Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
their ploy, workers had to take care not to upset theircapataz,or foreman,
upon whom they depended for keeping their jobs. Foremen occupied a
middle ground in the plantation hierarchy, responsible for translating—
often quite literally—the orders of central managers to labor contractors
and their crews. As a result, they played a crucial role in determining the
quotidian experiences of campeños.
campeños and capataces
Arguably the most despicable character in Prisión verde isaHon-
duran capataz known as ''capitán Benítez.'' Throughout the novel, he is
repeatedly depicted as deceiving Honduran workers in order to serve the
interests of Standard Fruit. In the banana fields, he spies on workers ''to
listen to their conversations in case they were talking about him or the
gringomanagers.''
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Later, during a strike, he and othercapataces distrib-
ute rum to workers in order to elicit the names of the strike organizers.
Finally, at the novel's end, readers learn that Benítez was an accomplice
in the murder of a popular worker. Amaya Amador further symbolizes
Benítez's betrayal of his Honduran roots by having the character speak in
a broken ''Span-glish.'' As one of the characters in Prisiónverdeexplains,
''beforerubbingelbowswiththegringoshe [Benítez] spoke Spanish; but
he has gringo-ized himself so much that now he speaks neither Span-
ish nor English.''
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The indignity of enforcing the company's will, Amaya
Amador seems to suggest, stripped foremen of their very identity. How-
ever,theportraitof Benítezisweakenedbyitsexcessivefunctionalism.His
unambiguously vile actions lend the impression that the line separating
(oppressed) workers from (repressive) bosses was firmly and irrevocably
drawn. In the end, Benítez is reduced to a pawn all but lacking agency. As
a result, the irony of his ''gringoization'' is largely lost.
AmayaAmador'sdecisiontousethecharacterofaHondurancapataz
to personify the injustice of the ''green prison'' is not surprising given the
crucial position that foremen occupied in the plantation hierarchy. The
fruit companies administered their sprawling operations in a highly de-
centralized fashion. Each of theTela Railroad Company's farms was man-
agedbyanoverseer(mandador) assisted by a timekeeper (responsible for
managing the payroll), a spray-master (in charge of Sigatoka control) and
several foremen, or capataces. Foremen's responsibilities included hiring
and firing laborers in addition to supervising work crews. They also sub-
mitted personnel rosters and tally sheets used to determine monthly pay-
