Category Archives: Memory

March 29, 2022 · 1:45 am

Cercas’ Fictional Writing 101

Cercas’ “Soldier of Salamis has a bewildering jigsaw puzzle- like structure and form, which I thoroughly enjoyed. It invited the reader to accompany the narrator on his quest to piece together fragmented information from the past, through archives, oral history and other resources. I would categorize Cercas’ writing style as historical fiction, in part due to the similarities in the public figures and themes of Francoism to the loom large in the accounts, and most of their stories are accounts of the historical truth. 

The narrator, who is divorced, childless and recently fatherless, begins a journey to uncover the truth of Sanchez Mazas story of survival in a historical event that took place in his life. He is gripped by uncovering this story, as a writer and a journalist and it awakens his passion to write again. All other aspects of his life, such as his formal job, and relationships, are depicted on the periphery of his narration- highlighting the importance of writing the story of Mazas for him. Personally, the facts I read about Mazas and his drive for fascism and a return of absolute dictatorship control was not for me. It was built on a dream of fascism – and I could not connect with his ideas, but the interesting part of this was, that I could easily admire his belief in his own ideas. This prompts the question (that the narrator investigates as well) of what makes a hero? As far as violence, radicalism and dictatorship is concerned, Mazas only had them, without ever fighting or engaging in violence for them. 

A key element in the narrator’s writing was that he was not writing a novel, but a “tale”. The distinction for him was clear (even in the face of it being obscure in other people’s minds). He hoped to uncover a parallel or close version of the truth; “if we manage to unveil one of these parallel secrets, we might perhaps also touch on a more essential secret”  (p. 12) which indicated his commitment to reaching closer to this ultimate form of truth. he hope being that the fictional invention will be more convincing in the end than any biographical memoir. It is as though he hopes being that the fictional tale will be closer to a more convincing account in the end than any existing memoir of Mazas. 

As a concluding thought, the book is a fascinating account of memory and history- and how they are both reliable, and unreliable and in the case of Mazas, can only truly be verified in some parts, leaving room for fiction. 

Food for thought: 

How do you approach the cautionary mark of fiction that lies in the opening pages of the book, as someone who knows the context?

6 Comments

Filed under despair, fascism, heroism, history, Memory, political turmoil, Uncategorized

March 21, 2022 · 6:34 pm

Bolaño’s treasure; a review of Amulet

Bolaño’s “Amulet” caught my interest with its gripping first line – “This is going to be a horror story”. The narrator, Auxillo is an unlikely choice and voice of a book. She is far from ordinary; impulsive, thoughtful and ambivalent. It is fascinating to follow her writing style, which is a stream of consciousness,  because she seems interested in all her mundane details and instances of quiet rebellion that grips the youth of Mexico and is reflected in her own thoughts. The novel is told in a strange manner, with scattered thoughts and loops within loops of time being created.

Bolaño challenged the linear model of passage of time in a person’s life, and introduces us to think about life, as “ full of enigmas, minimal events that, at the slightest touch or glance, set off chains of consequences, which, viewed through the prism of time, invariably inspire astonishment or fear” (p.23). This perspective is reflected through Auxillo’s experience of being stuck in the bathroom of the UNAM university during the siege by the Riot Police. 

In the novel, Auxillo, an Uruguayan woman living in Mexico,  moves through her bohemian lifestyle, referring to herself as the “mother of all poets” in a non-traditional Mexican way of life. Her vivid descriptions of young poets she encounters and takes under her wing were fascinating to read. The importance of poetry in Auxillo’s life remains explicit in the book, and I particularly liked its relevance when she is stuck in the bathroom of the university, surrounded by the riot police. She remarks “the laws of tyrannical cosmos are opposed to the laws of poetry”, highlighting the importance of art, the comfort provided by poetry and the chance encounter with a riot police member where she remains unfound.  

With Amulet, it is difficult to not view the writing, or the use of words and diction, as anything short of extraordinary. On p. 86, Auxillo describes the setting of Guerrero as a “cemetery..bathed in the dispassionate fluids of an eye that tried so hard to forget one particular thing, that it forgot everything else”. This idea can be traced back to Auxillo’s own attempt to try and escape her experience in the bathroom stall  university, as well as the broader landscape of Mexico- where many things are forgotten or lost. 

To end, the erratic tone of the book may make some wonder if Auxillo is crazy and doubt her sanity. But upon closer examination, we may find that her poetically charged account may be a woman’s way of seeing the world and its intricate details by sharing her observations. 

Food for thought: 

How did you interpret the “birthing” scene on page 31, within the broader context of the story? 

1 Comment

Filed under abyss, future, history, language, Memory, nostalgia, war

Tagged as ,

March 7, 2022 · 10:49 pm

Perec’s “W or The Memory of Childhood”; inconclusive evidence on why I enjoyed the book so much..

For reasons that are not entirely within my grasp, W or the memory of childhood was one of my favorite reads this semester. The duality of the narratives and the two parts of the books had a unique sense of a surprise element to them. While reading the book, especially as the narrator tries to recount his childhood, I felt as though I was unlocking the puzzle of his life with him. 

The fragmented and unstable nature of the narrator’s memory really appealed to me in the book. The narrator seemed to be on a quest where he was negotiating with his mind, and it’s ability to hold memories. On page 42, he articulated an essentially reflexive feature of why he chose to write in order to re-trace his childhood memories, and it’s a quote that stuck with me from the book- “ I write because they left in me their indelible mark, whose trace is writing. Their memory is dead in writing; writing is the memory of their death and the assertion of my life.” There is a powerful sense of agency in Perec’s account of remembrance, and the way he chooses to build his memory. His writing taught me that the gaps in memory, and the imperfection of remembering is itself a vital part of the process. 

The account titled “W” in the book, that is described as an island city governed by the spirit of the Olympics, begins as a euphemism to the brutal conditions that political systems create for citizens. Although seemingly distinct from Perec’s memories of childhood at first, we see the two accounts intimately intertwined with each other as we unlock the horrors of World War 2 in Perec’s account and the brutal conditions of survival in the land of “W”. All games, in essence, where the powerful actors exert control for resources for the common man, can have deadly consequences. 

To conclude, the two accounts are not a master-class in symmetry, nor do they have a connection that is obvious and pleasant to its readers. Nevertheless, they teach us important lessons in how connections can be made across different epochs and socio-historical circumstances, and the missing puzzle pieces of memory that we seek to find may not make a perfect whole, but a fragmented mosaic. They teach us that after all, we’re all human, with a set of undeniable failings and pitfalls. 

Food for thought: 

I am interested to understand how readers perceived the impact of war and catastrophe on Perec’s recollection of memories, and his writing in general?  

 

2 Comments

Filed under dualities, Memory, postmodernism, puzzle, war

Tagged as ,

January 29, 2022 · 11:19 pm

Bombal’s “The Shrouded Woman” : Reflections from beyond the grave

It is certainly always a delight to hear female voices in modernist literature, and Bombal’s “The Shrouded Woman” is no exception. It is rare to see older female protagonists/ narrators depicted in literature, and that reason alone could suffice for making the book an interesting read. The novel is a narrated by the corpse of a Chilean woman, and depicts her reflections of life in death, as she lies to rest in her grave. Instead of providing a holistic review, I have chosen a few segments from Bombal’s writing that had a impacted me.

The book begins with the narrator’s taking delight in the gaze she is subjected to as a woman, even in death. Through unique self- reflexivity as a corpse, the narrator takes pleasure in her physical appearance at her own funeral and “she takes delight in submitting herself to the gaze of all” (p. 157). This speaks to the constant “gaze” women are subjected to and creates a paradox in defining the fine line between unwanted attention and enjoyment of it. Moreover, her reflexivity as a corpse creates interesting observations through the gift of hindsight, in a tone that is often perplexing and ambivalent. She wonders “must we die to know things” (p. 176), re-evaluating the subtle pointlessness of drowning in misery after her first heartbreak. It also provides commentary on the broader wasted opportunities to live life while one can, and to desire the gifts of hindsight earlier on in life.

Another recurring theme in the book that intrigued me was the narrator’s connection to God and religion. Through instances of questioning her faith, and the existence of God, Bombal creates a powerful concept of agency that is often not afforded to women, especially in patriarchal societies. She says, “God seemed to me so remote, and so sever”. This positions women as having agency in the form of strong ideas, independent thought and being curious. Their minds are depicted as free from capture from the patriarchal cage that surrounds them, which reads to me as an act of rebellion against the missionary movement of the West and the mandatory adherence to God that was demanded of all people, including women.

On an concluding note, another observation I made was that the male characters in the book- whether it was the narrator’s lover, father, or brother are depicted as deeply flawed in the narrator’s mind, which creates active space for women to shine in the book, even given the constraints of their material and worldly conditions. On page 182, she talks about the “price women have to pay” when they refuse to conform to the pillars of patriarchy, but she talks about it in a light which is celebratory of women who choose to do so.

Astha Kumar

Food for thought: 

What are your thoughts on this particular line that comes from the ending paragraph of the book- “Alone, she would at last be able to rest, to die. For she had suffered the death of the living.”

1 Comment

Filed under abyss, inorganic structures, isolation, Memory, nostalgia

January 17, 2022 · 2:59 pm

Proust’s “Combray” : A window into the past that is neither transparent nor opaque, but translucent.

Marcel Proust is often cited as a crucial contributor to modernist literature. His chapter on “Combray” is a remarkable study of the fragile nature of memory and remembering. Upon first glance, Proust draws the reader in by the using words that seem to occupy a liminal space between sleep and consciousness, that mimic the confused state of the main character in the book, who is experiencing confusion upon waking up in his room. He arouses a feeling of loneliness in the reader, by populating the setting with great detail, yet positioning the character as feeling empty, in a desolate space. His vivid descriptions of the room, coupled with the descriptions of the objects within it, seem to be longing for the company that the rooms once inhabited.

In a traditional novel, the reader expects a linear time sequencing, a reliable and singular narrator and descriptions of any art form, such as literature, imitating life. Proust’s work, which is an embodiment of modernist work, unsettles and challenges all these expectations in a myriad of ways. The unnamed narrator takes a journey into the past, travelling seamlessly into moments of past that position him as a child, occupying space in the same house he lives in today. He outlines conversations, and moments, and his longing for maternal comfort in great detail, through a narrative tone that is, at best, unreliable. This unreliability is turned inward for the main character, as he struggles to discover whether his memories of the past are locked in time, or moulded into something different as he looks back with the benefit of hindsight. He remarks, “these recollections abandoned so long outside of my memory, nothing survived”. This challenges the idea that every memory, every caveat of the past should fit like a piece of a missing puzzle. Instead, this style of writing encourages the reader to reject the idea of categorizing and recalling the past as a neatly woven structure, and instead look at it as an ever-changing form, with no certain beginning, middle or end.

Memory is described as a window into the past, that looks different from various angles and periods of time. The narrator, when he writes about his childhood, is lacking the obvious nostalgia one expects when describing his home, family members and the private memories of their household. This is yet more evidence of an unexpected style of writing, and provides testament that Proust’s work embodies the modernist agenda. Hence, the window into the past, is not transparent (full available) or opaque (fully blocked), but instead translucent, allowing limited, incomplete and malleable glimpses.

-Astha, K

Food for thought:

A question that I pose from his work is- Were you, as a reader, a) surprised by the narrator’s commentary on class, caste and social status? and b) what did you make of these observations? (page 21).

 

3 Comments

Filed under language, Memory, Modernism

Tagged as