Myth as Urban Collective Memory: A Reading of José María Arguedas’s Representation of Cuzco in Los Ríos Profundos

Maxwell Woods

doi:10.5565/rev/mitologias.1106

Myth as Urban Collective Memory: A Reading of José María Arguedas’s Representation of Cuzco in Los Ríos Profundos

Maxwell Woods

Faculty of Liberal Arts

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

This article explores the socio-political function of mythical representations of urban space in Latin American literature. Based on an analysis of the first chapter of José María Arguedas’s Los ríos profundos (1958), I argue that myth is a narrative technology of collective memory that binds together a regional community through the practice of reproducing shared narratives of the urban meaning of a uniting city. More precisely, I look at the function of the myth of Cuzco as the “center of the world” in the opening chapter of Arguedas’s novel.

Translated title of the contribution	EL MITO COMO MEMORIA COLECTIVA URBANA: UNA LECTURA DE LA REPRESENTACIÓN DEL CUZCO EN LOS RÍOS PROFUNDOS DE JOSÉ MARÍA ARGUEDAS
Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	54-64
Number of pages	11
Journal	Mitologias Hoy
Volume	31
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/mitologias.1106
State	Published - Dec 2024

Keywords

Arguedas
Collective Memory
Cuzco
Literary Urban Studies
Myth

Access to Document

10.5565/rev/mitologias.1106

Cite this

@article{bcb6601d1c8746959820e17e2489d062,

title = "Myth as Urban Collective Memory: A Reading of Jos{\'e} Mar{\'i}a Arguedas{\textquoteright}s Representation of Cuzco in Los R{\'i}os Profundos",

abstract = "This article explores the socio-political function of mythical representations of urban space in Latin American literature. Based on an analysis of the first chapter of Jos{\'e} Mar{\'i}a Arguedas{\textquoteright}s Los r{\'i}os profundos (1958), I argue that myth is a narrative technology of collective memory that binds together a regional community through the practice of reproducing shared narratives of the urban meaning of a uniting city. More precisely, I look at the function of the myth of Cuzco as the “center of the world” in the opening chapter of Arguedas{\textquoteright}s novel.",

keywords = "Arguedas, Collective Memory, Cuzco, Literary Urban Studies, Myth",

author = "Maxwell Woods",

year = "2024",

month = dec,

doi = "10.5565/rev/mitologias.1106",

language = "English",

volume = "31",

pages = "54--64",

journal = "Mitologias Hoy",

issn = "2014-1130",

publisher = "Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Myth as Urban Collective Memory

T2 - A Reading of José María Arguedas’s Representation of Cuzco in Los Ríos Profundos

AU - Woods, Maxwell

PY - 2024/12

Y1 - 2024/12

N2 - This article explores the socio-political function of mythical representations of urban space in Latin American literature. Based on an analysis of the first chapter of José María Arguedas’s Los ríos profundos (1958), I argue that myth is a narrative technology of collective memory that binds together a regional community through the practice of reproducing shared narratives of the urban meaning of a uniting city. More precisely, I look at the function of the myth of Cuzco as the “center of the world” in the opening chapter of Arguedas’s novel.

AB - This article explores the socio-political function of mythical representations of urban space in Latin American literature. Based on an analysis of the first chapter of José María Arguedas’s Los ríos profundos (1958), I argue that myth is a narrative technology of collective memory that binds together a regional community through the practice of reproducing shared narratives of the urban meaning of a uniting city. More precisely, I look at the function of the myth of Cuzco as the “center of the world” in the opening chapter of Arguedas’s novel.

KW - Arguedas

KW - Collective Memory

KW - Cuzco

KW - Literary Urban Studies

KW - Myth

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85216269340

U2 - 10.5565/rev/mitologias.1106

DO - 10.5565/rev/mitologias.1106

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85216269340

SN - 2014-1130

VL - 31

SP - 54

EP - 64

JO - Mitologias Hoy

JF - Mitologias Hoy

ER -

Myth as Urban Collective Memory: A Reading of José María Arguedas’s Representation of Cuzco in Los Ríos Profundos

Abstract

Keywords

Access to Document

Fingerprint

Cite this