I, the Supreme at Last

When I first cracked open Roa Bastos’s I the Supreme I had certain expectations about the book, especially since is supposed to be the “best” in the group of five dictator novels that we will be reading for this class. However, it did not exceed or come to be lower than my expectations since it was nothing like what I expected it to be. I was first caught off guard by the style it was written in. Firstly, there are no chapters, just four hundred pages of a dictator dictating to his secretary. And secondly, usually there are two characters speaking: El Supremo, or Dr. Francia, and his secretary, Patino who takes dictation from El Supremo in every sense of the word, but their dialogue makes no use of quotation marks. So, at first it was a bit difficult to distinguish which of them was speaking, but after a page or two it became apparent and easier to tell, as El Supremo’s dialogue is commanding and authoritative, whereas Patino always uses “Your Excellency” and other such titles when he speaks to El Supremo. Likewise his language is usually very sycophantic, and very fanciful – especially when he is regaling El Supremo with some story or event (which all seem like events from a science fiction or fantasy novel).

The mysterious “third character” in I the Supreme, the Compiler, is also interesting because of the notes that he leaves. In them he comments on things that El Supremo or Patino has said, almost acting as an authority as he denounces or calls into question some passages. Perhaps he is the most supreme presence in the novel as he also, it seems, decides what will and what will not be included in the book as well as being able to influence the reader’s perception.