Zepeda, Eraclio (1937–)

Eraclio Zepeda (b. 24 March 1937), Mexican author. Born in Chiapas, Zepeda was educated at the Universidad Veracruzana, where he also taught. Considered the premier writer and storyteller in Mexico, Zepeda concentrates mostly on the indigenous culture of Chiapas. In 1959, he gained national prominence with the publication of Benzulul, a book of indigenous stories. Most of his work is socially oriented, speaking of humanity's basic needs and its relationship to nature. Asalto nocturno (1973; Nocturnal Assault) won Mexico's national prize for the best short-story collection in 1974. Also a renowned poet and member of La Espiga Amotinada, Zepeda, with four friends, published the collective work La espiga amotinada (1960) and Ocupación de la palabra (1965). These anthologies collected the works of a generation of Mexican poets who grounded their poetry in the social reality of the country. Other members of La Espiga Amotinada were Juan Banuelos, Oscar Oliva, Jaime Augusto Shelley, and Jaime Labastida. As a political activist, actor, and popular television personality, Zepeda is a forceful and affirmative figure, having earned worldwide respect and recognition. Other major works are Andando el tiempo (1982; Time Marching On), Relación de travesía (1985; Cross-Street Story), and Confrontaciones (1985; Confrontations).

See alsoLiterature: Spanish America .

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Joseph Sommers, "El ciclo de Chiapas: Nueva corriente literaria," Cuadernos Americanos 2 (1964): 246-261.

Barbara L. C. Brodman, The Mexican Cult of Death in Myth and Literature (1976), pp. 76-82.

Joseph Sommers, "Eraclio Zepeda y el oficio de narrar," in La brújula en el bolsillo (1982), pp. 14-25.

Jeanne C. Wallace, "Eracillo Zepeda," in Dictionary of Mexican Literature, edited by Eladio Cortés (1992).

Additional Bibliography

Cluff, Russell M. Los resortes de la sorpresa: (Ensayos sobre el cuento mexicano del siglo XX). Tlaxcala, México: Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala, 2003.

L'échelard-Le Duc, Marie-José. "Études libériques et latino-americaines Benzulul d'eraclio zepeda, la voix de l'indien chiapanéque." Ph.D. diss. Université de Rennes II, 1992.

                                        Jeanne C. Wallace