The Real Fictional World of William Shand

One of the more interesting features of the history of Argentina and the evolution of that country's society is the mark made by the English-speaking settlers (the English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, and, less so, the North Americans), especially in the fields of commerce, industry, agriculture, etc. dating back to the pioneers of the post-Independence period of the early nineteenth century.' Less appreciated, but no less important, is the contribution of those who not only travelled and settled in Argentina, but also narrated their experiences and left to posterity a wealth of material for scholars who would try to penetrate to the heart of the national character. The list of nineteenth century viajeros ingleses, as they are called (even those who did not travel), is long-Alexander Gillespie, Essex Vidal, Sir Francis Bon Head, Woodbine Parish, Beaumont, Miers, Haigh and scores of others.2 The travelling, and the literary reflexion thereof, was to continue throughout the nineteenth and into the twentieth century, with a whole line of creative writers in English, including W. H. Hudson, R. B. Cunninghame Graham, A. F. Tschiffely, Walter Owen and many others,3 not least of whom is the contemporary figure, William Shand. In a recent article on Argentine fiction, which I subtitled 'Literature, Politics and Censorship',4 I indicated the difficulties of the writer in Argentina, especially over the last three or four decades, whether the government has been Peronist or a military dictatorship. This has been particularly true over the last decade, especially since 1976, when one considers the plight of writers who would speak out against institutions that seek to silence voices critical of the regime. The fate of David Viias, Antonio di Benedetti, Haroldo Conti, Rodolfo Walsh, Daniel Moyano and others, is well known.5 Not all have been able, or have chosen, to stay, like Ernesto Sibato, and speak out against the excesses of totalitarian regimes, whether they be of the left or the right. Sabato is rapidly becoming the conscience of the nation in a way that the ultra-conservative Borges, or the disillusioned Mallea, or the exiled Cortazar, could never be. In this article, however, I should like to view Argentine actuality through the eyes of one of the aforementioned viajeros ingleses who has chosen to remain there, and who has thought long and deep on his adopted country and has commented perceptively, even objectively with the Englishman's sang-froid, on the current situation through his literature. William Shand, bor in Scotland but a resident in Buenos Aires since 1938, has through his poetry, his drama, and his short fiction, been reflecting Argentine reality all through the post-war period. Although it is not the subject of this paper, Shand's poetry (written in English by the way) has gained the praise not only of Borges, but renowned poets like Alberto Girri (with whom he has collaborated in many translations

Aesthetics · Art · Political science · Sociology · Borges, Kipling, and Jewish Identity · Comparative Literary Analysis and Criticism · Latin American Literature Studies