Manlio Argueta is a Salvadoran writer, critic, and novelist. Although he is primarily a poet, he is best known in the English speaking world for his novel One Day of Life.
Life
He was born in San Miguel, El Salvador on November 24, 1935. Argueta has stated that his exposure to “poetic sounds” began during his childhood and that his foundation in poetry stemmed from his childhood imagination. His writing career began with poetry produced at the age of thirteen. He was strongly influenced by the world literature he read as a teenager an cites Pablo Neruda and García Lorca as his primary influences. He later studied law at the University of El Salvador, but concentrated on his poetic work. In 1956, although he was relatively unknown at the time, he won first prize at the "Floral Games of San Miguel", sponsored by the Alberto Masferrer Society of Professors. During the sixties, he began to produce more fiction and became involved with the , a literary group with a leftist political orientation, founded by. All of its members were great admirers of Jean-Paul Sartre and existentialism. The group sought to create social change to benefit the "lower classes", but they also initiated a rediscovery of native cultural heritage. Roque Dalton was, perhaps, its best known member. Because of his writings criticizing the government, he was forced to go into self-exile in Costa Rica. He was there from 1972 until 1993 and worked primarily as a teacher. He also held guest professorships throughout North America and Europe, including the Chair of Contemporary Literature at San Francisco State University. Since returning to El Salvador, he has held the position of "Director of National and International Relations" at the University. A characteristic of his writing style, present in the majority of his works, is the use of Salvadoran Spanish vernacular and slang. He considers this a way to express and preserve some of El Salvador’s cultural identity.
''One Day of Life''
Argueta is best known for his book One Day of Life, which has been translated into over 12 languages. The book takes the reader through one day of the life of Lupe, a grandmother in a small village of El Salvador. Although she is not very educated, she relates her personal observations, as well as accounts of friends and relatives, to paint a picture of the brutality with which the Salvadoran army treated the lower class during this time period. The following quote summarizes the sentiments of Lupe and the other peasants: Existentialism played a role in the novel and in Salvadoran history by counteracting religion, which had been used to oppress the masses by extolling the virtues of the meek and complacent. By accepting their role in life, the overworked and underpaid lower class would supposedly receive a place in heaven. But, through existentialism, the peasants come to realize that what matters is how they are treated in the present, as demonstrated in the quote: Because of its negative portrayal of the Salvadoran government and its perceived ability to incite rebellious activity, One Day of Life was banned from El Salvador. Argueta had to publish his work from Argentina after fleeing to Costa Rica.
