5 Sixty-minute programs
Grade(s): 9 - 12
Curriculum: Social Studies/History/Humanities

This landmark series journeys into belief and-fact, stretching from Spain and Portugal to South and Central American to the Caribbean and the United States. Join Carlos Fuentes on a voyage of discovery as he unravels threads that go back to Europe and Africa and to the islands, mountains, jungles, and pampas of the New World. A novelist of international stature, Fuentes is a former Mexican ambassador to France. He has occupied the Robert F. Kennedy Chair at Harvard University and has been the Simon, Bolivar Professor of South American Studies, at Cambridge University England. On contemporary affairs as well as history and culture, Carlos Fuentes is an authoritative voice.

English Language Version:  (Buried Mirror)

Supplemental Materials:  WorkBook/Study Guide 160 pages © 1994 McGraw-Hill, Inc.  ISBN: 0-07-015049-4

Program Titles & Descriptions:

1.  Le Virgen Y El Toro (The Virgin and the Bull) (59:30)
Bestselling Mexican author Carlos Fuentes looks for his forebears in the mix of people that created Latin America: Spanish, Arab, Jewish, Indian, and African. He asks what is unique in their culture that is cause for celebration in the 500th anniversary year of Columbus. His quest takes him from the quayside at Vera Cruz, "where the Mediterranean comes to an end in the Caribbean."' back to Spain, to the dark caves of Altamira, the harsh sunlight of the bullring, and the stamping feet of the flamenco dancer.

2.  La Batoia De Los Dioses   (Conflict of the Gods)   (59:07)
In his lifetime, Carlos Fuentes has witnessed the rediscovery of the ancient Aztec temples beneath the central square of modern Mexico City. "So we found out that what we thought was dead was really alive!" He retraces the Indian world through their magnificent pyramids and sculptures, a world of precise astronomy and human sacrifice, serenity and violence. The return of their blond, exiled god was forecast for the very year Cortez reached their shores. The savagery of the conquistador equaled that of the Indian, but he brought with him a new god, a god who sacrificed himself for men.

3.  La Edad Do Oro (The Age of Gold)  (59:35)
The New World brought Spain (and ultimately Europe) enormous treasures: gold, silver, chocolate, tomatoes, the potato. Yet Spain's most powerful ruler, Phillip II, lived in austere solitude in a cell-like study. He sought to protect the Catholic faith, while the Spanish author Cervantes questioned all values in Don Quixote, the prototype of the modern novel. At the court, Velezquez painted masterpieces of psychological penetration, and the Baroque style vaulted the Atlantic and celebrated its transformation into a tool for Indian fantasy in the magnificent churches of Potosi and Ocotlan.

4.  El Pricio De La Libertad (The Price of Freedom)  (59:22)
Every year, a million Mexicans gather in the great central square of their capital to celebrate El Grito, the cry for independence. Following its progress, Carlos Vuentes crosses the Andes in the steps of Bolivar and San Martin. "Those who serve the revolution plow the seas," said the dying Bolivar. The liberators succeeded in throwing off the Spanish yoke, but they found it harder to establish a just society. For the gaucho there was the consolation of the open spaces, the mountains, and the plains. And for those crowding into the new cities like Buenos Aires, there was the tango, a sad thought that can be danced.

5.  Los Trs Hispanidades (Unfinished Business)  (59:06)
Spain, Latin-America, the Hispanic communities in the United Suites: all have undergone enormous challenges in this century. Within the lifetime of those born now, half the population of the U. S. will be Spanish speaking. Every year, half a million brave the border patrols to enter the United States illegally. "They are looking for the Gringo gold, but also bringing the Latino gold," Carlos Fuentes observes. Hispanic iimmigrants contribute a wealth of traditions: diverse cultural creativity in art, music, and dance, respect for family ties - distinct hallmarks of the Spanish, speaking world.