Dr. Eduardo González-Viaña
B.A., M.A.,
Ph.D., Universidad de Trujillo, Peru
Juris Doctorate, Universidad de Trujillo, Peru
Journalism Degree, Colegio de Periodistas del Peru
-----------------------
NEWS:
NEWS from WESTERN OREGON UNIVERSITY
Office of Public Relations and Communications € Contact: Jim Adams
503-838-8208 € Fax 503-838-8164 € Home 503-365-8673
For immediate release: June 6, 2002
Written by: Debra Young
WOU Spanish Professor and Author Receives Literary
Award in Egypt
MONMOUTH – Western Oregon University Spanish professor
and
author Eduardo Gonzalez-Viaña will travel to Cairo, Egypt, June 12
to
receive that country’s Celebration of Latin America prize.
A native of Peru, Gonzalez-Viaña will give lectures at the Peruvian
Embassy in Cairo and also in Alexandria.
The Celebration of Latin America award, from the Instituto
Cervantes, is
provided to South American writers and leaders who have most helped to
spread the magic of Don Quijote’s language in the world. Past recipients
include Mario Vargas Llosa, candidate to the Nobel Prize, and various
Latin American presidents and writers.
Gonzalez-Viaña’s book on immigrants, “Los
Sueños de America,” has
been on the New York bestsellers list for Spanish language books since
October 2001. Among his other works, “Los Sueños de America”
has
received much acclaim and has been the spotlight of many other
celebrated awards. Gonzalez-Viaña adds his latest prize to a respectable
collection of awards for writing, among them Peru's National Literary
Prize, the country’s highest literary award, and the Juan Rolfo Award,
the
most esteemed international prize for short stories and novels in the
Spanish language. Earlier this year, he added the prestigious Latino
Literature Prize 2001 from the Latin American Writers Institute of New
York to his collection for his work on “Los Sueños de America.”
After his travels to Egypt, Gonzalez-Viaña will make stops in New York
City and Miami to give lectures en route to Peru, where he will spend the
summer months finishing his upcoming book “El Libro de Porsirio,”
which will
be published in November. A work of realistic fiction, the novel concerns
the life
and cultural evolution of illegal immigrants in the United States, specifically,
one family’s migration and
adaptation to Salem, Oregon. A twist on traditional novels, Gonzalez- Viaña
has created a unique
“family” of characters in “El Libro de Porsirio”; the
main character, Porsirio, is a
donkey who brings his family illegally from Mexico to the U.S. Through the
creative story line, the novel
illustrates the trials and tribulations of a family adjusting to a new way
of
life in America.
Gonzalez-Viaña holds a doctorate degree in the Spanish
language and
literature and a law degree, all from the Universidad Nacional de Trujillo
(Peru). He has been in the United States since 1990, when he arrived as a
visiting professor at the University of California at Berkeley. He joined
the
faculty at Western Oregon University in 1994 and has also served as a
summer session guest professor at various institutions, including
Dartmouth College. In his first year at the Monmouth university, Gonzalez-
Viaña
published the short novel “La Mujer de la Frontera” (“The Frontier
Woman”), a tale of the struggle for life among a group of Spanish-speaking
women in the United States.
In addition to being a professor and celebrated author, Gonzalez-Viaña
is a journalist, writing a weekly column – “Correo de Salem”
– that is
published in approximately 30 newspapers in the Americas. Always an
advocate for humanity, his topics range from views on American life to
global issues to the permanent defense of human rights.
To learn more about Eduardo Gonzalez-Viaña and his literary and
personal contributions to the Latin American community, contact the
WOU Office of Public Relations and Communications at 503-838-8208, or enter
to his web site: http://www.geocities.com/egonzalezviana/index.htm
----------------------------------
In the five years that he has been at Western, Professor González-Viaña has published five books. He also writes a weekly column for 30 Latin-American periodicals in addition to teaching, working out, and taking care of his garden. Yet, he does not consider himself a "workaholic," but just someone who wants to enjoy his work and life.
Dr. González-Viaña came from his native Peru as a visiting professor at the University of California, Berkeley, and has taught at Western since 1993. He received his doctorate in literature, has worked as a journalist, and has established himself as a novelist of international renown and prestige. He has studied at the Universidad Nacional de Trujillo, Peru, the Instituto de Cultura Hispánica de Madrid, Spain, and the École des Hautes Études en Science Sociales de Paris, France.
In a dozen published books, his stories and novels explore the reality, as well as the magical and religious beliefs, of his native country. His life in the United States has inspired him to write about the situation of immigrants. In his weekly column, which can be found on the web at www.rcp.net.pe/rcp/perualdia/salem, he deals with a wide variety of social, political, and philosophical issues. He also raises issues, with a sense of humor, concerning life in North America, yet from the perspective of a man from the other America.
Professor González-Viaña asks his students in his Latin-American Culture class to share a few hours of their weekend with a Hispanic family in the Willamette Valley to teach them English as well as reading skills to help them face the challenges of being in a foreign country. This program provides students the opportunity to sharpen their language skills and to have contact with another culture.
Office:
Todd 303
Office Hours:
MW 10:00-12:00, T 10:00-11:00
Telephone: (503)838-8249
E-Mail: gonzale@wou.edu
Summer 2008
| CRN | Course # | Title | Days/Time | Location |
| 1140 | SPAN 201D | Second Year Spanish (6/23-7/11) | MTWR 8:30-11:50 | OMA 103 |
| 1141 | SPAN 202D | Second Year Spanish (7/14-8/1) | MTWR 8:30-11:50 | OMA 103 |
Fall 2008
Teaching Abroad
| CRN | Course # | Title | Days/Time | Location |
