PT Journal
AU Gonzalez Hernandez, G
TI The construction of the fictionalized memory in the "new Chilean historical narrative"
SO Romanica Olomucensia
PY 2019
BP 213
EP 227
VL 31
IS 2
DI 10.5507/ro.2019.015
DE fictionalization; historical narrative; postmodernity; memory; history
AB In current Chilean literature it is possible to see a phenomenon in the publications of the past five years, related to an increase in the number of novels and stories that have a central focus on uncommon historical themes. These works succeed in revealing the hidden history of Chile by disclosing historical facts unknown to most people who are not regular readers of historiographical publications. In this paper, the postulates of White, Grutzmacher, and Bonett are used to analyze what has been termed the "new Chilean historical narrative", on the basis of an analysis of three recent works: Logia (2014) by Francisco Ortega, Historia secreta de Chile (2015) by Jorge Baradit, and Codigo Chile (2015) by Carlos Basso. In addition, an explanatory approach is used to clarify the contributions of these three works to the construction of the "national memory". These novels are constituted as simulacra not only of history, as Jameson pointed out, but also of texts, since, in their eagerness to establish themselves within the postmodern pole, they become fictional simulations of other discursive and cultural expressions. Finally, it is emphasized that the true contribution of these "new historical narratives" is linked to the informative nature that they have acquired; that is, they do not have their own distinctive specificity as historical revelations; it is only as texts that bring non-specialized readers closer to historical themes that are not very widely covered that they obtain a value within the national memory.
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