A debt of gratitude is owed to Professor Alfredo A. Roggiano by all admirers of the late Pedro Henríquez Ureña for this excellent edition. Appearing as No. 12 in the State University of Iowa Studies in Spanish Language and Literature, Pedro Henríquez Ureña en los Estados Unidos (México: Editorial Cultura, 1961), consists mainly of a compilation of the many newspaper and magazine articles written by the noted Dominican scholar while residing in the United States at various periods between the years 1901 and 1940.
The book is divided roughly into two parts. In the first part, which serves as an introduction, Professor Roggiano, basing himself in part on the Memorias of Henríquez Ureña, relates the circumstances of the latter’s visits to this country. The second part, arranged under five sub-headings, includes the texts of the articles written by Henríquez Ureña, which appeared in various Spanish and English language publications.
Through these articles one is able to acquire a penetrating insight into the multifarious cultural formation of this highly regarded Spanish American thinker. His reports, always frank, lucid, at times critical—especially those dealing with the policies of the Wilson administration regarding his homeland, Santo Domingo—cover a multitude of subjects. Whether he is writing about the American theater, poetry, art, modern dance, opera, or just plain American politics, Henríquez Ureña leaves the impression of a man extremely well informed. Of especial interest to us today are his observations on the American educational system. Having been both a student and a teacher at the University of Minnesota (1916-1921), where he was granted the doctorate, Señor Henríquez Ureña was well qualified to express his views. In an article entitled “La cultura y los peligros de la especialidad,”—here obviously influenced by the Uruguayan, José Enrique Rodó, whom he openly admires—the author takes the United States to task for its limited and inadequate system of education. In this article, written more than forty years ago, the author is critical, among other things, of the methods of teaching foreign languages, and the propensity of American students to flit from one language to another without mastering any. He writes: “No exagero al decir que el noventa por ciento de la enseñanza de idiomas extranjeros en el país es tiempo perdido.”
