War in Colombia testimonial literature: between memory, culture, violence and literature

Abstract

Colombia may be characterized as a society ruled over by “a routinization of war and oblivion”. When memories about violent events succeed in articulate themselves and transcend the private space, they are not necessarily incorporated to national memory through “memory policies” in transitional processes. These memories are “deposited” rather than discussed. Testimonial literature is one of those “deposits”. There are times when certain topics, witnesses, authors and narrative treatments attain an unexpected relevance. Such a relevance follows national factors, like the dynamics of conflict and society in Colombia and abroad, such as a “turn to past”. When making a survey across the development of the testimonial genre from mid-20th century Violence up to our times, the gravitation of several cultures of memory is made evident in a society where oblivion appears to prevail.

Keywords

• Violence in Colombia
• memory
• literature
• testimonials.