Foreign Languages & Literatures ETDs

Publication Date

4-11-1978

Abstract

This dissertation examines survival in Goytisolo's two early novels, Juegos de manos (1954) and Duelo en el Paraíso (1955), and two late novels, Señas de identidad (1966) and Reivindicación del Conde don Julián (1970). The approach views survival as the novelist's central theme and also as a signficant factor in the technique of his artistic medium. The novel's struggle for survival as a contemporary art form--through change and growth in technique--is integrated with contemporary man's fight for personal survival. While other studies have concentrated on either specific themes or technical devices, this investigation offers a coordinated perspective of both thematic and technical considerations, so as to pinpoint significant trends in their interrelated evolution. Through a detailed examination of the microcosm of these four novels, the creative characteristics which make Goytisolo's novelistic world unique emerge as follows: (1) artistic innovation and dexterity, such as his language revolution-renovation and his skillful weaving of diverse literary and non-literary materials into a complex, novelistic texture; (2) a narrative perspective which combines subjective focus with objective focus to form a multiple view; (3) creation of a supra-reality by enriching reality with fantasy in order to come closer to the total human experience; and (4) a thematic unity which rests on man's psychosocial struggle for survival. This study shows Goytisolo's novels evolving from the conventional story-telling patterns of the two early novels to the mastery of a complex, innovative technique of the two late novels and also traces the thematic continuity in all four novels. Juegos, while being a closed novel in the traditional mold, heralds the complexity of later novels with counterpoint, fragmented time, and an imaginary plane. Its treatment of the adolescent crisis demonstrates that deception sabotages the maturational struggle. Duelo modifies the linear sequence of the conventional novel by beginning at the end and then moving backward in time to solve a crime. This novel hints of the multiple view of later novels by linking the subjective view of changing narrators with the objective view of an omniscient narrator. Thematically, it illustrates how man's destructive inclination, if left unchecked, threatens the survival of humanity. Señas introduces a new level of diversity and technical experimentation, including multiple narrative voices, extra-novelistic materials, and an absence of conventional punctuation. The protagonist's search for identity underscores contemporary man's dilemma of seeking individuality without sacrificing social interaction. Reivindicación surpasses the heterogeneous experimentation of Señas through a skillful integration of eclectic fragments. It expands novelistic possibilities with protean characters, elastic time, film techniques, intertexture, and language revitalization. The protagonist serves as a thematic connector by coordinating his free association around the need of aggression for survival. Additional highlights of this disseration are contained in a consideration of supra-reality and in a comprehensive bibliography. The analysis of supra-reality reveals the importance of artistic distortion, dreams, myth, and cinematographic techniques in building a realm which encompasses both subjective and objective reality. The comprehensive bibliography goes beyond the specific materials used in the dissertation in order to provide an up-to-date compendium of significant criticism on Goytisolo's works. Man's survival struggle is the theme that unifies all four novels. Within that theme, Goytisolo's special concern is on the problem of achieving personal autonomy without denying human solidarity. Resolution of that problem is fostered through cathartic revelation of the total nature of man.

Document Type

Dissertation

Language

English

Degree Name

Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies

Level of Degree

Doctoral

Department Name

Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures

First Committee Member (Chair)

Pelayo Hipolito Fernández

Second Committee Member

Alfred Rodriguez

Third Committee Member

Sabine R. Ulibarrí

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