REMEMBERING AUTHOR & POET MARIO BENEDETTI

Many may have never heard of Benedetti off hand but when reading his writing you can see Benedetti is the voice of reason and truth. On May 17, 2009, at the age of 88, Mario Benedetti, one of Latin America’s most prolific and renowned writers, passed away. Benedetti was an asset to the world of Latin American literature and journalism. He exposed Latin American tradegies and tribulations that no one exposed in such grace and utter honesty.

Benedetti, born on September 14, 1920 to an Italian immigrant family in Paso de los Toros in Central Uruguay, is considered one of the most prolific and important writers of Latin America.

Benedetti immersed himself in the politics of Latin America. While a military dictatorship ruled Uruguay from 1973 to 1995, Benedetti lived in exile in places like Buenos Aires, Lima, Havana and Madrid. Exile from Uruguay was the source of inspiration for many of his works. Benedetti said that it made him “a different person, more wide awake, more wise to the ways of the world.” When democracy was then restored in 1996, he returned to live in Montevideo, Uruguay’s capital.

Benedetti published more than 80 books during his lifetime—topics ranging from love to frustration with middle class life in Montevideo. Perhaps his best known piece is his novel which was published in 1960 entitled, “The Truce.” His storyline of “The Truce” was made into a movie and then was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Film in 1975. In the 1980s, Benedetti was awarded the equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize in Latin America -- Honors Causa from Universidad de la Republica, Universidad de Alicante in Spain and Univerisad de Valladolid. In 1997, he was a recipient of Premio Menendez y Pelayo Prize.

In addition to writing, Benedetti was deeply involved in politics. He spoke against the U.S., championed Cuba’s revolution and embraced the independence and soverneighty for Puerto Rico. In 1971, he helped establish a left-wing coalition called the Broad Front to challenge the two-party system that has existed in Uruguay for the past 150 years.

Commenting in one of his last books, “It wasn’t an easy life, frankly,” he then added, it was the causes he believed in, even in defeat, that kept him going. “Thanks to them,” he said, “I can sleep tranquilly.”

Below is a link to a poem of Benedetti’s work which is a reflection of his exile. I found his words to be very moving but also captivate a nostalgia that expresses the pure desire to go back to his homeland in Pasos del los Toros and live a life of freedom and expression. I hope you enjoy: "Rostro de Vos"

By Stephanie Mercado