Medical torture and its monster representation in Rey Rosa, Barría, Cardona and Eltit

Abstract

This article proposes a comparative study of Cárcel de Árboles (1991) by Rodrigo Rey Rosa, l peso de la pureza (2006) by Mauricio Barría Jara, , La bestia desatada (2007) by Guillermo Cardona and El impuesto a la carne (2010) by Diamela Eltit, since they share a monstrous representation of medical torture. The objective of the comparison is to determine both the common features of the representation, as well as their differentiating elements, based on some categories associated with the studies of fantastic literature. In this way, the author’s proposals related to the memory of political violence in Latin America can be contrasted.