“Si va e si torna insieme”

Thinking (beyond) the Catastrophe with “Plop” by R. Pinedo and “Tejer la oscuridad” by E. Monge

Abstract

The hypothesis of the present work is that contemporary dystopian and (post)apocalyptic imaginaries, beyond their good intentions, can become, unconsciously and paradoxically, instances of acceptance of the status quo and of the dominant model. Based on a reading of two recent Latin American novels (Rafael Pinedo’s Plop and Emiliano Monge's Tejer la oscuridad), a critique of this imaginary is proposed by the analysis of the implicit cultural assumptions of this discourse. It is suggested that the representation of a post-apocalyptic society, based on the idea of a return to a primordial and natural barbarism of human beings, has clear origins in Western thought and that – in order to make the critical power of the eco-dystopian discourse effective – it would be useful to radically revise our imagery in a truly anti-evolutionary and anti-progressive perspective.