The House Of The Spirits Analysis
The importance of this novel, and others of its genre, is in bearing witness to actual events using the only means of expression at their disposal. Most probably Allende wrote about the pre-coup period for two reasons, firstly to display the traditional patriarchal society in Chile, and secondly - with the overthrow of the government - to raise awareness of that experience that might happen in other countries. Chile is not one of the leading countries of the world, and therefore Allende felt that the world was inattentive to the actions taking place in her country. The overthrow of the government, which was followed by the tough conditions of the military regime, may not have been broadly broadcast in other countries, and thus detailing them
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As she stated in her autobiography, "In writing [The House of the Spirits], I wanted to recover all that I had lost—my land, my family, my memories, and the memories of those who were no longer with me" (Rogoff). Allende wrote the novel to keep her memories of her family and country from disappearing altogether. As Sheffield puts it, "through rewriting, such as is evident in The House of the Spirits, memories that history ignores are preserved and given voice" (34). Allende faced her fear by describing and documenting the awful events themselves. Including the events that tore her life apart was the climax of Allende’s form of coping. Writing the novel was the only way to contact her past, the bridge that led her to her earlier life. Displaced in a foreign country, The House of the Spirits was written as a way of regaining that life. The portrayal of Alba - granddaughter of politician Esteban Trueba - imprisoned, tortured and raped for remaining loyal to socialist rebels after the coup was intended to aggravate outrage at the maltreatment of the citizens of Chile. Alba comes out of jail sane and alive, and starts to write out a history of her family and country based on her grandmother’s diaries. Thus, Alba - like Allende - overcomes her trauma by documenting it from the very
As she stated in her autobiography, "In writing [The House of the Spirits], I wanted to recover all that I had lost—my land, my family, my memories, and the memories of those who were no longer with me" (Rogoff). Allende wrote the novel to keep her memories of her family and country from disappearing altogether. As Sheffield puts it, "through rewriting, such as is evident in The House of the Spirits, memories that history ignores are preserved and given voice" (34). Allende faced her fear by describing and documenting the awful events themselves. Including the events that tore her life apart was the climax of Allende’s form of coping. Writing the novel was the only way to contact her past, the bridge that led her to her earlier life. Displaced in a foreign country, The House of the Spirits was written as a way of regaining that life. The portrayal of Alba - granddaughter of politician Esteban Trueba - imprisoned, tortured and raped for remaining loyal to socialist rebels after the coup was intended to aggravate outrage at the maltreatment of the citizens of Chile. Alba comes out of jail sane and alive, and starts to write out a history of her family and country based on her grandmother’s diaries. Thus, Alba - like Allende - overcomes her trauma by documenting it from the very