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Week 11: Distant Star

 Hello everyone! I hope you're all doing great.

   This novel's brief length made me very happy because I'm starting to feel my brain erode from this semester. Compared to the several previous books I've chosen to read, it felt relatively light and less complicated, but I'm not complaining. In addition, the novel's fictional depictions of 1970s history, politics, and people were incredibly enjoyable to me. 

   I thought Bolano's interpretation of the book's magical realism and surrealist parts worked incredibly well for it. He included awe and a dreamy atmosphere, allowing me to fully immerse myself in the narrative. Furthermore, Bolano's elements helped me visualize the characters' uncertainty and disorientation because the book is set in the 1970s in Chile, a time in which the current state of affairs was highly explosive.

  In addition, I really like the connection to memories. The novel takes memory and dives into how it can shape the perception of reality. The novel's fragmented structure makes it easy to piece together the individuals' stories and recollections to create a thorough portrait of their pasts. The book also examines the effects of traumatic experiences on the human mind and how memory affects our reality view due to them.

   I found the concepts of creativity and art to be a breath of fresh air. Several of the characters are authors and painters. Bolano utilized these characters' artistic elements. Through the characters' artistic creations, they are able to disconnect from reality and form a bond with a force more significant than themselves, which gives them a way to get away from the oppression they are subjected to. Also, in order to preserve memory, the characters' creative process is shown as a way for them to make sense of the world by reclaiming control in a situation where power is regularly denied.

Bolano writes in a concise but distinctive style, and his excellent representations of the psychological ramifications of trauma on the human psyche are both clever and terrifying. The novel is easy to read thanks to its brief length and minimalist yet moving language while being straightforward and direct without surrendering depth or complexity. Roberto Bolano writes about challenging subjects and complex concepts. Still, his approachable style of writing and intriguing plot make it a simple and pleasurable read, especially if you're interested in this genre.


My Question for the class is: 

What is the novel's lasting impact, and how does it resonate with contemporary issues and concerns?

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  1. Daniel OrizagaMarch 27, 2023 at 10:21 PM

    I remain intrigued to know why you classify this novel as magical realism... (in my opinion it is very little similar to "One Hundred Years of Solitude"). The narrative is not complicated by fragments and is more or less linear. Many of the characters are poets, and that may be one of the reasons why they are persecuted by the Pinochet regime. Although Bolaño does not overly complicate the language, I would not call it minimalist either. I'm glad to know that you found this novel pleasant to read!

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  2. Sam WallaceMarch 27, 2023 at 10:27 PM

    Hello! I liked your post describing the "highly explosive" events of Chile in the 1970s. I feel this is a good descriptor not only for the time, but the events of the book as a whole concerning Weider's psychotic artistic interests!

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  3. AshleyMarch 29, 2023 at 11:39 PM

    Hi! Thanks so much for your blog post this week:) I also had a lot of similar feelings as you throughout reading this book, such as the value of memory and how trauma can impact memory. This reminds me of the comment in class I made last week regarding the example I provided surrounding that of Holocaust survivors who provided testimony--they sometimes leave explicit details out intentionally or have mentally blocked it out due to the impact of the trauma, therefore affecting memory. Anyway, I digress on that. But it reminds me of how this violence in Chile during this time impacts artists or families who had people who became part of the "disappeared". This time was very sensitive and indeed, explosive, and had a lot of external/foreign pressures that exacerbated the violence--eg CIA/USA. Although I cannot be certain, I am sure this book had a lasting impact on Chileans or even others who endured similar traumas in Latin America because of shared collective traumatic experiences and also reflects the thoughts and perceptions of many in the general public during this time.

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