One day of life

Häftad bok. Aventura. 1983. 215 sidor.

Mycket gott skick. Hårda invikta pärmar. Argueta is best known for his book One Day of Life, which has been translated into over 12 languages. The book takes the reader through one day of the life of Lupe, a grandmother in a small village of El Salvador. Although she is not very educated, she relates her personal observations, as well as accounts of friends and relatives, to paint a picture of the brutality with which the Salvadoran army treated the lower class during this time period. The following quote summarizes the sentiments of Lupe and the other peasants:
"The only thing we don’t have is rights. And as we began to arrive at this awareness, this place filled up with authorities wishing to impose order, omnipotent, with their automatics as they call them. From time to time they come to see how we are behaving, who has to be taken away, who has to be beaten to be taught a lesson."
Existentialism played a role in the novel and in Salvadoran history by counteracting religion, which had been used to oppress the masses by extolling the virtues of the meek and complacent. By accepting their role in life, the overworked and underpaid lower class would supposedly receive a place in heaven. But, through existentialism, the peasants come to realize that what matters is how they are treated in the present, as demonstrated in the quote:
"That is awareness, José would say. The soul also exists, he would tell me. It is of little importance to know where it is going. It is the soul of the people that lives here on earth."
Because of its negative portrayal of the Salvadoran government and its perceived ability to incite rebellious activity, One Day of Life was banned from El Salvador. Argueta had to publish his work from Argentina after fleeing to Costa Rica.