The Lost Steps: Analysis of Major Characters
"The Lost Steps" is a narrative that explores themes of alienation and the search for authenticity through its major characters, each representing different aspects of civilization and primal existence. The protagonist, a disillusioned composer, embarks on a journey to South America, seeking to escape his mundane life and rekindle his creative spirit. This journey brings him into contact with Rosario, a courageous mestiza woman who embodies his ideals of authenticity, contrasting sharply with his superficial French mistress, Mouche. The story also introduces Fray Pedro de Henestrosa, a martyr friar celebrated for his bravery, and El Adelantado, a man who transforms from a gold prospector to a tribal leader, reflecting a deep connection with the indigenous people. Other characters, like Yannes, a relentless diamond hunter, and Marcos, the resentful son of El Adelantado, further illustrate the tensions between ambition and cultural identity. As the protagonist grapples with his modern existence against the backdrop of the primitive world, the narrative ultimately highlights the complexities of artistic ambition and the often painful journey towards self-discovery.
The Lost Steps: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Alejo Carpentier
First published: Los pasos perdidos, 1953 (English translation, 1956)
Genre: Novel
Locale: An unnamed U.S. city, a South American city, and the South American jungle
Plot: Psychological realism
Time: The late 1940's
The narrator, a composer and music theoretician now writing for films and advertisements. Despising his job, bored with a marriage that is only a convenience, and unable to create anything worthwhile, he is terrified at the prospect of a vacation, which will force him to confront the sterility of his existence. Luckily, an old friend, the curator of a museum, offers him a reprieve by asking him to travel to South America to acquire some primitive instruments. The six-week journey completely changes the narrator's life. As he travels into an increasingly primitive environment, his own modern alienation gradually slips away until he feels at one with his world. He begins to compose again and finds a woman whom he admires and loves; he vows to remain forever in the primitive settlement where he has found peace. Compelled, however, by outside forces and the pressure of his music, he does leave but insists that he will return immediately. In the city, he is delayed by legal and financial difficulties. When he finally does return, he finds the doors to his happy life closed. He ruefully then starts another journey back to civilization, realizing that an artist must travel with time, not against it.
Mouche (muhsh), an astrologist, the narrator's French mistress. Priding herself on her artistic sensibilities and modern and progressive ideas, Mouche has intellectual pretensions and superficiality that are stripped away by the authenticity of the jungle. Unable to tolerate her any longer, the narrator takes advantage of her illness to send her away.
Rosario (rroh-SAHR-ee-oh), the narrator's ideal of the true woman. She is near death when she is rescued in the Andes. The narrator's admiration of her courage changes to passion as he continually compares the earthy mestiza woman to the polished, civilized Mouche. Rosario cannot comprehend his need to write music. When he leaves, she uses this music as an excuse to marry someone else.
Ruth, an actress and star of a long-running Broadway play, the narrator's wife. Ruth and her husband see each other only on Sunday mornings. When he does not return from his trip, she claims he is lost in the jungle and stages his rescue as a gigantic publicity stunt. Enraged by his request for a divorce, she frustrates his efforts to get back to Rosario.
Fray Pedro de Henestrosa (PEH-droh deh ehn-ehsTROH-sah), a Capuchin friar and martyr who is admired for his courage and willingness to help others. Knowing that it means certain death, he undertakes a mission to the lands of savage Indians. They kill him and horribly mutilate his body as a warning to others.
El Adelantado (ah-deh-lahn-TAH-doh), a man who has founded his own city. While prospecting for gold, he became lost in the wilderness and stumbled across a primitive Indian settlement. Recovering from a leg wound, he begins to develop a sense of solidarity with the people, until he eventually identifies himself completely with them. He uses his gold to better their living conditions and, marrying within their tribe, soon becomes their leader.
Yannes, a Greek diamond hunter and lover of The Odyssey. His overwhelming ambition is to find the beautiful stones that will enable him to build a templelike house by the sea.
The curator, the narrator's friend and former employer. An admirer of the narrator's theories on the origin of primitive music, he gives him the task of finding some primitive instruments for his museum.
Marcos, El Adelantado's son. Against his father's wishes, he had once left the settlement and gone to seek his fortune in the city. Humiliated and mistreated, he returned home filled with resentment and scorn for everything he had seen in the outside world.
Simon, a shoemaker, now turned itinerant river merchant, who tries to help the narrator find his way back to the lost village.