In 1926: living at the edge of time - Monoskop

CENTER VS. PERIPHERY 273
of artificiality. Without necessarily representing the opposite of artificiality,
the future associated with the Soviet Union is a dream of collectivity,
a dream (or nightmare) of individual goals and hopes merging in consensus
and harmony. [see Individuality vs. Collectivity] Contrasting more
sharply with the United States than with the Soviet Union, the spaces
lying on the southern Periphery of the map are worlds of authenticity
where an elementary and archaic order is supposed to have survived-an
order guaranteeing that all phenomena preserve their original cosmological
meanings. From this perspective, Latin America and Africa become
objects of nostalgia. But while it seems to be the symbolic function of
Africa to keep present something very remote, archaic, and vague [see
Mummies], Latin America's authenticity becomes associated with a particular
vitality. One often gets the impression that Latin America will
playa leading role in the future. [see Americans in Paris, Authenticity =
Artificiality (Life)] In contrast, the main connotation of Asia is that of a
culture in irreversible decay. Always associated with radical forms of
individuality-which establish a potential contrast between Asia and the
Soviet Union-Asia's artistic and intellectual achievements are widely
admired. But even Andre Malraux, whose book The Temptation of the
West makes a passionate effort to draw intellectual attention to the Asian
world (and who seems to hope that Asian culture will overcome its
tendency toward decadence) introduces W. Y. Ling, one of his heroes, in
a strangely decadent light: "Mr. Ling is Chinese and, as such, displays a
Chinese sensibility and way of thinking, which are not sufficient to
destroy the books of Europe" (Malraux, 11-12).
The unmarked Center of the map is occupied by Europe and Great
Britain. It excludes the Soviet Union and Spain. The worldwide enthusiasm
which Spanish life is evoking may well come from this exclusion.
Since Spain is not associated with the Artificiality of contemporary culture
(Edschmid, passim), it becomes the European enclave of an Authenticity
which, though it lacks the future-oriented potential of Latin America,
is saturated with references to a common European history. For
many travelers, crossing the Spanish border means returning to an unalienated
world of traditional values. The praise of Spain that Hemingway's
protagonist Jake Barnes implies in an ironic remark about French
waiters is typical of this feeling: "I overtipped [the French waiter]. That
made him happy. It felt comfortable to be in a country where it is so
simple to make people happy. You can never tell whether a Spanish