As part of his research into the impacts of extractive industries on indigenous communities, Martínez-Arias delved into the Peruvian novel Redoble por Rancas. The story recounts the struggles of the Andean community of Rancas against the Cerro de Pasco Copper Corporation. This mining company forcibly seized indigenous territories and expelled its inhabitants in collaboration with the Peruvian government.
While the novel is widely recognized and has been extensively studied, Martínez-Arias is the first scholar to analyze it from an ecocritical perspective, focusing on the portrayal of the environmental impact of mining operations in the Andean region, as well as the effect on the health of indigenous communities. Furthermore, this article demonstrates that Redoble por Rancas is among the first novels to portray the ecological consequences of modern extractive activities in Latin America.
