Questions and study guide for

Rosario Castellanos, Nine Guardians

We will be reading Rosario Castellanos' novel Nine Guardians for our class. Keep in mind these questions as you read the novel:

1. From whose point of view is the novel written? Who is the narrator?
2. What is the historical setting for the novel? What is the year? Who is the president? What is happening in the country?
3. Who are the Indians? What information can you find out about them?
4. Is the author optimistic or pessimistic about the future of the Indians? Is she pro-Indian?
5. In the novel, what do the Indians want?
6. How does the novel treat the topic of racism?
7. Why did Mario die?
8. What does the novel have to do with the issue of mestizaje?
9. Why is the novel called Balún-Canán ("Nine Guardians")?

We will discuss the novel in class on Thursday, November 6. To help you understand the novel and prepare for the discussion, here are several sources of information over the author, the novel, and the Tzeltal Indians:

Bibliography of works on and about Castellanos

Internet Resources

• Biography of Rosario Castellanos
• Meditation on the Threshold, a bilingual anthology of poetry by Rosario Castellanos, translation and introduction by Julian Palley
• Construyendo otro país. Mujeres de la sociedad civil (Entrevista a María Atilano del grupo Rosario Castellanos)
• Rosario Castellanos, by Tikema Arabia Earth-Bey

• Grupo Etnico: Tzeltal
• Ethnologue: Mexico: Tzeltal
• What is the Indian population of México?
• Mexico's Indigenous Languages
• Instituto Nacional Indigenista