''Canaima'' is a

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

n novel. It was written by

Rómulo Gallegos Rómulo Ángel del Monte Carmelo Gallegos Freire (2 August 1884 – 5 April 1969) was a Venezuelan novelist and politician. For a period of nine months during 1948, he governed as the first freely elected president in Venezuela's history. He was ...

and published in 1935.

Plot

The Orinoco jungle is the main character and at the same time the reason behind all of the other characters' actions. The struggle against nature and yearning for riches, dominion and power are the main themes in the novel. ''Canaima'' represents a bitter struggle against caudillism. Its author depicts the jungle from an ideological standpoint, which translates into his characters' development. Marcos Vargas, returns to

Ciudad Bolívar Ciudad Bolívar (; Spanish for "Bolivar City"), formerly known as Angostura and St. Thomas de Guyana, is the capital of Venezuela's southeastern Bolívar State. It lies at the spot where the Orinoco River narrows to about in width, is the sit ...

after his studies in

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

, finally settling by the waters of Yuruari river.

Characters

* Marcos Vargas: A teenager with an adventurous spirit. After studying in Trinidad, he returns to the Venezuelan jungle to help his mother, who lives in bankruptcy, by starting a cart business. Although he has a noble heart, he's sometimes impulsive, giving into his macho complex. After tainting his hands in blood, unsure in his romantic relationship and his failing business, he decides to abandon everything to go deep into the jungle. * Manuel Ladera * Aracelis Vellorini * Maigualida Ladera * Gabriel Ureña

Film

A film adaptation of the novel was made in 1945, directed by

Juan Bustillo Oro Juan Bustillo Oro (2 June 1904 – 10 June 1989) was a Mexican film director, screenwriter and producer, whose career spanned over 38 years. Among his works there are '' In the Times of Don Porfirio'', '' Here's the Point'', '' Arm in Arm Down t ...

. The cast included

Jorge Negrete Jorge Alberto Negrete Moreno (; 30 November 1911 – 5 December 1953) was a Mexican singer and actor. Life and career Negrete was born in the city of Guanajuato and had two brothers and three sisters; his father was a Mexican Army Colonel who f ...

as Marcos Vargas,

Gloria Marín Gloria Méndez Ramos (19 April 1919 – 13 April 1983), better known as Gloria Marín, was a Mexican actress. She was considered a celebrated female star of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. During her career, Marín appeared in about 100 film ...

as Magualida,

Rosario Granados Rosario Granados (March 12, 1925 – March 25, 1997) was an Argentine-born Mexican film actress known for her roles in Mexican cinema. Granados starred in the 1949 comedy ''The Great Madcap'' (1949).Acevedo-Muñoz p.ix Selected filmography * ''Th ...

as Arcelis, Alfredo Varela as Arteguita, Andrés Soler as Giaffaro,

Carlos López Moctezuma Carlos López Moctezuma Pineda (19 November 1909 – 14 July 1980) was a Mexican film actor. He appeared in more than 210 films between 1938 and 1980. He starred in the film ''Happiness'', which was entered into the 7th Berlin Internationa ...

as José Francisco Ardavín, and

Alfonso Bedoya Benito Alfonso Bedoya y Díaz de GuzmánSan Antonio Light, Dec. 17, 1957, p. 20 (April 16, 1904 – December 15, 1957) was a Mexican actor who frequently appeared in U.S. films. He is best known for his role in ''The Treasure of the Sierra Madre ...

as Cholo Parima. Novels by Rómulo Gallegos 1935 novels Spanish-language novels {{1930s-novel-stub