History's Relevance to the Novel

I found it very interesting that we just finished reading poems from the "Generación del 98" era, where it was common to write about politics, but I felt that the poems we read didn't discuss the government very much. It seemed more common to use imagery and comparisons to transport the reader to a different time and/or place, thus possibly causing them to forget about the current state of the world in terms of politics. However, in Réquiem por un Campesino Español, the politics and state of the government are what drive the whole story. It is interesting because when this novel was written, the same events were happening in Spain, during their civil war, which seems like more of a naturalist perspective for writing. Either way, I found the story very intriguing, regardless of the fact that I had read it before for another Spanish class. Even though we only see one side of the story, that of the peasants, I love the way Sender's writing transports the reader into the scene, keeping us interested in what is going to happen next, especially with the flashbacks, and also the ease with which the reader feels for the main character and his untimely death.

-Emily Brown