COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES
 L436S: Advanced Latin American Cultures
 PROFESSOR FERNANDO VALERIO

Case Study: "The Eclipse" By Augusto Monterroso

Question-based discussion:

1. Who are the Mayans?
2. Where do they live?
3. What have been the greatest achievements of their culture?
4. What is the central problem in this story?
5. What are the causes of this problem?
6. Who are the agents?
7. What are the consequences of Brother Bartolomé Arrazola's "ignorance" about the Mayans?
8. Is Brother Bartolomé Arrazola's "ignorance" his only ignorance?
9. What was Brother Bartolomé Arrazola's work in Guatemala?
10. How was Brother Bartolomé Arrazola sacrified?
11. What did Brother Bartolomé Arrazola do to try to save himself from being sacrified?
12. What does Brother Bartolomé Arrazola think about his own death?
13. How do the indians look at him?  Why?
14. What do you think the indians "consulted" one another about?
15. What was the indian reciting after Brother Bartolomé Arrazola's  death?
16. How did the indians know about the eclipses?
17. What is the relationship between Brother Bartolomé Arrazola's heart and the Sun?
18. What assumptions underlie the indians behavior/actions?
19. What is the relationship between power and knowledge in this story?
20. How would you characterize the end of the story?
21. What did you learn from this story?
22. How would the story be different if  Brother Bartolomé Arrazola had known more about      the Mayan culture? What do you think would have happened to Brother
     Bartolomé Arrazola? Do you know a real life case that is in some way similar to this one?