Visions of the Emerald City: Modernity, Tradition, and the Formation of Porfirian Oaxaca, Mexico by Mark Overmyer-Velázquez (review)

The Latin Ainericanist, Spriiig 2007 message? How will the translator’s word choice impact the translated text and how will they ”change” the effect the original text has upon its audience? Peter Newmark in Manual del Traductorsignals the importance of word choice when translating poetry where the central unit of the text is the word, and in unison with it, the verse (223). Dr. Fountain has taken great care in her word selection so as to honor the semantic associations presented in the original Spanish text and to create a cadence within the translated text that is rich and vibrant. In the ”Translator Notes” included at the end of the book, the reader can appreciate the care taken while assuming liberties when translating to English or when conserving the Spanish word when an English translation would cause a loss. This cultural borrowing is very effective in the instances where it is used. In this book of translations, Dr. Fountain also presents an overview of previous translations of Versos Sencillos and credits others for their work. In addition, a brief history of the song ”Guantanamera” is included, acknowledging the importance that the song has had in presenting Marti’s verses throughout the world, albeit at times with liberties and distortion. Dr. Fountain’s understanding of Cuban culture and history and Marti’s life and work combine to create a remarkable translation that respects Marti’s message and meaning and recreates them with uncommon skill. One of the purposes of this book of translations is to increase the appreciation for Marti and his work. This dual-language book brings the poems of Versos sencillos to those who would otherwise not have the opportunity to read or delight in the beauty, richness, and emotions brought to us through these poems. Dr. Fountain has succeeded in her purpose and has enriched the reader though her translations. Maria T. Redrnon Director, Translation CertiJcate Program University of Central Florida VlSlONS OF THE EMERALD ClW: MODERNITY, TRADITION, AND THE FORMATION OFPORFIRIAN OAXACA, MExrco. BYMARK OVERMYER-VELAZQUEZ. DURHAM: DUKE U P, 2006, P. xv+231, $22.95. Visions of the Einerald City looks at the city of Oaxaca de Juarez during the thirty-five-year dictatorship of one of its most famous sons, Porfirio Diaz (1876-1911). Mark Overmyer-Velazquez surveys a cross-section of oaxaquefio society, from the elite to prostitutes, to understand how these groups interacted with the modern project of the Porfirian government and the tradition of Oaxaca. The interaction of the people of Oaxaca with modernity and tradition did not lead to the former replacing the latter; rather, the author argues, they simultaneously and mutually constructed each other -the two did not represent polar opposites. The failure of the elite to reconcile modernity and tradition, the author further argues, led to contradictions in 0 Book Reviezos Oaxacan (and Mexican) society that sparked the Revolution. In detailing how the city’s social groups constructed and constituted Oaxacan modernity, Overmyer-Velazquez pays special attention to issues of race, class, gender, space and the body; the modernity sought by the elite reflected those issues. For many elite oaxaquefios, the tradition of the city was poor, indigenous, female, and backward; the modernity they aspired to would be wealthy, male, and white. The elite, closely tied to the president and to rising international capitalism, adopted Diaz’s modernizing program wholeheartedly. The author details how the city’s elite undertook an early indigenista-likeprogram, promoting the wonders of Oaxaca’sindigenous past while disdaining the presence of the descendants of those glorious cultures in the present. This modernist project also entailed a close relationship with international capital, which brought with it modernist features, exemplified by the Mexican Southern railroad, and the control and proliferation of mass media and industrialization. A second crucial facet of the elite program was the ordering of the city’s space by making the city legible along three intersecting lines: through urban planning of neighborhoods, gardens and streets; through symbolic spaces (festivals, rituals) that reinforced society’s segregationist ideals; and through social hygiene as represented by spaces (jails)and forces (the police) of discipline. The elite, in short, sought to make Oaxaca into a modern city at...