The Time of the Hero by Mario Vargas Llosa (Book Analysis)

This practical and insightful reading guide offers a complete summary and analysis of The Time of the Hero by Mario Vargas Llosa. It provides a thorough exploration of the novel’s plot, characters and main themes, including violence, adolescence and racial and social differences. The clear and concise style makes for easy understanding, providing the perfect opportunity to improve your literary knowledge in no time.

This clear and detailed 56-page reading guide is structured as follows:

• Biography of Mario Vargas Llosa
• Presentation of The Time of the Hero
• Summary of The Time of the Hero
• Character study
  • Alberto Fernández, nicknamed “the Poet”
  • Ricardo Arana, nicknamed “the Slave”
  • The Jaguar
  • Teresa
  • Lieutenant Gamboa
  • Lima
• Analysis of The Time of the Hero
  • Form
  • Themes

About The Time of the Hero

The Time of the Hero follows a group of students at the Leoncio Prado Military Academy in Lima and depicts the rivalries, constant brutality and racial and social tensions that govern their everyday lives. The differences between them are thrown into even sharper relief by a sudden tragic event that lays bare the corruption and barbarity of the academy’s directors, who are more concerned with the school’s reputation than the wellbeing of their students. The novel stands out for its polyphonic narrative, which draws us deep into the minds of its characters, and for the way it engages with social issues in Vargas Llosa’s native Peru.

About Mario Vargas Llosa

The Peruvian novelist, journalist and politician Mario Vargas Llosa was one of the leading figures of the Latin American Boom, a literary movement characterized by experimental approaches to fiction and political engagement which brought its young authors international recognition and acclaim. He is also known for his political activity: he was an outspoken opponent of Manuel Odría’s dictatorship in Peru, and unsuccessfully ran for president in 1990. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2010 “for his cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of the individual’s resistance, revolt, and defeat”.