Allende relates international experiences

Born in Peru, raised in Chile, Bolivia and Lebanon, exiled to Venezuela and now living in California, Isabel Allende has lived the life of a person who has never quite seemed to fit in. “Being a perpetual foreigner is my life, my writing,” the award-winning author said, capturing the central theme of her talk Saturday at the Durham Civic Center.

Speaking to more than 300 audience members, Allende, who was in North Carolina on a book tour for The City of Beasts, Kingdom of the Golden Dragon and Forest of the Pygmies—her trilogy for young adults, which she will complete by 2005—drew upon her personal experiences to explain how she became a primary figure in contemporary Latin American literature. Allende is well-known for the magical realism that pervades her work, which includes The House of Spirits and Eva Luna.

Allende highlighted General Augusto Pinochet’s toppling of Salvador Allende, Chile’s first democratically elected socialist president and her estranged father’s cousin, as a profound influence on her writing career. Pointing out that the coup occurred the morning of Tuesday, Sept. 11, 1973, Allende described it as a “terrorist attack on democracy,” when political parties were dissolved and dissidence was prohibited. Due to this political repression, she became a stranger in her own land, and in 1975 Allende and her family moved from Chile to Venezuela.

Allende recognized, however, the silver lining in a seemingly difficult situation.

“I wouldn’t be a novelist without Allende. If I had stayed in Chile, I could not have started anew—I wouldn’t have been able to create my own story,” she said. “I would have had no incentive to become a writer.”

She further elucidated the difficult process of being a constant foreigner and the consequential adjustment as she described moving to the United States after marrying her husband, Willie Gordon. Allende said she sees many aspects of American life as perplexing, citing both Americans’ sense of time—wanting instant gratification—as well as baseball as examples. She remembered wondering, “Why are people so passionate about a bunch of overweight men waiting around for a ball that never comes?”

In addition to her anecdotes about being a foreigner trying to adapt to a new culture, Allende also sprinkled her talk with political commentary. When she mentioned that she did not like the direction that the United States is taking, many in the audience applauded. Allende explained that although she has criticisms of the United States, she still acknowledges and appreciates the values of her new country. “I’m proud to be a citizen. Here I can be myself.... I belong here more than any place else.” She also spoke to the nation’s political power, since policies implemented in the United States have global effects, whereas actions taken in Chile, for example, have limited international impact.

The speech was sponsored by a range of groups including Duke University, the North Carolina Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Durham Library Foundation, Lynn Richardson, a volunteer for the event, said she appreciated Allende not just for her literary accomplishments, but also for her political involvement. “I love how warm, open she is; how committed to political improvement she is,” Richardson said.