Fantasy and Realism in Contemporary Ecuadorian Literature (1976-2006)

My purpose in this book is not to assess how well Ecuadorian literature fits into the broad Latin American literary scene or the global scene in particular, but instead to read and analyze how Ecuadorian writers communicate ideas about the world they live in through realism and fantasy. It is the nature of Ecuadorians to express their experience in these terms to portray a unique and multifaceted voice. To that end, I propose a model for analyzing the function of fantasy and realism in literature, principally in the novel, short story, flash fiction, poetry, flash poetry, and theater, and offer examples of analysis by genre in the following chapters. This book is not an exhaustive study of all Ecuadorian literature since 1975, but rather a representative sample of how fantasy and realism have been used to communicate attitudes about human behavior in a specific Ecuadorian context. There are elements of what I will call here an Ecuadorian voice, a unique and multifaceted voice that emerges through the study of 25 years of writing by contemporary Ecuadorians.https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/university-archives-msu-authors/1355/thumbnail.jp

Donde las nubes se unen al mar = Where the Clouds Meet the Water

Donde las nubes se unen al mar (2021) es la traducción de la narrativa histórica Where the Clouds Meet the Water (2004), un libro que explica la saga de Ernesto Contag Ziehe y su familia durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Ernesto y su familia fueron deportados de su patria ecuatoriana a la Alemania de los Nazis en 1942. La narrativa histórica que se lee casi como novela se basa en la investigación en bibliotecas, hemerotecas y archivos en tres continentes y en los documentos originales de los sobrevivientes de este canje político internacional de inocentes. Donde las nubes se unen al mar (2021) is the translation of the narrative history Where the Clouds Meet the Water (2004), a book that follows the saga of Ernesto Contag Ziehe and his family during the Second World War. Ernesto and his family were deported from their Ecuadorian homeland to Nazi Germany in 1942. The historical narrative is similar to a novel but is based on investigation conducted in libraries, newspaper libraries and historical archives on three continents and on original documents retained by survivors of this political international exchange of innocents.https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/university-archives-msu-authors/1421/thumbnail.jp

Where the Clouds Meet the Water

Where the Clouds Meet the Water follows the historical journey of the German Ecuadorian widower, Ernst Contag, and his four young children from their home in the South American Andes to Nazi Germany in 1942. Blacklisted as an enemy alien, Ernst Contag and his children are forcibly repatriated to the country of Ernst\u27s grandparents as part of a diplomatic exchange arranged by the United States\u27 State Department and cooperating countries. In Nazi Germany, Ernst and his children must deny their Ecuadorian past and learn to live as Germans. The Contag family strives to keep the ray of hope in their hearts when the Nazi oath of blood and honor leads to fear, abandonment, and death. The children and their father navigate an ever-shifting horizon as they face despair and fear in internment and refugee sites, separation, devastation and loss in Germany (1942-45), hunger and hopelessness in post-war France (1945-46), and hostility in their own Andean homeland. Through it all, the strength of family serves as the glue that holds them all together. The story is based on historical research conducted in libraries and archives on three continents, interviews with survivors of the Ecuadorian blacklist, personal records and official documents submitted to the authors by survivors and their families. Where the Clouds Meet the Water will intrigue readers of all ages who are moved by coming-of-age stories, and fascinated by World War II history and survivor stories.https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/university-archives-msu-authors/1007/thumbnail.jp

Fantasy and Realism in Contemporary Ecuadorian Literature (1976-2006)

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Up the Ante: Teaching Spanish for the 21st Century Workplace

All the buzz about US students falling behind in STEM areas has kept the new realities of language education in the US on the back burner with only scattered innovations in curricular development at the K-16 through graduate levels and less than aggressive training efforts to meet new workplace demands for graduates entering the 21st century workforce. Learn about the innovations that put Minnesota State University, Mankato students on the path to meet the workplace demands of the 21st century