Juan José Arreola Zúñiga (September 21, 1918 – December 3, 2001) was a Mexican writer, academic, and actor. He is considered Mexico's premier experimental short story writer of the 20th century. Arreola is recognized as one of the first Latin American writers to abandon realism; he used elements of fantasy to underscore

existentialist Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and value ...

and absurdist ideas in his work. Although he is little known outside Mexico, Arreola has served as the literary inspiration for a legion of Mexican writers who have sought to transform their country's realistic literary tradition by introducing elements of

magical realism Magical realism, magic realism, or marvelous realism is a style or genre of fiction and art that presents a realistic view of the world while incorporating magical elements, often blurring the lines between speculation and reality. ''Magical rea ...

, satire, and

allegory As a List of narrative techniques, literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a wikt:narrative, narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a meaning with moral or political signi ...

. Alongside

Jorge Luis Borges Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo ( ; ; 24 August 1899 – 14 June 1986) was an Argentine short-story writer, essayist, poet and translator regarded as a key figure in Spanish literature, Spanish-language and international literatur ...

, he is considered one of the masters of the hybrid subgenre of the essay-story. Arreola is primarily known for his short stories and he only published one novel, (The Fair; 1963).

Life and career

Early life

Arreola was born on September 21, 1918, in

Zapotlán el Grande Zapotlán el Grande (also known as Guzmán and Ciudad Guzmán) is a municipality in the Mexican States of Mexico, state of Jalisco. Name There are several meanings given to the root name of the "Zapotlán el Grande". "Zapote" is the name given to ...

(modern-day Ciudad Guzmán), in the state of

Jalisco Jalisco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in western Mexico and is bordered by s ...

. He was the fourth child out of fourteen of Felipe Arreola Mendoza and Victoria Zúñiga Chávez. In 1930, he began working as a

bookbinder Bookbinding is the process of building a book, usually in codex format, from an ordered stack of paper sheets with one's hands and tools, or in modern publishing, by a series of automated processes. Firstly, one binds the sheets of papers alon ...

, which led to a series of other jobs. On the last day of 1936, Arreola moved to

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

after selling his Oliver typewriter and his shotgun to afford the trip. There he entered the Theatrical School of Fine Arts ().

Early career

In 1941, while working as a professor, he published his first work, ("Christmas Dream"). In 1942 he also wrote a short story called ("A Pact with the Devil"). In 1943, while working as a journalist, he published his second work, ("He Did Good While He Lived"). In 1945, he collaborated with

Juan Rulfo Juan Nepomuceno Carlos Pérez Rulfo Vizcaíno, best known as Juan Rulfo (; 16 May 1917 – 7 January 1986), was a Mexican writer, screenwriter, and photographer. He is best known for two literary works, the 1955 novel ''Pedro Páramo'', and the ...

and Antonio Alatorre to publish the literary journal . Shortly afterward, he traveled to Paris at the invitation of French actor Louis Jouvet. During this time, he became acquainted with other French actors such as

Jean-Louis Barrault Jean-Louis Bernard Barrault (; 8 September 1910 – 22 January 1994) was a French actor, director and mime artist who worked on both screen and stage. Biography Barrault was born in Le Vésinet in France in 1910. His father was 'a Burgundi ...

and Pierre Renoir. A year later he returned to Mexico. In 1948, he worked as an editor for the main journal published by Fondo de Cultura Económica, and obtained a grant from

El Colegio de México El Colegio de México, A.C. (commonly known as Colmex, English: The College of Mexico) is a Mexican institute of higher education, specializing in teaching and research in social sciences and humanities. The college was founded in 1940 by the Me ...

. His first collection of

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

, , was published in 1949. Around 1950, he began collaborating on the anthology and received a grant from the

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The foundation was created by Standard Oil magnate John D. Rockefeller (" ...

Later career

In 1952, Arreola published , widely considered to be his first great work. It was awarded the Jalisco Literary Prize in 1953. The following year, Arreola published ''La hora de todos''. The year after that, he published a revised ''Confabulario'' and won the ''Premio del Festival Dramático'' from the National Institute of Fine Arts. In 1958, he published , and in 1962, . In 1962, he published " The Switchman" (). In 1959 he was the founding director of the Casa del Lago, the first off-campus Cultural Center of the

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public university, public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countri ...

, now called the Casa del Lago Juan José Arreola. In 1963, he received the Xavier Villaurrutia Prize. The same year, he published ''La feria'', a work dense with references to his native

Zapotlán El Grande Zapotlán el Grande (also known as Guzmán and Ciudad Guzmán) is a municipality in the Mexican States of Mexico, state of Jalisco. Name There are several meanings given to the root name of the "Zapotlán el Grande". "Zapote" is the name given to ...

, which would be remembered as one of his finest literary accomplishments. The following year, he edited the anthologies ''Los Presentes'' and ''El Unicornio'', and became a professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. In 1967, he appeared in the controversial

Alejandro Jodorowsky Alejandro Jodorowsky Prullansky (; born 17 February 1929) is a Chilean and French Experimental film, avant-garde filmmaker. Known for his films ''El Topo'' (1970), ''The Holy Mountain (1973 film), The Holy Mountain'' (1973) and ''Santa Sangre'' ...

film '' Fando y Lis'', which after its controversial premiere was banned for a while in Mexico. In 1969, Arreola was recognized by the

José Clemente Orozco José Clemente Orozco (November 23, 1883 – September 7, 1949) was a Mexican caricaturist and painter, who specialized in political murals that established the Mexican Mural Renaissance together with murals by Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siquei ...

Cultural Group of Ciudad Guzmán. In 1971, ''Confabulario'', ''Palindroma'', ''La feria'', and ''Varia invención'' were republished as part of a series of his greatest works, ''Obras de Juan José Arreola''. Around 1972, he published ''Bestiario'', a follow-up to 1958's ''Punta de plata''. The following year, he published ''La palabra educación'', and in 1976, ''Inventario''.

Death

Arreola suffered from

hydrocephalus Hydrocephalus is a condition in which cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) builds up within the brain, which can cause pressure to increase in the skull. Symptoms may vary according to age. Headaches and double vision are common. Elderly adults with n ...

, a condition that afflicted him during the last years of his life, and as a result, on December 3, 2001, he died at the age of 83 at his home in Jalisco.

Reception and legacy

In 1985, the publishing house Hyspamérica commissioned Argentine author

to create a collection of books called (English: "Personal Library") in which one of his choices was a selection of Arreola's short stories. Borges wrote in the prologue that if he had to define Arreola in one word it would be "liberty" and, after comparing Arreola's stories to

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...

and

Franz Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a novelist and writer from Prague who was Jewish, Austrian, and Czech and wrote in German. He is widely regarded as a major figure of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of Litera ...

, he also stated that Arreola was "disdainful of historical, geographical and political circumstances, in an age of suspicious and obstinate

nationalism Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...

" and instead "fixed his gaze on the universe and its fantastic possibilities." Despite his relatively small oeuvre, Arreola occupies a fixed place in 20th century Mexican and Latin American literature. Together with Juan Rulfo and Agustín Yañez, he is one of the three great narrators of his state of Jalisco. In his texts, surreal situations often develop, some of them regional, others quite worldly. In Mexico, Arreola has also become known to a wide audience as a literary commentator, especially on television. His merits as a promoter of young talent should not be underestimated. Writers who achieved literary success in Mexico in the 1950s or 1960s came into contact with Arreola in some form, be it

Carlos Fuentes Carlos Fuentes Macías (; ; November 11, 1928 – May 15, 2012) was a Mexican novelist and essayist. Among his works are ''The Death of Artemio Cruz'' (1962), '' Aura'' (1962), '' Terra Nostra'' (1975), '' The Old Gringo'' (1985) and '' Christop ...

José Agustín José Agustín Ramírez Gómez (19 August 1944 – 16 January 2024) was a Mexican novelist, short story writer, essayist and screenwriter. Publishing under the pen name José Agustín, he was considered one of the most influential and prolific Me ...

, or José Emilio Pacheco. Arreola's texts have remained significant over the decades.

Works

Fiction

* ''Varia invención'' (short stories, 1949) * ''Confabulario'' (short stories, 1952) * ''La feria'' (only novel, 1963) * ''Palíndroma'' (short stories, 1971) * ''Bestiario'' (short stories, 1972)

Non-fiction

* ''La palabra educación'' (1973) * ''Y ahora la mujer'' (1975) * ''Inventario'' (1976)

Anthologies

* ''Confabulario total, 1941–1961'' (collects the books ''Varia invención'', ''Confabulario'' and ''Punta de plata'', 1962)

English-language publications

* ''Confabulario and Other Inventions'' (Translated by George D. Schade, illustrated by Kelly Fearing, published by

University of Texas Press The University of Texas Press (or UT Press) is the university press of the University of Texas at Austin. Established in 1950, the Press publishes scholarly and trade books in several areas, including Latin American studies, Caribbean, Caribbea ...

, 1964). From this volume, the short story '' The Switchman'' was also published in the anthology '' Sun, Stone, and Shadows''.

Filmography

As actor

Awards and honors

Below is a partial list of awards and honors received by Arreola.

Awards

* Xavier Villaurrutia Award for his novel ''La feria'' (1963) * National Prize for Arts and Sciences in Mexico (') for literature and linguistics (1979). * Jalisco Prize in Letters (1989). *

FIL Award The FIL Literary Award in Romance Languages (''Premio FIL de Literatura en Lenguas Romances'', previously the Juan Rulfo Prize for Latin American and Caribbean Literature) is awarded to writers of any genre of literature (poetry, novels, plays, s ...

, then known as the "Juan Rulfo Prize" (1992). * Alfonso Reyes International Prize (1997) *

Ramón López Velarde Ramón López Velarde (June 15, 1888 – June 19, 1921) was a Mexican poet. His work was a reaction against French-influenced '' modernismo'' which, as an expression of a purely Mexican subject matter and emotional experience, is unique. He ach ...

Prize (1998)

Honors

* He was named "favorite son" of

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

in 1999. * In 2015, a statue in honor of Arreola was installed along the

Rotonda de los Jaliscienses Ilustres The Rotonda de los Jaliscienses Ilustres (formerly the Rotonda de los Hombres Ilustres) is a landmark in Centro, Guadalajara, Centro, Guadalajara, in the Mexican state of Jalisco. Description and history Located at the flanked avenues of Fray An ...

in Guadalajara's city center.