Antonio Sacoto Salamea (Biblián, Cañar, Ecuador, November 30, 1932) is an Ecuadorian literary critic, essayist, and university professor. He has a PhD from Columbia University in New York. He has served as Director of Latin American Studies and Dean of the College of Romance Languages at the City University of New York (CUNY). He has written around 20 books about Ecuadorian and Latin American literature. His first book was “The Indian in the Ecuadorian novel” (1967), wherein he analyzed the works of Jorge Icaza and Juan León Mera. The municipal library of the city of Azogues is named in his honor. He has been a member of the Ecuadorian Academy of Language since 2012.
Honors and recognitions
- Award by the municipality of the city of Azogues (2005)
- Cultural Medal (2009) bestowed by the Provincial Government of Cañar awarded him the Cultural Medal.
- Benjamín Carrión Medal (2006), bestowed by Ecuador’s vice president Alejandro Serrano Aguilar.
- Fray Vicente Solano Award (2011), bestowed by the city of Cuenca.
- Jorge Carrera Andrade Medal (2011), bestowed by the House of Ecuadorian Culture.
- Member of Ecuadorian Academy of Language (2012).
- Order of Montalvo bestowed by the House of Montalvo, for his contribution to the work of Juan Montalvo.
Education
He completed his secondary studies at the Borja School in the city of Cuenca and higher studies at the City University of New York, where he obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in 1962 and 1964, respectively. He later completed a doctorate at Columbia University in New York.
Teaching career
He has held the chair of Latin American Literature at his Alma Mater, City College, since 1963, and has also served as Director of Latin American Studies (1970-75), Director of the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures (1976-82), and since 1981 he has been a professor at the City University of New York Graduate Center. He has also taught seminars at Columbia University, Barnard College, Hunter College, Catholic University of Quito, Andean University of Quito, Casa de la cultural (CCE) in Ambato, CCE of Guayas, CCE of Cuenca, CCE of Manta, CCE of Babahoyo, at the University of Azuay and at the University of Cuenca and multiple conferences in Europe and the United States.
Selected works
- The Indian in the Ecuadorian Novel (1967)
- El indio en el ensayo hispanoamericano (1971)
- El indio en el ensayo de la América española (1971)
- Juan Montalvo: el escritor y el estilista (1973)
- Cinco novelas de la literatura hispanoamericana (1984)
- La nueva novela ecuatoriana (1987)
- Del ensayo hispanoamericano del siglo XIX (1988)
- El ensayo ecuatoriano (1992)
- Temas literarios (1996)
- Nuevos Temas Literarios (1998)
- Del ensayo hispanoamericano del siglo XIX: las 100 mejores obras de autores del Cañar (1998)
- José Martí: Estudios y Antología (2003)
- El cuento ecuatoriano 1970-2000 (2004)
- Indianismo, indigenismo y neoindigenismo en la novela ecuatoriana (2006)
- La actual novela ecuatoriana y otros ensayos(2009)
- La narrativa de Azuay y Cañar (2012)
- La novelística de Eliécer Cárdenas (2012)
- Siete novelas maestras (2019)