Carlos Monsiváis Wins Juan Rulfo Award
by María Elena Cruz López -- Críticas, 9/15/2006
This year’s prestigious Premio de Literatura Latinoamericana y del Caribe Juan Rulfo has been awarded to Mexican writer Carlos Monsiváis. According to the jury, Monsiváis has “created a distinctive language to represent the richness of popular culture, the spectacle of urban modernization, and the codes of power.” The document read by the jury during the press conference on Sept. 4describes Monsiváis as an “independent and committed intellectual whose work projects itself internationally with an innovating style and a confidence in the critical diversity of the dialogue that is giving shape to the new Latin-American culture.”
Monsiváis’s literary prestige derives from essays, chronicles, and biographies that describe, from a critical point of view, Mexico’s process of modernization. Nuevo catecismo para indios remisos (New Catechism for Remiss Indians, 1982) Días de guardar (1971) (Mourning Days), and Los rituales del caos (1995) (Rituals of the Chaos) are among his most famous books.
The 16th edition of this award, established by the Feria Internacional del Libro de Guadalajara (FIL), has been surrounded by controversy Juan Rulfo’s family has decided to remove the writer’s name from the award. Even though the organizers and the family have not reached an agreement yet, the award did not change its name this year. The award, which comes with a $100,000 prize, will be given to Monsiváis during the FIL in November.
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