Poor Black Man [Book Review] ESP/ENG

I had wanted to read this novel all my life; years ago, I saw a television adaptation, but I had never had the chance to read the original story. “Pobre Negro” is a story by Rómulo Gallegos—the same author who wrote “Doña Bárbara”—set during the years of the abolition of slavery in Venezuela. The protagonist is a young mixed-race man named Pedro Miguel Candelas; he is of mixed heritage because he is the son of Ana Julia Alcorta (a white woman of high social standing) and a black slave. Precisely for this reason, he must contend with rejection and human cruelty. Unable to grow up with his mother, he was forced to fend for himself, trying to survive in a hostile world—a world shaped by a slave system that, despite its official abolition, still held sway on large plantations not only in Barlovento but across the entire country. Consequently, Pedro decides to join the armed struggle of the Federal War, discovering that his own situation was not an isolated case but a common—and tragically common—reality.

Toda mi vida quise leer esta novela, ya que hace años yo llegué a ver una adaptación para televisión, pero nunca había tenido la oportunidad de leer la historia original. Pobre Negro es una historia de Rómulo Gallegos, el mismo autor de Doña Bárbara, está ambientada en los años de la abolición de la esclavitud en Venezuela, el protagonista es un joven mestizo, Pedro Miguel Candelas, es mestizo porque es hijo de Ana Julia Alcorta (una mujer blanca de alcurnia) y de un esclavo negro, y precisamente por esta misma razón debe lidiar con el rechazo y la maldad humana, no pudo crecer con su madre y por esa razón siempre tuvo que ir de su cuenta, tratando de sobrevivir ante el mundo hostil que quedaron como consecuencia de un sistema esclavista que a pesar de la abolición aún imperaba en las grandes haciendas, no solo de Barlovento sino de todo el país, por esta razón Pedro decide incorporarse en una lucha armada en la Guerra Federal, descubriendo así que la situación que él vivía no era un caso aislado, sino una realidad común, lamentablemente común.

The novel primarily addresses the themes of justice and human dignity—specifically, the right of every individual to housing, decent employment, recreation, and respect. However, in a system accustomed to slavery, what is considered a legal right today once sounded like cheap idealism; even after abolition became a reality, plantation owners refused to relinquish their primary source of income, using their power to exert pressure—a harsh reality that plagued humanity for many years following abolition.

As with “Doña Bárbara”, the author of this novel—despite its fictional nature—seeks a real-world context to raise reader awareness; in the case of “Pobre Negro”, for instance, the work suggests that many of the supremacist ideas prevalent today stem precisely from that historical reality—whether colonial or even republican. The author does not aim to incite class warfare, but rather to foster an understanding of the origins of certain beliefs and, above all, of why we all deserve freedom and opportunity. The story’s protagonist grows up harboring resentment toward the “mantuana” class due to the rejection he has consistently faced at their hands—rejection driven by nothing more than absurd prejudice.

It’s a novel packed with emotion, so there’s no chance of getting bored; I loved the descriptions of the haciendas, the system—everything. I feel like I learned a lot, so I really enjoyed it. Well, I’ll sign off for now, but not without sending you all virtual hugs and kisses 😘 🤗.