Jon Etxaide: kontaketa errealistaren hasierak

Abstract

This article takes as its starting point an analysis of the novel Joanak Joan by Jon Etxaide, a post-war novelist belonging to the literary group 'Egan'; the article offers a reading of his work as a metaphor of reality, and as a road to knowledge of the philosophical solutions that were put forward at a moment which remains basic to an understanding of the History of Basque Literature. In response to the historical situation, Etxaide's novel postulates the recognition of a longed-for world that is cut off from current reality, yet is also a way of interpretating it. Faced with the division suffered by the Basque people during the war, Etxaide displays a wish for reconciliation. The ethical posture adopted by the novelist before the reality of the situation was to lead to Etxaide's work being classed as a "Christian" novel. Joanak Joan is analysed here as a novel of initiation, in which the protagonists move from antagonism to reconciliation with the help of a mediator of a religious nature. The critical method followed is based on a theory of archetypes.