Die Präsenz der Vergangenheit in Bogotá bei Juan Gabriel Vásquez

Abstract

Traditionally, presence has been defined by immediacy, encompassing both spatial and temporal dimensions. However, the past can also be reintroduced into the present through a (fictionally constructed) representation of presence: physical presence in specific locations can transform the past into a tangible, present experience. This study focuses on the novel La forma de las ruinas by contemporary Colombian writer Juan Gabriel Vásquez, approaching it as memory literature set in Bogotá. The analysis explores the literary strategies employed by this author and the effects of representation, emphasizing the production of presence. Methodologically, the study combines recent memory studies with specific conceptual frameworks, such as effets de mémoire, and delves into research on presence and the role of presentification in coping with trauma. The aim is to provide a detailed examination of how the past becomes palpable through the active experience of remembering, particularly in the context of violence and its traumatizing impact on the characters.