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Arturo Arias |
Professor Earns Guatemala's Highest Literary Prize
Arturo Arias honored for lifetime achievement
AUSTIN, Texas -Sept. 30, 2008- Arturo Arias, professor in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at The University of Texas at Austin, has earned Guatemala's highest literary honor, the Miguel Angel Asturias National Literature Prize.
The prize, named in honor of Guatemalan writer, statesman and Nobel prizewinner Miguel Angel Asturias, is awarded to a writer for lifetime achievement in literature.
"A distinguished critic and novelist, Arturo is highly deserving of this prize, and it's a great honor to have him as a member of our department," said Madeline Sutherland-Meier, chair ad interim of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese.
The Advisory Board on Literature of Guatemala's Ministry of Culture announced the award Sept. 20 in the newspaper El Periodico with the following statement:
"The literary work of Arturo Arias permits us to identify that quality that we can label as a vital 'practice' in his literature; it conveys a uniquely rich and complex style that manifests itself in works like 'Jaguar en Llamas' or 'Sopa de Caracol.' Arias displays linguistic innovation (in its formal aspects as well as in its content) that distinguishes his work from well-trodden literary paths. In this sense, perhaps one of the most salient traits of his unique style is the creative joy of its humor."
Arias is the author of "Taking their Word: Literature and the Signs of Central America," "Ceremonial Gestures: Central American Narrative, 1960-1990," "The Identity of the Word: Guatemala Narrative in the Light of the New Century" and "Ideology, Literature and Society During the Guatemalan Revolution, 1944-1954," as well as the edited volume "The Rigoberta Menchu Controversy."
His Spanish-language fiction works include "Rattlesnake," "Snail Soup," "The Roads to Paradise, "After the Bombs, "Jaguar in Flames," "Itzam Na" and "In the City and the Mountains." He also co-wrote the script for the documentary film "El Norte," which earned an Academy Award nomination for best original screenplay in 1985.
Arias, an affiliate of the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies, teaches courses on Central American literature, indigenous literature, cultural studies, ethnic identity, and race, gender and sexuality in postcolonial societies.
Contact:
Arturo Arias
Professor, Department of Spanish and Portuguese
512-232-4549
arturo_arias@mail.utexas.edu
Jennifer McAndrew
Public Affairs Specialist, College of Liberal Arts
512-232-4730
jennifer.mcandrew@mail.utexas.edu