Editing Mario Vargas Llosa (section)

===Plot, setting, and major themes===
[[File:IRPB-UNMSM Mario Vargas Llosa y otros intelectuales.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Vargas Llosa (fifth from the left), accompanied by several Peruvian intellectuals and members of the [[Academia Peruana de la Lengua|Peruvian Academy of Language]], during his visit to the [[Raúl Porras Barrenechea Institute]] of the [[National University of San Marcos]] in 2011]]

Vargas Llosa's style encompasses historical material as well as his own experiences.<ref>{{Harvnb|Booker|1994|p=48}}</ref> For example, in his first novel, ''The Time of the Hero'', his own experiences at the Leoncio Prado military school informed his depiction of the corrupt social institution which mocked the moral standards it was supposed to uphold.<ref name="Kristal32" /> Furthermore, the corruption of the book's school is a reflection of the corruption of Peruvian society at the time the novel was written.<ref name="Kristal33" /> Vargas Llosa frequently used his writing to challenge the inadequacies of society, such as demoralization and oppression by those in political power towards those who challenge this power. One of the main themes he explored in his writing is the individual's struggle for freedom within an oppressive reality.<ref>{{Harvnb|Morote|1998|pp=66–67}}</ref> For example, his two-volume novel ''Conversation in The Cathedral'' is based on the tyrannical dictatorship of President [[Manuel A. Odría]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Kristal|1998|p=56}}</ref> The protagonist, Santiago, rebels against the suffocating dictatorship by participating in the subversive activities of leftist political groups.<ref>{{Harvnb|Kristal|1998|p=59}}</ref> In addition to themes such as corruption and oppression, Vargas Llosa's second novel, ''The Green House'', explores "a denunciation of Peru's basic institutions", dealing with issues of abuse and exploitation of the workers in the [[brothel]] by corrupt military officers.<ref name="QC273" />

Many of Vargas Llosa's earlier novels were set in Peru, while in later work he expanded to other regions of Latin America, such as Brazil and the Dominican Republic.<ref name=castro-klaren19>{{Harvnb|Castro-Klarén|1990|p=19}}</ref> His responsibilities as a writer and lecturer allowed him to travel frequently and led to settings for his novels in regions outside of Peru.<ref name="Williams60" /> ''The War of the End of the World'' was his first major work set outside Peru.<ref name="Cevallos273"/> Though the plot deals with historical events of the [[Canudos]] revolt against the Brazilian government, the novel is not based directly on historical fact; rather, its main inspiration is the non-fiction account of those events published by Brazilian writer [[Euclides da Cunha]] in 1902.<ref name="Booker75" /> ''The Feast of the Goat'', based on the dictatorship of [[Rafael Trujillo]], takes place in the [[Dominican Republic]];<ref name="Williams267"/> in preparation for this novel, Vargas Llosa undertook a comprehensive study of Dominican history.<ref name="Williams270">{{Harvnb|Williams|2001|p=270}}</ref> The novel was characteristically [[literary realism|realist]], and Vargas Llosa underscored that he "respected the basic facts,&nbsp;... I have not exaggerated", but at the same time he pointed out "It's a novel, not a history book, so I took many, many liberties."<ref>Qtd. in {{Harvnb|Gussow|2002}}</ref>

One of Vargas Llosa's later novels, ''[[The Way to Paradise]]'' (''{{lang|es|El paraíso en la otra esquina}}''), is set largely in [[Tahiti]] in [[French Polynesia]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Vargas Llosa|2003|p=}}</ref> Based on the biography of social reformer [[Flora Tristan]], it demonstrates how Flora and [[Paul Gauguin]] were unable to find paradise, but were still able to inspire followers to keep working towards a socialist [[utopia]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Heawood|2003|p=}}</ref> Unfortunately, Vargas Llosa was not as successful in transforming these historical figures into fiction. Some critics, such as [[Barbara Mujica (writer)|Barbara Mujica]], argue that ''The Way to Paradise'' lacks the "audacity, energy, political vision, and narrative genius" that was present in his previous works.<ref>{{Harvnb|Mujica|2004|p=}}</ref>