Looked at as a geometric figure , Colombia is unusual because its center is located outside itself We never felt as though we were at the center of the world , and that has been a necessary illusion But now modernity and the twentieth century have thrust upon us the stark reality that we are , in fact , at the center of the world , and it is not a friendly place The great dramas of our time are unfolding all across Colombia The spiritual crisis that causes drug addiction , drug trafficking , arms trafficking , the challenge of immigration , disputes over development , the question of nature and the preservation of the environment — all the major themes of the modern era are central issues for Colombian society we are no longer at the margins of history We are now a society that has an impact on the outside world . This isn 't a spectacle to be observed from the outside perhaps that is why the solutions should be sought beginning inside the country . Examining Ospina 's first novel , I was able to elucidate notions about Colombian identity and memory , but more broadly , about being American .
Изучая первый роман Оспина , я смогла лучше понять для себя основные идеи , связанные с колумбийской идентичностью и исторической памятью , и даже шире : что вообще значит быть американцем .