The Power of Memory and Violence in Central America

Description

This book explores the power of words in post-Peace El Salvador and Guatemala—their violent and equally liberating power. The volume explores the entire post-Peace Accords era in both Central American countries. In “post-conflict” settings, denying or forgetting the repressive past and its many victims does violence to those victims, while remembering and giving testimony about the past can be cathartic for survivors, relatives, and even for perpetrators. This project will appeal to readers interested in development, societies in transition, global peace studies, and Central American studies. Front Matter ....Pages i-xvii Introduction: On the Calle del Olvido (Rachel Hatcher)....Pages 1-26 The Speakers, Writers, Painters, and Plasterers (Rachel Hatcher)....Pages 27-60 Schizophrenic Memory in the Land of La Eterna Primavera (Rachel Hatcher)....Pages 61-90 Nunca Más in Guatemala (Rachel Hatcher)....Pages 91-120 Verdad or Olvido in El Pulgarcito de América (Rachel Hatcher)....Pages 121-154 The Past as Monument in El Salvador (Rachel Hatcher)....Pages 155-188 Contested Discourse in El Salvador and Guatemala (Rachel Hatcher)....Pages 189-222 Conclusion: The Power of Words, and of Remembering (Rachel Hatcher)....Pages 223-231 Back Matter ....Pages 233-238