The Representations of HIV/AIDS in Contemporary Latin American Literature Open Access

Abstract

By 2008 there were over two million people living with HIV/AIDS in Latin America. Since the
pandemic began in the 1980s, it has begun to find literary treatment in the Latin American
context, becoming especially visible in the 1990s. Four works were selected from the 1990s that
represent a panoramic view of the literary response to AIDS in Latin America: Salón de belleza
by Mario Bellatin (Mexico, 1999), Un año sin amor by Pablo Pérez (Argentina, 1998), Pájaros
de la playa by Severo Sarduy (Cuba, 1993), and Loco afán: crónicas de sidario by Pedro
Lemebel (Chile, 1996). These selected works feature characters infected with HIV/AIDS, both
implicitly and explicitly. The treatment of illness is unique to each work, varying in how the
individual's life is impacted, and in how society reacts to (and perhaps perpetuates) such a
chronic illness. These diverse treatments of HIV/AIDS may nevertheless be unified by the
common interpretation of their representations of illness as a metaphor for marginalization and
social exclusion.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Introduction.......................................................................................1

Salón de belleza (1999).......................................................................7

Un año sin amor (1998).....................................................................19

Pájaros de la playa (1993)..................................................................27

Loco afán (1996)...............................................................................36

Conclusion........................................................................................53

Works Cited......................................................................................63

About this Honors Thesis

Rights statement

• Permission granted by the author to include this thesis or dissertation in this repository. All rights reserved by the author. Please contact the author for information regarding the reproduction and use of this thesis or dissertation.

School	Emory College
Department	Spanish
Degree	BA
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Literature, Latin American
Keyword	literature Sarduy, Severo Un año sin amor Pájaros de la playa Loco afán Bellatin, Mario HIV/AIDS Pérez, Pablo Salón de belleza Lemebel, Pedro
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Reber, Dierdra, Emory University
Committee Members	Feldman, Hernan, Emory University Lewis, William, Emory University

Last modified

Primary PDF

Thumbnail	Title	Date Uploaded	Actions
	The Representations of HIV/AIDS in Contemporary Latin American Literature ()	2018-08-28 10:13:11 -0400	Press to Select an action Download

Supplemental Files

Thumbnail	Title	Date Uploaded	Actions