Historia Crítica

Hist. Crit. | eISSN 1900-6152 | ISSN 0121-1617

The Materiality of Memory in Mauricio Rosencof’s Las Cartas que no llegaron (Uruguay, 1930-2000)

No. 40 (2010-01-01)
  • Anna Forné
https://doi.org/10.7440/histcrit40.2010.04

Abstract

This article examines the way that Uruguayan author Mauricio Rosencof reconstructs family genealogy and self identity in Las cartas que no llegaron. The materiality of memory has an important place in the novel: the superimposed stories take shape through spaces and objects tied to the protagonist’s childhood and the family history. The author employs a double entendre in which referential immediacy is combined with complex, fictionalizing strategies. The latter, corresponding to the three most important elements regarding memory in the novel, are analyzed separately: the family album, the cards, and the word.

Keywords: Uruguay, dictatorship, memory, identity, literature