirty
clearly established by Clemente Silva: "Y
pounds left in Arturo's pocket (p. por 44), the
este proceso-joh selva!-hemos pasado
three hundred tree trunks in the Part
todos los que caemos en tu voragine" (p.
Three overture (p. 170), and the trillion
179). As Arturo nears the end of his odys-
devastating ants (p. 175) are some of the
sey (his search for Barrera), he feels the
other not overly obtrusive but nevertheless
increasing danger of the vortex: "Tengo
significant appearances of the number el presentimiento de que mi senda toca a
three and its derivatives.
su fin, y cual sordo zumbido de ramajes
The tripartite structure is also reflected
en la tormenta, percibo la amenaza de la
stylistically in the many examples of threevoragine" (p. 246).
parallel words or phrases from the very
His premonition is strengthened by his
first page of Part One-"Nada supe de los
knowledge of what happened to the Bra-
deliquios embriagadores, ni de la confi-
zilian fugitives when even their expert
dencia sentimental, ni de la zozobra de las
guide, Clemente Silva, lost his way in the
miradas cobardes" (p. 11)-to the very end
anthropophagous jungle. The vortex
-"Burbujeaba la onda en hervir dantesco,
image is reinforced by Silva's walking
sanguinosa, t6'rbida, traigica . . . el esque-
around in circles, by the vision of the
leto mondo, blancuzco, semihundido .
jungle as a huge mouth, by the men's
Anteanoche, entre la miseria, la oscuridad
footprints being soaked up, and by their
y el desamparo, naci6 el pequefiuelo siete-
almost being swallowed up in the muddy
mesino" (p. 248).
backwater where they took refuge from
II. THE CIRCLE the invading army of giant ants: "Por tres
More important than the triangle,veceshow-
en una hora volvi6 a salir a un mis-
mo pantano . . ." (p. 184); "la visi6n de
ever, as the novel's structural determinant
is the circle, the reflection of theun abismo antrop6fago, la selva misma,
vordgine
which whirls its victims around and abierta ante el alma como una boca que
se and
around until they lose their identity engulle a los hombres a quienes el ham-
bre y el desaliento le van colocando entre
sucks them down deep into prehistoric
times as far as the very origin of life las
sym-mandibulas . . ." (p. 185); "Sus hue-
bolized by the uruburu or the greatllasser-en el barro eran pequefios pozos que
pent, the great round: "A la manera se deinundaban"
la (p. 188); "En el hoyo va-
cio burbuje6 el agua" (p. 189).
vibora mapanare, que vuelve los colmillos
contra la cola, la llamarada se retorcia Aso-
clear indication that Rivera's view of
bre si misma... (p. 93). the world as a vortex is not limited to the
Circular Motion jungle is borne out by Clemente Silva's
fruitless search for help in the town of
The vordgine, the vortex, the whirlpool,
Iquitos. His wanderings take on a circular
appears in its most literal manifestation in
the tragic death of the two Maipurefio In- aspect (the author does not specfically say
dians. The image of the funnel and the al- so), when the buildings "repeat them-
selves": "Varias veces habia recorrido el
lusion to the butterfly of the legendary
Mapiripana suggest a chronological as well pueblo, sin comprender que no era grande.
Al fin me di cuenta de que los edificios se
as physical descent: "el embudo traigico los
sorbi6 a todos. Los sombreros de los dos repetian" (p. 166).
nfufragos quedaron girando en el remo- The Inferno is not limited to the jun-

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 "LA VORAGINE": CIRCLING THE TRIANGLE 425

hisRivera's
gle, nor to Iquitos; the Inferno, in intestine, unwinding it: "al extremo
pessimistic Weltanschauung, isdel intestino, que se desenrollaba como
extended
to include the whole world: "Eso, comolarga, siniestra!" (p. 245).
uno cinta,
dice Juancito Vega, pasa en Iquitos y en image also prevails in the
The vortex
dondequiera que existan hombres" (p.
static scenes of the group of eight-to-thir-
160). teen-year-old Indian concubines of the
The image of the vortex is further de- rubber barons seated "en circulo triste" (p.
veloped by a whole series of revolving 205) and the victims of the plague sur-
men, animals, storms, and objects. Arturo rounded by medicinal fires: "Circundados
and Antonio ride around in a circle on the por hogueras medicinales, tosian los apes-
plains: "Aunque el mulato me sefialaba tados entre el humo" (p. 247).
las sabanetas donde anochecimos la vispera,
Circular Structure
fueme imposible reconocerlas, por su se-
The concentric narrative structure of
mejanza con las demis ..." (p. 88). The
vigorous herd of mares whirl around in an La vordgine offers an excellent example of
effort to break out of the corral: "la ye- the fusion of form and content. The pro-
guada pujante, que se revolvia en circulo, logue alludes to the disappearance of Ar-
turo Cova and his friends and the future
ganosa de atropellar el encierro" (p. 39).
Arturo's stampeding of Barrera's cattle is publication of Cova's manuscript. The en-
tire novel then traces the adventures of
narrated with the increasing rhythm and
Arturo and his friends in order to return
aquatic images of a vortex: "el ganado
empez6 a remolinear ... como vertiginosa to the point of departure in the oft-quoted
marejada . . . remecerse en aborrascadas epilogue: "Hace cinco meses bi'scalos en
ondas ... con un estruendo de cataclismo, vano Clemente Silva. Ni rastro de ellos.
con una convulsi6n de embravecido mar" iLos devor6 la selva!" (p. 250).
(p. 68). The cockfight begins with a As Arturo's search for Alicia and Ba-
"simultaineo revuelo" (p. 71). The hurri-rrera draws to a close, he begins to com-
ment on the actual composition of the
cane on the plains causes the banks of the
swollen Meta River to cave in sweeping manuscript. In the description of his own
the virgin woods into the whirling, boil-style, he significantly uses the image of
ing currents: "Desde alli miribamos hervir the turbulent rivers: "redact6 . . . una
las revolucionadas ondas . . . hasta que altremenda requisitoria de estilo borbollante
fin giraba el bosque en el oleaje como lay apresurado como el agua de los torren-
balsa del espanto" (p. 82). The bubbling, tes" (p. 214). Later, his use of the word
boiling image of the river waters is also "odyssey" to describe his adventures con-
repeated in the moment of Barrera's death:firms the presence in the novel of the
"Burbujeaba la onda en hervir dantesco"archetypal voyages of classical heroes Ulys-
(p. 248). During Arturo's furious fit of ses and Aeneas: "distraigo la ociosidad es-
delirium after striking Griselda, the housecribiendo las notas de mi odisea" (p. 216).
spins around: "el zumbido de la casa, queThe last entry in the manuscript is di-
rected to Clemente Silva and describes
giraba en ripido circulo" (p. 55). In an-
other fit of delirium, Arturo heeds thehow Arturo and his friends will leave
sands' request to be tossed to the windsManuel Cardoso's hut looking for a way
and creates a dust devil: "Las [arenas] out of the jungle. Arturo asks Clemente
agit6, con braceo febril, hasta provocar una to see that the manuscript reaches the
tolvanera" (p. 122). hands of the Colombian consul, which
And finally, in one of the more grue- indeed it did as indicated in the prologue.
some scenes, Arturo's dog pulls El Caye- The simultaneous ending of the manu-
no's corpse out of the river by the end of script and the novel reflects the inward

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 426 SEYMOUR MENTON Hispania .59 (Sept. 1976)

spiraling of the whirlpool-and, paren-

ing and death-dealing female figures, Scy-
thetically, may be regarded
lla, theas a direct
devouring an-has the upper
whirlpool,
tecedent of the ending of partsGarcia
of a beautiful woman, while her
Marquez'
Cien afios de soledad. lower parts consist of three hellhounds."13
Within Arturo Cova's manuscript it- Even more circular is the frequent re-
self, the typical narrative pattern is the turn to the same event with variations.
summary or concluding statement fol- The one outstanding example is the death
lowed by the filling in of details and the of Fidel Franco's captain because of Gri-
return to the point of origin. For example, selda. The two different versions of the
Arturo writes: "Ya librd a mi patria del episode are each told by two different nar-
hijo infame. Ya no existe el enganchador. rators. According to Sebastiana (p. 36)
iLo mat&! iLo mat?!" (p. 247) and then and later Antonio Correa (pp. 80-81),
proceeds to supply the details of the ti- who got his information from Hell Mesa,
tanic struggle. In similar fashion, Clemen- the jealous Fidel Franco stabbed the cap-
te Silva's attempted escape with the Cou- tain to death. The true story, however, is
tinho brothers and the four other rubber not revealed until later, by Fidel Franco
workers is summarized first in the sticho-
(p. 128) who says that it was Griselda
mythic dialogue between Arturo and Cle- who killed the captain. This version is
mente and then recounted in detail. The
confirmed by Griselda herself toward the
horrendous crimes of Colonel Funes in
end of the book (pp. 238-39) with the rec-
San Fernando de Atabapo are also alluded
ognition of Fidel's chivalry in accepting
to and briefly summarized-"Todos aque-the blame.
Ilos rios presenciaron la muerte de los
There are also two versions of Luciano
gomeros que mat6 Funes el 8 de mayo Silva'sde death. At the very end of Part
1913" (p. 218)-before Ramiro Estivanez Two, one of Pezil's workers tells Clemente
recreates the lurid scene in which, in still
that his son was killed by a tree (p. 168).
another circular image, even the assassinsHowever, in Part Three, Zoraida Ayram
turned on each other: "hasta los asesinos reveals that Luciano shot himself while
se asesinaron" (p. 221). embracing her (p. 215).
A different type of circular pattern is
Man is One
described by the repetition of an event or
of a situation in different circumstances. The circular motion reflecting the vor-
The tragic plight of the six escapees whom tex which is presented in the above dra-
Clemente Silva had attempted to guide out matic scenes, plastic tableaux, and narra-
of the jungle clearly forecasts the fate that tive structures is also responsible for the
must have befallen Arturo Cova, Alicia, multiplicity of whirling characters whom
their child, and their three friends: "iNothe author purposely equates with one an-
se tarde! iS6lo tenemos viveres para seis other.
dias! iAcuerdese de Coutinho y de Souza The villainous rubber barons and some
Machado!" (p. 249). El Cayeno escaped of the workers are irresistibly attracted by
from Devil's Island by hurling himself greed to the jungle from many surround-
into the ocean but when he tries to es- ing countries. No matter how briefly they
cape from Arturo by leaping into the river,appear, and no matter how undistinguish-
he is pursued and killed by the two dogs, able they may be from one another, Ri-
symbolically named Martel and D61ar.12 vera purposely identifies their national ori-
The relationship between the dogs and gins: Venezuelan Colonel Funes and
the omnipresent image of the whirlpool Aquiles Vicares, Peruvian Arana, El Pres-
may well be derived from the mythologi- bitero from Ecuador, the Brazilians Juan
cal figure of Scylla: 'like so many allur-Muifeiro Cardoso, and the Coutinho

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 "LA VOP'iGINE": CIRCLING THE TRIANGLE 427

brothers, El Cayeno from French tion or greed. The older Coutinho, who is
Guyana,
the negrote from Martinique,destined to shoot his own brother before
the Turks
Zoraida and Pezil, the Italian Peggi, the up by the jungle, "quiere
being swallowed
Jew Barchil6n, and the Colombians casarse conLa-
una moza que tenga rentas"
rrafiaga and Vega. The only justification (p. 183). Don Rafo's brother actually
for Colombian Petardo Lesmes' nickname married an upper-class girl but his wife's
of "Argentino" is to suggest still anotherinfatuation with her station in life drove
geographical unit absorbed by the vortex. him to a divorce. Don Rafo himself is the
Likewise, some of the Colombian protago- only man in the whole novel to have been
nists come from different regions: Arturoblessed with a happy "matrimonial" life
from Tolima, Alicia from Bogotai, Fidelbecause he gave up his ambition to "hacer
Franco from Antioquia, Clemente Silva un matrimonio brillante" (p. 23) and set-
from Pasto, and Balbino Jacome from tled for continuing his relationship with
Garz6n. Rivera also makes a point of in- his modest, unassuming, and grateful mis-
cluding representatives of the three racial tress.
components of Colombia's population: Fidel Franco, Arturo's most constant
white, Indian, and black. The phrasecompanion, whose name establishes his
"bajo su vigilancia de musulmain desprecia- lineage with Eneas' companion, Faithful
tivo" (p. 180) has as one of its primary Achates,15 is infected with Arturo's quixo-
functions the suggestion of greater re-tic drive to defend the honor of his ideal-
ligious coverage. ized "lady" by pursuing Barrera through
On a deeper level of interpretation, Ri-
the jungle. The two men's heroic efforts
vera identifies his protagonist Arturo Covato rescue their women who allowed them-
with a surprisingly large number of both
selves to be carried off by Barrera are
friends and enemies. "Los cuatro formare-
strongly reminiscent of the efforts of the
mos un solo hombre" (p. 130), Arturo's
Greek heroes in Homer's Iliad to liberate
rather trite exhortation to Fidel Franco, Hell
Helen who had allowed herself to be car-
Mesa, and Antonio Correa before crossing ried off by Paris. The parallelism between
the river into a lower level of the Inferno, is
Arturo and Fidel is further strengthened
a real clue to an understanding of Rivera's by the latter's flight with Griselda after
character portrayal. All men are sinners the death of his captain, her would-be
condemned to suffer but Rivera is particu-assailant. "iLo que voy haciendo por Ali-
larly intent on punishing those men who, cia lo hiciste ya por la Griselda!" (p. 128).
in a tradition going back to Dante, blindly
Luciano Silva fled from his parents'
idealize women. His protagonist, Arturo
home because he felt dishonored by his
Cova, is not the only one to be cast out of
sister's running off with another man.
Paradise for having dared to aspire to anHe, too, is identified with Arturo Cova
ideal love.14 Ramiro Est6vanez, whom Ar- when it is revealed that he preceded Ar-
turo Cova had respected as an older broth-
turo as Zoraida's lover. The relationship
er, a best friend, and with whom he had
is strengthened by Arturo's ass-ciating
identified completely-"nos completibamos Luciano's father Clemente with his own
en el espiritu, poniendo yo la imaginaci6n,
father: "me acord6 de mi anciano padre"
61 la filosofia" (p. 206)-is also condemned
(p. 132).
to the jungle for having aspired to the love
of a beautiful upper-class girl-"Y la loca Clemente Silva is also propelled into the
ilusi6n lo llev6 al desastre" (p. 207). In jungle because of his daughter's escapade.
the cases of Ramiro, Coutinho, and Don His wife half-crazed because of the loss of
Rafo's brother, the sin of aspiring to an her two children, Clemente begins his
ideal love is compounded by social ambi- odyssey in search of his son-the opposite

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 428 SEYMOUR MENTON Hispania 59 (Sept. 1976)

of Telemachus' archetypal search

manuscript for Cova;
of Arturo hisArturo meets
father Ulysses-and later isMesa
Hell tantalized
who narratesinto
the departure of
Barrera of
remaining with the obsession withrecovering
Alicia and Griselda; Arturo
his son's bones. Rivera chooses Clemente later meets Clemente Silva who becomes
Silva as his principal narrator for the hor-the principal narrator of the second half
rors of the rubber exploitation system be-of Part Two; within Clemente Silva's nar-
cause, unlike the often delirious poet Ar-
ration, Balbino Jacome narrates the story
turo Cova, Clemente has experienced theof the French inspector, in part according
system first-hand and speaks in a normal to what Juancito Vega told him; in Part
and therefore more credible manner. Three, Cova's friend Ramiro Estevanez
Nonetheless, the two narrators are fused narrates the historical massacre perpetu-
into one at the beginning of Part Three ated by Colonel Funes on May 8, 1913
in a kind of mutual infection reminiscent(pp. 218-25).
of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza. The If the narrators with whom Arturo is
overture may be interpreted in two ways: identified are his friends, he is just as
in terms of verosimilitude, Arturo imag- strongly identified and fused with his
ines himself the rubber worker-"iYo he ostensible antagonist, Narciso Barrera, and
sido cauchero, yo soy cauchero!" (p. 169);some of his minor enemies. Although Ar-
or following the example of Sancho Pan- turo calls Narciso "mi enemigo" (p. 57),
za, Clemente Silva has adopted Arturo's"mi rival" (p. 58), "mi adversario" (p.
highly poetic, exalted style.16 A few pages58), the latter's diabolical nature makes
later, the two narrators are tightly inter-him another alter ego of Arturo's diaboli-
twined by Rivera's surprising use of thecal half. Barrera is portrayed as a hand-
stichomythic dialogue in which Arturosome, elegantly dressed man who tempts
takes the words out of Clemente's mouth the women with perfume (p. 36), offers
to complete the prologue to the story ofgold to Arturo (p. 57) and flatters him for
the six escapees (plus Clemente). his poetry (p. 57). His narcissistic aspect
--4ramos siete caucheros pr6fugos. is symbolized by the mirror (pp. 75, 247).
-Y quisieron matarlo ... The author tells us nothing of Barrera's
-Crelan que los extraviaba intencionalmente. background. Indeed, only once is his Co-
-Y unas veces lo maltrataban ...
lombian nationality established and even
-Y otras me pedian de rodillas la salvaci6n. then, no particular geographical region is
-Y lo amarraron una noche entera ...
mentioned. The lack of specific informa-
-Temiendo que pudiera abandonarlos. tion about Barrera makes it easier to
-Y se dispersaron por buscar el rumbo ...
-Pero s61o toparon el de la muerte. (p. 179)equate him with Arturo whose diabolical
aspects reappear throughout the novel. In
A sobered Arturo Cova, like the sane Don
Part Three, Ramiro Estivanez says to Ar-
Quixote, subsequently proceeds to narrate turo: "-Mal te cuadra el penacho rojo de
the full story in a rational manner (pp. Lucifer" (p. 209). Barrera's name, Nar-
179-91).
ciso, is perfectly appropriate for the nar-
Just as Homer used multiple narrators cissistic Arturo. The evil Zoraida calls Ar-
in the Odyssey in order to recreate scenes turo "Angel mio (p. 204) and reveals that
from the Trojan War and the struggles of she has probably been on familiar terms
the Greek heroes to return to their respec- with Narciso (p. 231). The culmination
tive homelands, so Rivera uses five narra- of Arturo's search for his evil alter ego is
tors to complete the tableau of the In- the titanic struggle between the two bodies
ferno, giving the impression of the narra- intertwined like serpents:
tion's descending from witness to witness Aquel hombre era fuerte, y, aunque mi esta-
in concentric circles: Rivera "found" the tura lo aventajaba, me derrib6. Pataleando, con-

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 "LA VORAGINE": CIRCLING THE TRIANGLE 429

vulsos, aribamos la maleza y el arenal

been en nudo
ruined by "la loca ilusi6n" (p. 207),
apretado, trocAndonos el aliento delies
boca a boca,
half-blind-"una venda sobre los par-
1l debajo unas veces, otras encima. TrenzAba-
pados" (p.
mos los cuerpos como sierpes, nuestros pies207)-in the jungle with his
name la
chapoteaban la orilla y volviamos sobre turned
ropa,around: Esteban Ramirez.
y rodibamos otra vez hasta que yo, casi des-
The delayed revelation of the name of Est&-
mayado, en supremo impetu, le agrandd con appears thirty-five pages
vanez' "lady"-it
mis dientes las sajaduras, lo ensangrente y, ra-
after Estivanez'
biosamente, lo sumergi bajo la linfa para as- tragedy is recounted-un-
fixiarlo conmo un pich6n. (p. 247). derlines its importance. Her name Marina
suggests two possibilities: the siren, Circe
Barrera's death is anticipated by his
tradition
identification with his henchman Millhn. of attracting man only to destroy
him and a variant of Maria, the idealized
As Arturo imagines Barrera's face cut by
Virgin Mary. In this latter sense, the
Griselda and Alicia, he fuses Barrera's di-
name is ironically the turned-around ver-
abolical laugh with Millap's decapitated
sion of the evil woman, the Terrible
head: "iY mientras me agobiaba la agita-
Mother, Zoraida Ayram, often referred to
ci6n, bailaba ante mis retinas la mueca
as La deThe name Zoraida was
Madona.
un rostro herido, que no era rostro, ni era
undoubtedly inspired by the Zoraida in
mueca, sino la mandibula de Millin, par-
Don Quixote, the saintly mora who turned
tida por el golpe de la cornada que se refa
Christian and changed her name to Maria.
injuriosamente, con risa enigmitica
Rivera's y use
do-of Ayram as Zoraida's family
lorosa como la de Barrera, como la de Ba-
name and his reversal of Ramiro Este-
rrera!" (p. 235). Previously, the memory
vanez' name lead us to examine the pro-
of Milldn's face helped keep Arturo from
tagonist's name. The most likely interpre-
committing suicide: "y permaneci entre el
tation is that Cova represents the cave, the
chinchorro, con la mandibula puesta sobre
dark, diabolical aspects of man, while Ar-
el cafi6n de la carbina. ?C6mo iria a que-
turo represents man's noble impulses and
dar mi rostro? Repetiria el especticulo de
bravery usually associated with King
Millhn? Y este solo pensamiento me aco-
Arthur.
bardaba" (p. 112). Earlier, Arturo's desire
Man Is Woman
for revenge made him identify Barrera
According
with Millhn: "Y en el v 6rtigo del escape to the artistic representations
of some primitive societies, the distinction
me parecia ver a Barrera, descabezado
between
como Millin" (p. 93). In addition to man
be-and woman was not always
clear. The earliest figurines represent wom-
ing equated with Barrera and Millin,
Arturo is also identified with the minor en as large round masses while some statues
have been found with both male and fe-
devils when he pretends to be "el Argen-
tino" Petardo Lesmes (pp. 211-12), andmale characteristics.17 According to Mircea
when he flatters Aquiles VAcares by call- Eliade, Plato describes primitive man as a
ing him "Paladin homerida!" (p. 195) be- bisexual being, spherical in form.'8 Since
cause of his given name, just as Pipa, as Arturo Cova's geographical descent into
well as Barrera, had flattered him. the jungle is also a chronological descent
back to primitive times-as in Carpentier's
Man Is a Circle
subsequent Los pasos perdidos (1953)-,
By identifying Arturo Cova with both there is a structural justification for the
friends and enemies, Rivera reveals his inclusion of the primitive Indians in the
concept of the individual man as in a con-novel. Although they play a very minor
tinuously revolving process within his po- role, they do not constitute an exclusively
tential for both good and evil. The clue topicturesque or anthropological element.
this interpretation lies in Arturo Cova's To indicate how far back in time Arturo
alter ego Ramiro Estdvanez, who, having Cova considers the Indians to live, he

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 430 SEYMOUR MENTON Hispania 59 (Sept. 1976)

compares the old Indian womenMan is Nature and

to mum-
the Terrible
mified gorillas: "acurruca~ronse Mother al
junto
fog6n, como gorilas momificadas"
The most often quoted (p.phrase from La
103). The birth rite of these Indians
vordgine, and indeed pro-
from all the telluric
vides an example of the male-female
novels, has been the fu-
last line of the epi-
sion of prehistoric times.
loguePipa explains
"iLos devor6 la selva!" (p. 250).
how the woman gives birth in the
This image woods anthropopha-
of a personified
and returns to present the child
gous jungle tounexpected.
is not her Earlier in
husband who by this time the is lying
novel, in Silva's
Clemente bed vision of the
observing a diet and awaiting
jungle, afterhis he wife's
realizes that he and the
food preparations to ward off nausea and
Brazilian escapees are lost, is more explicit-
headaches: "al presentir elly alumbramiento,
described: "un abismo antrop6fago, la
la parturienta toma el monte y vuelve,
selva misma, abierta anteya el alma como
lavada, a buscar a su hombre
una bocapara entre-
que se engulle a los hombres a
garle la criatura. El padre,
quienesal punto,
el hambre se
y el desaliento le van
encama a guardar dieta, mientras la mujer
colocando entre las mandibulas" (p. 185).
le prepara cocimientos contra las naiuseas
Ramiro Estivanez concludes his narration
y los cefilicos" (p. 106). of Colonel Funes' heinous crimes by re-
As part of our collective unconscious
inforcing the anthropophagous image: "La
heritage, twentieth-centuryselva los aniquila, la psy-
Jungian selva los retiene, la
selva los llamaof
chology talks about the presence paraboth
tragirselos" (p. 225).
male and female traits, the One of the most horrible
animus and deaths of all
the anima within each individual. As Ar- is that suffered by Barrera, eaten alive by
turo Cova sinks into a deep sleep, his the carnivorous piranhas or caribes. Arturo
thoughts reveal the presence within man had previously threatened Pipa with the
of antithetical masculine and feminine same death (p. 125). According to Erich
elements reflected even in the gender Neumann,
of these meat-eating fish symbol-
ize the vagina dentata20 of the Terrible
the contrasting nouns: autoridad-carifio,
sinraz6n-razonamiento, anima-corazdn. Mother. This association is substantiated
by Arturo Cova's description of the floods
Tuve la impresi6n de que me hundia en un
hoyo profundo, a cuyo fondo no llegaba jamis.
on the plains which cause the cows, sym-
Un sentimiento de rencor me hacia odioso el bols of the life-giving, food-producing
recuerdo de Alicia, la responsable de cuanto Good Mother, to lose their teats to the
pasaba. Si alguna culpa podia corresponderme
caribes: "Y aunque las vacas pastaban en
en el trance calamitoso, era la de no haber sido
severo con ella, la de no haberle impuesto a los esteros, con el agua sobre los lomos,
toda costa mi autoridad y mi cari-io. Asi, conperdian sus tetas en los dientes de los cari-
la sinraz6n de este razonamiento, envenenaba bes" (p. 112).
mi inima y enconaba mi coraz6n. (p. 61) The actual personification of the man-
Only a few pages later, the use of the eating jungle is the Turk Zoraida Ayram,
verb sepultar and the image of the arche- the representation of the archetypal Ter-
typal spiderl9 in the bosom in connection rible Mother. Appearing late in the novel
with Arturo's inimo supports the hypothe- and situated close to the bottomless pit of
sis that the author was thinking, con- the Inferno, this woman, like other pre-
sciously or subconsciously, in Jungian historic women, has masculine attributes:
terms: "Sepult, en mi Animo el ardid ven- "iMujer singular, mujer ambiciosa, mujer
gativo, como puede guardarse un alacrin varonil!" (p. 199). Unfeeling, she uses
en el seno: a cada instante se despertaba her female body to swallow up (like the
para clavarme el aguij6n" (p. 67). jungle) or to suck up (like the whirl-

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 "LA VOAiGINE": CIRCLING THE TRIANGLE 431

pool) a series of men-Narciso Barrera,

dona. Cual se agota una esperma invertida so-
bre su llama, acab6 presto con mi ardentia esta
Lucianito Silva, Arturo Cova-for financial
loba insaciable, que oxida con su aliento mi
gain only: "ayudindose con su virilidad.
cuerpo
cuando el buen xito del negocio 10oY lare-
odio y la detesto por calurosa, por mer-
queria. Por hechizar a los hombrescenaria,
selv4i-por incitante, por sus pulpas tiranas,
ticos ataviaibase con grande esmero . " trigicos. Hoy, como nunca, siento
por sus senos
nostalgia
(p. 199). In this respect, she is clearly de la mujer ideal y pura, cuyos brazos
the
brinden serenidad para la inquietud, frescura
literary antecedent of R6mulo Gallegos'
para el ardor, olvido para los vicios y las pa-
Dofia Birbara, "la devoradora de los hom-
siones. (pp. 225-26)
bres." Less individualized than Dofia Bar-
bara, Zoraida Ayram is described as a ter- A significant predecessor in La vordgine
of Zoraida Ayram as the Terrible Mother
rible earth mother, huge and fat, resem-
is the legendary Indian Mapiripana. As in
bling a waterfall and with beads hanging
the case of the birth practices of the Indi-
from her bosom like a honeysuckle over a
ans, the Mapiripana legend seems to be a
pit. The final grotesque touch is supplied
dash of anthropology inserted in the novel
by the tattoo on her bejeweled hand of
to provide a respite from the vertiginous
two hearts joined by a dagger. The use of
action. However, when examined more
the adjective "pulposa" (fleshy) to describe
her arms also evokes the image of the ab-
closely, it provides a link between two
very basic themes of the novel: the de-
sorbing, sucking octopus ("pulpo").21
struction of man because he allows him-
Era una hembra adiposa y agigantada, redon-
self to be tempted by woman and because
da de pechos y de caderas. Ojos claros, piel
hictea, gesto vulgar. Con sus vestidos blancos y
he attempts to alter the divine state of
sus encajes tenia la apariencia de una cascada.nature. In a variation of the tradition of
Luengo collar de cuentas azules se descolgabaCirce,23 the young Indian goddess appears
desde su seno, cual una madreselva sobre una
to the lustful missionary in the light of the
sima. Sus brazos, resonantes por las pulseras y
full moon and has him chase her into a
desnudos desde los hombros, eran pulposos y
cave
satinados como dos cojincillos para el placer, y where he remains prisoner for many
en la enjoyada mano tenia un tatuaje que repre-years. In order to punish him, she sucked
sentaba dos corazones atravesados por un pufial.his lips dry, exhausting him, just as Zo-
(pp. 195-96)
raida Ayram was subsequently to exhaust
The mention of the word "ciudades" Arturo Cova,24 and ultimately the jungle
(cities), another image of the Terrible
was to devour Arturo and his friends com-
Mother,22 and the word "sedienta" pletely. The fact that Mapiripana is also
(thirsty), reinforces the archetype: "iOtra
alleged to have created the rapids and the
vez, como en las ciudades, la hembra bes- waterfalls reinforces her presence in the
tial y calculadora, sedienta de provechos,novel as an integral symbol of the vorad-
me vendia su tentaci6n!" (p. 199). gine, the "whirlpool."
After several days of love-making, theThe missionary is obviously punished
conquering male is exhausted by the suc- for having attempted to alter the peaceful
tioning octopus, "este diablo de vieja in-existence of the Indians, expressed ironi-
fanta" (p. 226). In this condition, Arturocally "como era enviado del cielo a derrotar
once again longs for the unattainable ideal,
la superstici6n" (p. 120). In like manner,
a pure woman, a Maria, the antithesis civilized
of man is punished for exploiting
Ayram. and destroying nature: "es el hombre civili-
Calamidades fisicas y morales se han aliado zado el paladin de la destrucci6n" (p.
contra mi existencia en el sopor de estos dias
viciosos. Mi decaimiento y mi escepticismo tienen
177); "un sino de fracaso y maldici6n per-
por causa el cansancio li6brico, la astenia del sigue a cuantos explotan la mina verde"
vigor fisico, succionado por los besos de la ma- (p. 225). Nature is personified as a sensi-

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 432 SEYMOUR MENTON Hispania 59 (Sept. 1976)

tro hierro
tive being whose psychology is notpara known
que experimente lo que es
by humans: "el vegetal es un ser
el hacha sensible
en la carne viva. Picadlo aunque
cuya psicologia desconocemos"
est6 indefenso,(p.
pues 176).
61 tambidn destruy6
The rubber trees, in particular, have
los airboles y es justo que conozca nuestro
white blood like the God-"unos drboles martirio!" (p. 123). In a more realistic
que tienen sangre blanca, como los dioses"
passage, Clemente Silva recalls showing
(p. 169). Incarnations of the Terrible his scarred back to the French explorer
Mother, like the Indian priestess Mapiri-
and naturalist and comparing it to the
pana and Zoraida Ayram, only in reverse,
wounded rubber tree: "-Seiior, diga si mi
they do not allow the dying men to quench espalda ha sufrido menos que ese arbol.
their thirst because their milk is ironically
Y, levantaindome la camisa, le ensefi6 mis
lethal: "muchos sucumben de calentura, carnes laceradas. Momentos despu6s, el
abrazados al airbol que mana leche, pegan-
irbol y yo perpetuamos en la Kodak nues-
do a la corteza sus Aividas bocas, para cal-
tras heridas, que vertieron para igual amo
mar, a falta de agua, la sed de la fiebredistintos jugos: siringa y sangre" (p. 151).
con caucho liquido; y alli se pudren comoNot only Alicia and Clemente Silva but
also Arturo himself is converted into a tree
las hojas roidas por ratas y hormigas, tini-
cos millones que les llegaron al morir" during
(p. his first beriberi attack: "me sentia
135). More specifically representative sembrado
of en el suelo, y por mi pierna,
the Terrible Mother is the ironicallyhinchada, fofa y deforme como las raices
named mariquita tree: "Dicho arbol,deaciertas palmeras, ascendia una savia ca-
semejanza de las mujeres de mal vivir,
liente petrificante" (p. 241).
brinda una sombra perfumada; jmas ay The literary antecedent of the conver-
del que no resista a la tentaci6n!" (p.
sion of men and women into trees may be
153). found in Greek and Roman mythology
Was this the tree that reputedly killed but more specifically in the Canto XIII of
Lucianito Silva "-iLo mat6 un Arbol!-" Dante's Inferno as well as in the Canto VI
(p. 168)? Later, Arturo, in a reference to of Ariosto's Orlando Furioso:
Man's expulsion from Paradise, tells Zo- Entonces extendi la mano hacia delante, cogi
raida that Lucianito was killed by "el una ramita de un gran endrino, y su tronco ex-
[airbol] de la ciencia del bien y del mal" clam6:
(p. 215). In still another reaffirmation of -?Por que me rompes?-Inmediatamente se
the rubber tree's identification with the tiii6 de sangre y volvi6 a exclamar-4Por que me
desgarras? No tienes ningi'n sentimiento de
Terrible Mother, Zoraida tells how Lu-piedad? Hombres fuimos, y ahora estamos con-
cianito committed suicide while practically vertidos en troncos: tu mano deberna haber sido
embracing her: "Inclin6se sobre mi ha-mis piadosa aunque fueramos almas de serpien-
tes.25
maca, como oliendome, como palpindome.
Late I discerned her light and fickle bent,
iDe pronto, un disparo! iY me bafi6 los Still loving and unloving at a beat:
senos en sangre!" (p. 215). Two months, I reigned not more, no sooner
However, when Arturo dreams of Alicia spent,
converted into a rubber tree whose bark Than a new paramour assumed my seat;
And me, with scorn, she doomed to banish-
he has been piercing, she becomes the ment,
positive spokesman for violated nature: From her fair grace cast out. 'Tis then I weet
"'Por que me desangras?" (p. 35). In one I share a thousand lovers' fate, whom she
of Arturo's delirious moments, he hears Had to like pass reduced, all wrongfully.
the mahogany tree urge the scythe-bran- And these, because they should not scatter
bruits,
dishing figure of Death to afflict Arturo Roaming the world, of her lascivious ways,
with the same martyrdom that he imposed She, up and down the fruitful soil, transmutes
on the trees: "iPicadlo, picadlo con vues- To olive, palm, or cedar, firs or bays.26

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 "LA VORIiGINE": CIRCLING THE TRIANGLE 433
Ariosto's Circean figure, Alcina, is ob- 2" 'iSe los trag6 la selva!' dice la frase final de
viously another Terrible Mother predeces- La vordgine de Jose Eustasio Rivera. La excla-
maci6n es algo mas que la lipida de Arturo
sor of Zoraida Ayram, while the similarity Cova y sus compafieros: podria ser el comentario
of her name to Alicia's offers another pos- a un largo siglo de novelas latinoamericanas: se
sible example of role reversal (cf. Zoraida los trag6 la montafia, se los trag6 la pampa, se los
and Aquiles Vicares) from the great clas- trag6 la mina, se los trag6 el rio. Mais cercana a la
sics that are being parodied. geografia que a la literatura . . ." (Carlos Fuen-
tes, La nueva novela hispanoamericana [Mt'xi-
co: Joaquin Mortiz, 1969], p. 9).
THE ABOVE ANALYSIS LEAVES NO DOUBT 3See Eduardo Neale-Silva's carefully docu-
about the impropriety of the conde- mented studies: "The Factual Basis of La vorai-
gine," PMLA LIv (1939), 316-31, and Hori-
scension with which La voradgine has been zonte humano: Vida de Jose" Eustasio Rivera
treated by the critics of the boom: "la na- (M6xico: Fondo de Cultura Econ6mica, 1960).
rrativa hispanoamericana pasa del realismo 4Vergil, The Aeneid, translated by L. R.
teli'irico de los Rivera, Gallegos, Guiiraldes Lind (Bloomington: Indiana University Press,
y demis . .. a formas narrativas mucho 1963), Book x, lines 121-22.

mas complejas."'7 The apparently chaotic 5Jos6 Eustasio Rivera, La vordgine (Buenos
Aires: Editorial Losada, 1968), p. 176. All sub-
structure, like the "desorden ordenado" of sequent page references are to this edition.
the baroque, reflects the author's vision of 6Leonidas Morales analyzes the whole novel
the world and becomes coherent when in terms of the descent-to-the-underworld motif
and clearly demonstrates the similarities with
properly interpreted. Besides denouncing
in unforgettable scenes the abuses of the
theworks of Homer, Vergil, and Dante: "En
cambio, se nos revelari, una dimensi6n humana y
rubber entrepreneurs and the brutalizing
poetica enteramente nueva en La vordgine, si
effects of the jungle, Rivera sought entendemos
to el viaje de Cova y sus compafieros a
challenge and to parody the conceptslaofselva como un descenso a los infiernos o como
un viaje al pais de los muertos, motivo desa-
ideal love and physical heroism in some
rrollado en numerosos mitos y ritos primitivos y
of the great classics of Western civiliza-
que la tradici6n literaria occidental (Homero,
tion: Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, Vergil's
Virgilio y Dante) elabor6 a partir del mito griego
Aeneid, Dante's Divine Comedy, Ariosto's
de la laguna o rio Estigia" ("La vordgine, un
viaje al pais de los muertos," Anales de la Uni-
Orlando Furioso, and Cervantes' Don Qui-
xote. In recent years, the developmentversidad
of de Chile, cxxIxi, 134 [abril-junio] de
1965], p. 150).
archetypal criticism has facilitated the rec-
7Jean Franco has clearly demonstrated the
ognition of the deeper meaning of many
Romantic antecedents of Arturo Cova's Satanic
apparently disparate and fortuitous ele-
rebellion and his being punished for his illu-
ments. Hopefully, this greater understand-
sions in "Image and Experience in La vordgine,"
Bulletin of Hispanic Studies, XLI (April 1964),
ing of the novel will lead to its resurrec- 101-10.
tion and to its gaining a lasting and most
sThe significance of Don Rafo's name, as
deserved niche in the history of the Latin well as that of Zoraida Ayram, and other minor
American novel as one of the most artisti- characters, was first pointed out by Ernesto Po-
rras Collantes in "Hacia una interpretaci6n es-
cally complex predecessors of the works of
tructural de La vordgine," Thesaurus, xiii, 2
Carpentier, Rulfo, Garcia Mairquez, and (May-August 1968), 271-72. Oddly enough,
other currently applauded authors of the however, he did not comment on the significance
of the names "Alicia" and "Arturo Cova."
past two decades.
9The fact that Dante's Purgatory is a moun-
tain does not preclude its being equated with
NOTES Rivera's plains at the midpoint between Paradise
1"Como novela, La voragine ha sido objeto and Hell.
de
10For a distorted dogmatic Marxist view of the
criticas severas: se le censura la falta de organi-
zaci6n en la trama .. ." (Fernando Alegria, novel, see F. V. Kelin's introduction to the 1935
Historia de la novela hispanoamericana [M6xico: Soviet edition of La vordigine, reprinted in
Ediciones de Andrea, 1965], p. 173). Atenea, xxxmi (1936), 314-25.

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 434 SEYMOUR MENTON Hispania 59 (Sept. 1976)

"Both Ernesto Porras Collantes, op. Meftst6feles

IsMircea Eliade, cit., and y el andrdgino
Richard J. Callan ("The Archetype
(Madrid: Edicionesof Psychic
Guadarrama, 1961), p. 136.
Renewal in La vorigine," Hispania, LIv,
The whole question 3 [Sep- deities is
of androgynous
well documented
tember 1971], 475), mistakenly assume on pp. 124-58.
that the
birth of Cova's son represents the normal
19Neumann, pp. 66, 177. arche-
typal pattern of redemption. 20"The positive femininity of the womb ap-
12Whereas "D6lar" obviously
pears assignifies
a mouth; that isgreed,
why 'lips' are attributed
"Martel" could be interpreted to the as any
female oneand
genitals, oron all
the basis of this
three of the following definitions of similar
positive symbolic equation the mouth, as 'upper
words found in the Diccionario de la Academia womb,' is the birthplace of the breath and the
(Mexico: Talleres de Publicaciones Herrerias, word, the Logos. Similarly, the destructive side
1941): of the Feminine, the destructive and deathly
a. martillo: fig. El que persigue una cosa conwomb,
el appears most frequently in the arche-
fin de sofocarla o acabar con ella (Arturo's
typal form of a mouth bristling with teeth. We
pursuit of Barrera and the dog's pursuit find
of this symbolism in an African statuette,
El Cayeno). where the tooth-studded womb is replaced by a
gnashing mask, and in an Aztec likeness of the
b. martelo: ant. celos, enamoramiento, galanteo.
c. Marte: Entre los antiguos romanos, el dios death
de goddess, furnished with a variety of
la guerra. knives and sharp teeth. This motif of the vagina
1aErich Neumann, The Great Mother, trans- dentata is most distinct in the mythology of the
lated from German by Ralph Manheim (Prince- North American Indians. In the mythology of
ton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, other Indian tribes a meat-eating fish inhabits
1972), p. 168. the vagina of the Terrible Mother," Neumann,
14Although Rivera's biographer, Eduardo p. 168.
Neale-Silva, does not specifically deal with the 2lIbid., p. 66.
author's attitude toward women, the image that 22Ibid., pp. 46, 283.
appears in the novel may be partially explained 23Ibid., pp. 35, 80-81.
by the fact that Rivera never married, that he 24For a physiological explanation of woman's
had four older sisters, and that, at least as a child, greater sexuality, see Mary Jane Sherfey, "A
he was strongly attached to his mother: "fuerte Theory on Female Sexuality" in Robin Morgan,
lazo emocional que unia al poeta con dofia Ca- ed., Sisterhood Is Powerful (New York: Vintage
talina" (Neale-Silva, Horizonte humano, op. cit., Books, 1970), pp. 220-30.
p. 45). 25Dante, Divina Comedia (Barcelona: Edi-
IsVergil, op. cit., Book x, line 195; vi, line 171; torial Juventud, 1969), pp. 51-52. I prefer to
vIII, line 535, line 601. quote from the Spanish edition of the Divine
16Lydia de Le6n Hazera opts for the latter Comedy in order to emphasize the similarity be-
interpretation in La novela de la selva hispano- tween the two passages. The similarity between
americana (BogotA: Instituto Caro y Cuervo, La vorigine and Orlando Furioso is certainly
1971), pp. 132, 136. not as strong.
'7"This is the phase of the chimerical crea- 26Ludovico Ariosto, Orlando Furioso, trans-
tures composed of different animals or of ani- lated by William Stewart Rose (Indianapolis:
mals and man . . . and also of such monstrosi- Bobbs-Merrill Co., 1968), Canto vi, 50-51.
ties as phallic and bearded mothers" (Neumann, 27Emir Rodriguez Monegal, El boom de la
op. cit., p. 13). novela latinoamericana (Caracas: Editorial Tiem-
po Nuevo, 1972), p. 76.

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