Robinson Crusoe, the first capitalist hero, is a self-made man who accepts objective reality and then fashions it to his needs through the work ethic, common sense, resilience, technology, and, if need be, racism and imperialism.

I have never considered myself a writer in exile because I grew up outside of my own country, because my father was a diplomat. Therefore, I grew up in Brazil, Chile, Argentina, the United States, I studied in Switzerland - so I've always had perspective on my country - I am thankful for that.

No, it's not that they're bad. It's that they're obliged to pretend they're good. They've been brought up to deceive and be cunning, to protect themselves from our society. I don't want to be like that.

The United States condoned dictatorships in Latin America for much of the 20th century.

Religion is dogmatic. Politic is ideological. Reason must be logical, but literature has a privilege of being equivocal.

By its very nature, the novel indicates that we are becoming. There is no final solution. There is no last word.

What America does best is to understand itself. What it does worst is to understand others.