Reflections on contemporary indigenous narrative

between tradition and modernity of writing models

Abstract

The general purpose of this study is to discuss the way in which certain contemporary narratives by indigenous authors are structurally and thematically organized. In this sense, in order to evaluate how certain fictional productions stand out in the current critical debate, our specific objective is to analyze the following studies: O filho da ditadura (2009), by Juvenal Payayá; Tardes de agosto: manhãs de setembro: noites de outubro (2013), by Jaider Esbell; and Memórias de índio (2016), by Daniel Munduruku. In our point of view these texts bring peculiar and formal thematic configurations, as well as they intend to escape from the rules which often guide traditional literary theory, history and criticism. This is due to the fact that, by preparing their writings, these authors chose to use a sui generis style, and do they move in order to highlight some aspects inherent to the indigenous and Amazonian universe. It is no coincidence that, no matter how close they are to the novelistic genre, these textual models problematize, among others, the concepts of authorship, emphasizing a performance inherent to the act of narrating, considering that this type of composition circulates with some representations of the imaginary that are distinct from some of the characteristics expressed – through time – by many Western literary currents. For us, this is how the analysis of fictional productions by indigenous authors suggests a kind of transcultural exercise. Therefore, in order to outline our assessment, we have as an analytical support the theories of Fábio Almeida de Carvalho (2023), Walter Mignolo (2017), Mikhail Bakhtin (1998), Fernando Ortiz (1983), among others.