Mario Vargas Llosa is a prolific writer whose novels, plays and essays reflect his interest and commitment to social change. In some of his works, Vargas Llosa examines the social and moral form of his homeland, Peru, in the context of its recent history. The political content of his literature inspired him to make a bid for the Peruvian presidency in 1990. Most recently, he won the 1998 National Book Critics Circle Award in the field of criticism for his latest book of essays, Making Waves.

One of the most important contemporary authors in the Spanish speaking world, this distinguished author, politician, and public intellectual will be at the Free Library of Philadelphia on Friday, November 12, 1999. Vargas Llosa will read from his work and discuss with Penn faculty members Wendy Steiner, Director of the Penn Humanities Forum, and Jose-Miguel Oviedo, Professor of Romance Languages, the role of the artist in matters of human rights, freedom of expression, and the world of politics.