Arts & Letters, April 2018

The life and times of Mario Vargas Llosa
Book review
•Arts & Letters Desk
Raju Alauddin, a poet and translator, translates into
Bangla from original Spanish works of Latin American
fiction writers. He also writes essays and scholarly articles
on masters such as Jorges Luis Borges, Gabriel
García Márquez and Carlos Fuentes, among many others.
But this time he’s shifted his focus on Mario Vargas
Llosa and translated a unique coffee table book on the
writer, enriched both with biographical snippets and
analytical notes on his fiction. Though Bangla translation
of some of his stories and novels is available in
Bangladesh, scholarly works on his life and works are
rarely seen. Razu’s translation will fill in that gap.
Mario Vargas Llosa is a distinct name in world literature.
This Peruvian writer is a winner of the 2010
Nobel Prize in Literature. In his fictional works, he’s
portrayed stories and lives of people from many parts
of the world. His books have been translated into more
than 30 languages. Widely admired for his mastery
over the psychology of his characters, he is regarded as
one of the biggest and most widely read authors after
Borges and Márquez.
Published by Sakkhat Publication, the book, Mario
Vargas Llosar Jibon O Mithyar Satya, is a rare collection
of photographs showing many aspects of Llosa’s life
as well as his literary career. It is different from other
books on Llosa. Not focusing on bland, encyclopedic
description, it highlights rare events of the writer’s life
with photos and text. It has been translated from the
original Spanish, Mario Vargas Llosa: La vida y la libertad.
However, in the Bangla version, Raju has added
some additional chapters alongside the original ones,
which will help readers to learn Llosa’s life in greater
detail.
Born in 1936 in the southern Peruvian provincial city
of Arequipa, Llosa began working as an amateur journalist
for tabloid newspapers at the age of 16. At 23, he
published his first short story collection, Los jefes. His
first novel, La ciudad y los perros, was published when
he was 26 years old. It earned him the Premio Biblioteca
Breve award, the youngest ever recipient of the
award. Though he wrote novels prolifically, his works
also include essays, plays, stories and poems.
The first chapter of the book in Raju’s translation,
“Jibon Bidrohi Ek Toruner Protidin,” sheds light on his
early life, from his childhood to 2007. Llosa fans will
learn about his lives in different cities of the world:
Arequipa, Cochabamba, Peura, Lima, Madrid, Paris,
London and Barcelona. The second chapter features
photos collected by Llosa, and also details his early stories,
plays and student life. The third chapter includes
Llosa’s list of favorite writers: William Faulkner, Gustave
Flaubert, Thomas Mann, Victor Hugo, Leo Tolstoy,
Juan Carlos Onetti, Miguel de Cervantes and Jorge Luis
Borges. Readers will learn Llosa’s impression of these
great writers with a comprehensive list of awards and
recognition received by him.
Llosa was into politics and participated in the presidential
election from Frente Democrático in 1990. The
chapter, “Rajniti,” records his political philosophy,
with pictorial depictions of his campaign, rallies and
processions.
Llosa also had a brilliant journalistic career, working
with different magazines,
newspapers
and international
dailies. As a journalist,
he worked
in France and the
Middle East; he
also worked as a TV
journalist. His observation
on journalism
is precious:
“Journalism is the
highest independent
work, a way to know recent issues and problems.
There is no alternative to journalism in strengthening
democracy and ensuring justice.” The book discusses
Llosa’s journalistic stint and photographs in Israel, Iraq
and Palestine.
The book includes The Paris Review’s long interview
of Llosa by Ricardo Augusto Setti. It has a chapter
named “Birol Songjojon,” which contains Llosa’s rare
works that have not been translated into any language,
not even into English. Interestingly enough, the book
contains his essay, “Weaker Sex,” which delves into issues
of women in Bangladesh.
This is indeed a timely venture in our translation,
which is sure to broaden the horizon of Latin American
fiction in our country. It will also come in handy when
researching Llosa’s fiction. •
‘Silent Noise’: Celebrating everydayness
•Zarin Rafiuddin
The stories in Jackie Kabir’s Silent
Noise have an element of everydayness
to them. Their titles wrap
around this. From “Mundane Monday”
to “The Visit” and “Arshi,” the
stories are about ordinary people and
ordinary lives. Yet, Kabir shows, the
ordinary and everydayness is not as
simplistic and uncomplicated as people
think it is. Her stories begin with
a certain sense of anxiousness or relaxation
that seems to be what anyone
living in a city or quiet town can
relate to, only to transform in a few sentences the
ending into something unexpected, even puzzling
or sad sometimes.
This is the impression that one is left with, upon
reading this anthology. The feelings and themes are
known to most readers as they strike down to the
heart of the matter. And, from experience, we know
that the heart of the matter can be convoluted or
even emotionally frustrating.
Some stories are sweet and succinct,
offering another interpretation
of life while others start
on a happy note but end with
such a discordant tune that it
rings in your ears.
Some of these tales seem inspired
by newspaper articles
of some real incident that happened
somewhere in Bangladesh.
One such story is “Undesired
Desire,” which brings out
the perspective of a woman
who’s a victim of a sexual assault.
In a culture where women are readily blamed
for the trauma and abuse inflicted on them, the story
captures how a young girl is full of excitement
and expectations before meeting a prospective lover
only to have that dream shattered. In this story,
Kabir is subtly raising questions about the patriarchal
norms that perpetrate and justify such assaults.
A similar question is addressed in “Arshi,” but
in a completely different, almost perplexing way. I
can understand the character of Arshi well; she is
the sort of woman whom people avoid for societal
conventions. She is an aged woman who's still a
bachelor; so, people start defining her as apathetic,
selfish and materialistic. Arshi doesn’t seem to care,
though, that people are avoiding her, but she does
suffer as her inner life and past are never understood.
When readers are at the end of the story, we
can comprehend that Kabir’s metaphor of the flower
which is pure but attracts the snake implies who
Arshi is. Yet, people would remain in the dark about
this as they never tried to know the truth about her.
In these stories, Kabir explores the emotions and
queries people usually have when confronting the
unexpected. This is a book that celebrates everydayness,
and Kabir shows that everydayness is not so
mundane after all.•
Zarin Rafiuddin reviews books for Arts & Letters.
She also writes about films and literature.
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DHAKA TRIBUNE | SATURDAY, APRIL 14, 2018 ARTS & LETTERS