Identifier

etd-11152007-184628

Degree

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Foreign Languages and Literatures

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

The last Argentine dictatorship, officially known as the Process of National Reorganization (PNR), lasted nearly eight years (1976-1983) but the change that it produced in the subjectivity of the citizenry did not disappear when the military dictatorship left power. The fear of being denounced by friends, neighbors, or even family members resulted in apathy and ultimately, in "ignorance" of the events and in the taboo of speaking of them in private settings. The novelists and filmmakers that have begun to name the unnamable of that horror have done more for the comprehension and "healing" of that citizenry than all of the political-social programs. The fictional memories and imagination of these novelists and filmmakers have conquered the taboo to a certain point. Although speaking directly of the events is not done, one can discuss the novels and films that recount the problematic issue of the terror and its consequences. Through this new way of explaining the Period of the PNR, the Argentine citizenry has begun to recover its memory. In 2001, when the Argentine economy was plunged into large scale chaos and the possibility of regressing to the days of State terrorism existed, the Argentine citizenry reached a mature and rapid resolution within the bounds of peaceful mobilization. By conquering that crisis without involving the armed forces and without the violence of its history, Argentina shows hope for the future. Although the PNR dramatically affected Argentine subjectivity, the manner in which the country has resolved its most recent crises demonstrates that the next thirty years will be much more productive, more worthy, more filled with future prospects than the thirty years since the PNR began.

Date

2007

Document Availability at the Time of Submission

Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide.

Committee Chair

Laura Martins

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_theses.1637

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