The main objective of this master's thesis is to analyse the religious syncretism present in the
novel Écue-Yamba-Ó by the Cuban author Alejo Carpentier. The novel, published in 1933, is
a work of Latin American literature that explores religious and spiritual practices in the context
of Afro-Caribbean culture. Religious syncretism is a cultural and religious process in which
different religious traditions or spiritual beliefs combine or merge to give rise to a new form of
religion or spiritual practice. In the case of the novel Écue-Yamba-Ó it is mainly the beliefs of
African civilisations and the Christian faith of the colonisers. Throughout history, contact
between these cultures has led to a syncretistic fusion in Latin America. The aim of the master's
thesis is also to analyse the literary treatment of religious syncretism and the various preceding
cultural manifestations of the African tradition in Alejo Carpentier's early Afro-Cuban
narrative. In addition, it seeks to investigate and provide essential information on Afro-Cuban
folklore, religions, anthropology and culture, in order to achieve a profound understanding of
the process of transculturation and syncretism that underlies this work. Much of the African
history that black slaves brought to the island from the beginning of the slave trade is still
present in Cuban culture and religion. On the island, there was a blending of African traditions
with Western culture and religion that continued from the time of Spanish rule. However,
Spanish-American literature did not begin to reflect this Cuban reality until the 20th century,
with a few minor exceptions. It was in the 20th century, thanks to figures such as Alejo
Carpentier, who was active in the avant-garde movement of the time, that the beliefs and
folklore of black Cubans were incorporated into literature. He was the forerunner in Afro-
Cuban narrative, introducing into literature elements that represented the cultural and religious
richness of people of African descent in Cuba.
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