Latin American Literature as Process: Latin Americanism in the Face of Differences

Abstract

La literatura latinoamericana como proceso (1985), coordinated by the Chilean intellectual Ana Pizarro, compiles the contributions of various authors in an expert meeting held in Campinas around 1983. The meeting aimed to design a new history of Latin American literature that considered the transformations in the field of study. The analysis of the book highlights tensions between the pursuit of unity proposed by Latin Americanism and a comprehensive understanding of the cultural diversity of Latin America, expressed through three critical agendas that structure its hypotheses and propositions. The identity agenda is challenged by cultural differences, while the modernizing one advocates for comparativism as a renewing methodological tool. Finally, the heterogeneous agenda emerges as the main contribution of the work: hypotheses about Caribbean literatures and indigenous production propose an expansion of the literary corpus beyond the traditional cultured, literate sphere and Spanish-written literature. The examination of these agendas reveals how local literary criticism strove to explore novel approaches in constructing and contemplating Latin American literature in the early eighties.