THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE TIME ELEMENT IN SELECTED NOVELS

BY JUAN GOYTILSOLO

by

Georgia McKeighan Murach

A thesis

submitted in partial

fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

Master of Art in the Department of Foreign Languages

Fresno State College

August 1967 Table of Contents

Page

Chapter I

Statement and background of the thesis 1

Chapter II

Narrative and thematic elements in relation to time 8

Chapter III

The point of view in relation to time 24

Chapter IV

Rhythm of the novel 38 Chapter I

Statement and background of the thesis.

The purpose of this thesis is to demonstrate the significance of

the time element in four novels by Juan Goytisolo - Juegos de manos,

Dueen e - 1 paraiso, El circo, and Fiestas. The germinal factors for

this study derive from a personal interest in the temporal form of the

novel and the aspect of time as reflected in twentieth century litera­

ture; and a scholastic interest in the modern Spanish novel particularly

as it reflects Spain after the Civil War.

Goytisolo's place in the history of the modern Spanish novel is

linked to the new trend of the novel which was initiated in La familia

de Pascual Duarte by Camilo Josd Cela. The novel demonstrated a new

form and a black, ominous environment populated with grotesque people

whose horrible acts were justified by their environment. This bleak

picture was impressed on the reader through the objective, cinematic

development of the narrative.

Domingo Perez Minik attests to the barometric social significance

of the new type of novel as an expression of the atmosphere of post war Spain; and he notes the general foundation which Cela laid for the novel after the Civil War.

... Con viva impaciencia se aguardaba que la novela, a traves de una obra importante, se manifestara de manera adecuada. Lo mismo si aparecia la obra como si no aparecia, en cualquier caso, todo se revestia de un gran significado barometrico. Si no aparecia, porque ya se podria hablar de la esterilidad de nuestro genio novelesco como consecuencia de nuestras luchas intestinas, y, si aparecia, porque nos preocupaba la direccion que este^ nuevo viento llevaba y la fuerza destructora de ese cir- culo cerrado de graves tensiones atmosfericas. ... 2.

••• La famiLi a de Pascual Duarte traia tambien, entre tantas cosas, una nueva prosa, muy jugosa, segura y expresiva, con su cierto refinamiento y con su nuevo sentido de la realidad. Sobre esta incidia con una singular iracundia. Muy necesaria, pero asimismo muy intempestiva, afortunadamente. De cierta manera, esta novela creaba una norma, una escuela y una pista. ... Camilo Jose Cela instaura una original forma en la literatura de esta generacion, que muchos han seguido y otros no, pero que ya hoy tiene una valoracion universal. Esta forma, la tenemos que llamar forma, era el resultado de una alta tension expresiva, resumen muy realista de lo fu|az, lo dramatico y lo desesperado de nuestra epoca.

Juan Goytisolo follows the trend set by Cela in the thematic preoccupa­

tion of his novels and in the resultant style which reflects a new

A V creation of tensions within his fictive reality. Elena de la Souchere

in An Explanation of Spain describes the thematic bond between Cela and

the generation immediately following.

Novelists of sober and cla_ssic gifts - Ricardo Fernandez de la Reguera, Camilo Jose Cela, Luis Romero, Miguel Delibes - were becoming famous about 1951 when public attention was suddenly focused on the products of the mid-century; Juan Goytisolo, the most representative of these writers, published Juegos de manos, which became the novelized manifesto of the new generation. ... Since the most generous and most gifted of those who were twenty in or about 1950 no longer held to the old social myths, their need for affirmation of the "self" could not be satisfied by their playing the leading roles in a farce in which they had lost faith. ... And because opinion could find no direct expression, it was inevitable that the novel become the sole reflection of social life. ... Obsessed by an overly burdensome social reality, today's novelists in Spain have killed off the protagonist, and take an interest only in collective lif^? they seek indeed to be the impassive witnesses of it.

The portrayal of collective life in Juegos de manos, Duelo en e 1

^Domingo Perez Minik, Nove1istas Espanoles de los Siglos XIX y XX, Ediciones Guadarrama, (Madrid, 1957), p. 259 and pp. 268-69.

2Elena de la Souchere, An Explanation of Spain, trans. Eleanor Ross Levieux (New York, 1965), p. 365. J.

paraiso, E_L circo, and Fiestas from an impassive point of view is a

result brought about by the manipulation of the time element in the

novel and is of major significance as an aspect of time.

The link between Cela, the modern Spanish novel, and Goytisolo

is based on more than similar thematic preoccupation; the link is also

soundly based on the means of expression of that theme. Just like Perez

Minik notes a new sense of reality in La familia de Pascual Duarte and

La Colmena; he notes the portrayal of the ominous atmosphere in a confused rhythmic pattern by Juan Goytisolo.

Juegcsde manos, de Juan Goytisolo, es la mejor novela "negra" de este ciclo. Extraria, alucinante, embrollada, de un ritmo confuso pero terriblemente expresiva. Un buen documento de este tiempo. Posee un gran contenido social, es osada y muy libre. Esta muy bien escrita, claro esta, dentro de su manera de ser. Presenta una galeria de tipos, el reves de una burguesia de gran facha, de dura originalidad, producto de un clima expecial de postguerra. Como en ninguna otra obra, aparece en esta una actividad dilectica lucida y hasta un cierto determinismo la oprime por todas partes. A veces nos re^uerda algun "film" frances de los ultimos 11empos 9 •••

Which is to say that there is something new and similar in the fictive reality of both novelists which pertains to the rhythm of the novels.

The novel has suffered a change which the critic refers to as a film­ like sensation in the form of the novel. The critics allude to a new projection of the form of these novels, a new feeling. This sensation is explained in this thesis as an intensified rhythm caused by a shift in the time element from a subsidiary role to a role of prominence in the creation of tension and in the consequent presentation of the narrative.

Perez Minik, p. 337. Goytisolo's novels evidence a strong preoccupation with time.

Time within his novels is flattened out or suspended, the rhythm

of the novel supersedes the conventional causal argument of the plot,

and the theme is sustained by the temporal focus of the novel. Kessel

Schwartz records a basic effect of the time shift in a critique of the

novel, Juegos de manos. As he explains, "It is the air of suspense,

the dramatic intensity, the protest, the violence, the taste of life

itself that is important, and not the plot."4 This idea applies to

Goytisolo's novel and to the modern novel in general. It is a concept

articulated by many critics as an explanation of the form of the modern

novel.

In many modern novels, rhythm has ousted plot; or, to use the new terms, formations have replaced form. Romains and Dos Passos have turned to the spatial cross-section, Huxley and Proust to the 'time-shift,' Conrad and Gide to what might be called 'the technique of multiple focussing,' Joyce to all of them and more in addition.

The plot, hitherto an important element in the movement of the novel

due to its explanatory nature, is being replaced in part by the timing or rhythm of the modern novel. Incidents are enacted which present the reader with evidence of the author's message, rather than incidents which are causal factors in the subsequent action of the novel. The shift away from the conventional plot and the replacement of the move­ ment of that plot with a bolder thematic tension is undertaken in this analysis of the four novels by Goytisolo.

The expressed concern with time as a focal element in twentieth century literature is concretely illustrated in a chapter by William

4Kessel Schwartz, Introduction to Juegos de manos by Juan Goytisolo, (New York: Dell Publishing Co., 1964), p. 11.

5Adam A. Mendilow, Time and the Novel,(Lon don, 1952), p. 48. 5.

Barrett which is titled "The testimony of modern art."

Where the movement of the spirit is no longer vertical but only horizontal, the climactic elements in art are in general leveled out, flattened. The flattening of pictorial space is achieved in Cubism is not an isolated fact, true only of painting, but is paralleled by similar changes in literary techniques. There is a general process of flaten- ning, three chief aspects of which may be noted:

(1) The flattening out of all planes upon the plane of the picture. Near and far are pushed together. So in certain works of modern literature time, instead of space, is flattened out upon one plane. Past and present are repre­ sented as occurring simultaneously, upon a single plane of time. ...

(2) More important perhaps is the flattening out of climaxes, which occurs both in painting and literature. ...

(3) The last and most important aspect of what we have called the process of flattening in modern art is the flattening out of values.

The suspension of time is in fact the flattening out of climaxes and

as a result values are also flat. Goytisolo's containment or

"flattening" of time is inextricable from the flattening out of

climaxes and the presentation of flat, ritualistic values. Time as

a literary preoccupation and theme is also evidenced by the publishings

of novelists such as Kafka, Sartre, Virginia Woolf, Joyce, and Faulkner.

Time as a theme means that time has acquired a directive force within

the novel. Xt is no longer forced into its conventional role of

maintaining the historic, episodic perspective of the novel.

Catching the very note and trick, the strange irregular rhythm of life, that is the attempt whose strenuous force keeps Fiction upon her feet. In proportion as in what she offers us we see life without rearrangement do we feel that we are touching the truth; in proportion as we see it with rearrangement do we feel that we are

6William Barrett, Irrational Man, A Study in Existential Philosophy, (New York, 1962), pp. 49-56. being put off with a substitute, a compromise and convention.7

Henry James suggests the basic purpose of fiction, to present lif e.

Twentieth century literature then must portray life with a most

minimal amount of arrangement hitherto known in literature since man

has become painfully aware that his life is not contained within a

historic community with pre arranged rules.

It is the allusion of critics to a new temporal form of the

novel combined with the intrinsic temporal nature of the novel which

offers the student and critic a challenge which is exciting and

frustrating. The critic is handicapped before he begins a study of

the new form of the novel since he must impose artificial means on

the novel in order to make stationary what is flowing so that he

can examine and record its effect. Percy Lubbock, a master critic

of the novel expresses the difficulty of freezing the flow of the

novel.

To grasp the shadowy and fantasmal form of a book, to hold it fast, to turn it over and survey it at leisure - that is the effort of a critic of books, and it is perpetually defeated. Nothing, no power, will keep a book steady and motionless before us, so that we may have time to examine its shape and design. As quickly as we read, it melts and shifts in the memory; even at the moment when the last page is turned, a great part of the book, its finer detail, is already vague and doubtful. A little later, after a few days or months, how much is really left of it? A cluster of impressions, some clear points emerging from a mist of uncertainty, this is all we can hoge to possess, generally speaking, in the name of a book.

Yet it is the student's hope and the critic's duty to identify the flow of the novel.

?Henry James, The Art of Fiction, (London, 1948), p. 16.

^Percy Lubbock, The Craft of Fiction, (New York, 1957), p. 1. In an effort to identify and analyze the manipulation cf time which ultimately determines the rhythm of the novel, the thematic and narrative elements, and the point of view have been artificially isolated.

The atmosphere of Spain postulated as the theme of Goytisolo's novels requires a narrative scheme which can present its many facets and moods. The narrative scheme, "slice of life" depends on the time factor for support, but it is primarily the theme which requires the vertical tension which only the time in the novel can bring about.

The narrative pattern eliminates the conventional climactic tension in order to spotlight the environmental theme. This theme must be sustained and maintained in tension as it is being created within the novel's fictive reality. Chapter II

Narrative and thematic elements in relation to time.

In this chapter I would like to analyze thematic and narrative ele­

ments which the chosen novels have in common in order to identify basic

features of the time study. The theme directs the selection of the nar­

rative elements and is also the message or statement which evolves from

the presentation of the argument of the novel. The narrative then func­

tions to expose the problem or argument, thereby illuminating or exposing

the message.

The problems exposed by the narrative in Goytisolo's novels are rather simple if not apparently senseless. For example:

Juego de manos: A gang of boys and a girl (all are either teenagers or in their early twenties) decide to kill a minor political figure, Sr. Guarner. The killer is chosen by means of a poker game. Tanger, the figure of a dreamer, by slight of hand deliberately deals the losing hand to the sensitive, sheep-like David. The young man confronts the politician who presents in measure a target for the anarchic antagonism of the younger generation. David is unable to kill Sr. Guarner. David is then killed by his best friend, the leader of the gang, Agustin. Agustin then gives himself up.

Duelo en el paraiso: As the Republican army evacuates its position, a deserter, Martin Elosegui, finds a young boy, Abel, shot to death. Through a series of flashbacks and dramatic scenes, Abel is portrayed as a type of dreamer, the worshipper of his friend and contemporary, Pablo. The Nationalist forces occupy the area. The refugee children are rounded up. One of the children explains that, the boy reader oj. the children, Arquero, killed Abel.

El circo: In a coastal, Spanish town two youths, Pablo and Atila, plan "to rob S r. Julio Alvarez. Don Julio returns unexpectedly to his study, he catches Atila in the act, Atila then kills him. Meanwhile, Utah, a painter, an eternal creator of fantasy, is en route to his home in this same coastal town. During his return he has been threatening to kill Don Julio. He is drunk, has been refused money by his father, and further he is returning by taxi from Madrid and has no way of paying for the trip Utah has sent a telegram to Don Julio asking m the name of Celia (a romantic interest of Don Julio's) that they meet This telegram leads Don Julio back to his house and t herefore to his death. When Utah arrives at Julio's house and discovers the body he is unable to separate his drunken fantasy from reality and b elieves that he is the murderer. 9.

Fies_tas: Four principal characters are examined against the setting of a southern Spanish, coastal town. Pira, a fragile, young girl dreams ol joining her father whom she imagines as living in a castle in Italy. n her attempt to reach her father she joins with a perverted beggar who murders her. Pip°, a boy of twelve, is involved in a friendship based on hero-worship with Gorila who is a tender, though brutish looking seaman who has committed a murder. Gorila shares the secret of his crime with Pipo who unwittingly reveals the crime and the criminal to a police officer. Pipo shatters his own innocence by his betrayal of his friend. Gorila is captured which is a type of relief for him. Professor Ortega is seen in a succession of failures in communication. He is an idealist, a visionary who looks* forward to a better life for Spain, but who fails in the communication and realization of his ideals.

What possible thematic message could be exposed by these narra­ tives?

It is a theme which states that the characters depicted in

Goytisolo's novels are existing in a vacuum. That is, the ambiente in which they act is devoid of values. The theme then is a multi­ farious force which is the atmosphere created within the novels. It is this ambiente which infuses and directs the elements of the narra­ tive. A study of the titles of the novels in relation to the content indicate a part of this atmosphere.

The title, Juegosde manos, has a dual significance in relation to the theme. First it obviously refers to the slight of hand by Tanger in the poker game. Secondly, the idea of game, juego, is a symbol which expands in meaning throughout the novel. A game and deceit are used as a means of selecting the one who will kill Guarner. David t hen becomes the victim within the poker game. Ultimately he becomes the victim of the collective crime. When Tanger comes to warn David of his impending fate he records both of these significances.

. . Yo hice trampa en el poker, te servf las cartas malas. Habfa bebido mucho aquella tarde y Paez me hizo creer que era una broma. Yo imaginaba que era un juego ... Estaba tan triste aquella tarde, que necesitaba alegrarme, uese como fuese. Querfa ser aula, y brillante y qua todos me 10.

quisierais. No sabfa que cuando hablaban de matar lo decian en serio. Supuse que era un juego, icomprendes? Hasta entonces, siempre hablamos jugado e imagine que era una broma.1

Slight of hand" used as a title indicates that the story revolves

around a game of cards specifically, and generally around a game. A

card game implies a group of players and we see this analogy maintained

in the game of the novel, the collective crime which will terminate the

game played by the group. Agustln records this game-like meaning of

their lives.

-Oyeme, David. Cuando propuse el golpe de mano, os di, a ti y a los otros, entera liberated. Que dijeseis si o no, me daba lo mismo. i Que diablos! Lo hubiese hecho igual solo; o con Ana, como ella querfa. Solo quise daros a todos una oportunidad. Si participabamos en el juego desde un prigcipio era logico que igualmento lo acabasemos. ^ No te parece?

The title, Duelo en el_ paraiso teems with irony. The superimposi- tion of the word, duel, a ritual long banned in the Western world, to depict the action of the novel; and the use of paradise as a description of the place where the duel occurs implies a definite negative criticism of the created world within the novel. Specifically, El Paraiso, the idea of eternal peace and happiness of the herea.LLer, is the name of the estate of Dona Estanislaa, but it soon acquires the multiiaceted aspect which is the atmosphere of the novel. El Paraiso is described by Elosequi after he has discovered the body of Abel:

El bosque estaba ahora mas tranquilo que nunca. Los combatientes se habian olvidado en apariencia del torrente de El Paraiso. Una calma magica, tejida por mil hi_os diferentes, anudaba a Martin, al muerto, a los nihos verdugos ocultos en la sombra, y aquel apretado haz de pruebas delictivas que iba, desde el rostro pintarrajeado del chiquillo al antifaz de seda que yacia olvidado al pie del

1Juan Goytisolo, Juegos de manos (Barcelona, 1960), p. 236.

^Ibid., p. 138. drbol, en una trama mas fina que cualquier tela de arana El nube'-H'hubiera'^b VJ heCh° ^° Cult— ^ -1 tias una provocar el horror d^l^catlstrofe61 **£ ? m de lnll^co „ ,. uacascror e. .. . Le asalto la impresidn all arse en medio de un bosque encantado y tuvo que rotarse los ojos. Era como si las cosas se hubieran puesto a vivir por s£ solas: ... Todo callaba: animales, arboles y seres humanos; y aquel silencio se le antojo a Martin mas contundente que la publica confeslon del crimen, cuyo peso asumfa el bosque entero.

A note of unreality pervades this initial description of paradise.

The forest which is part of that paradise assumes, metaphorically,

the burden of the crime. In this acceptance of guilt El Paralso

begins its expansion as a symbol of the theme of the novel. As the

novel develops the reader learns that El Paralso has a history for

housing the victims — the two sons of Estanislaa and finally

Abel. It is also the training grounds for more victims, the soldiers;

it is t he home of the orphaned or refugee children. The insanity of

Dona Estanislaa and the too real war games which the children enact

combine to suffuse this Paradise in a real atmosphere of fantasy.

Through the perspective of Martin Elosegui, the reader is given a

definition of an atmosphere which could cause such atrocities and

therefore an atmosphere which could accept guilt of the crimes committed.

Con la hida todo perdla su valor: las cosas pequenas y de transporte fdcil sLtituIan a las de precio dis.inuta al rlco 'e^doU abandonado en Barcelona sus p ^ ^ & 1& fronteva> salvacidn al automovil, lo J de joyas cosida a los

para seguir el cammo con s falda> "Si se las apretase pliegues de la chaqueta ° iarlan tambidn a eso." Un saco muchd- penso Eldsegui , barca. Una mujer honesta de monedas por un lugar

a -• 0i naralso (Barcelona, 1960), pp. 18-19. Juan Goytisolo, Duelo en el £araiso 12.

entregAndose a los conductores con tal que la llevaran. Todo era sorprendente y, al mismo tiempo, radglco. Los simbolos perdian su valor y no quedaba mas que eso: el hombre, reducido a sus huesos y a su piel, sin nada extrailo que !o valorizata.4

It is then an atmosphere in which the institutional symbols have lost

their value; it is an atmosphere in which man exists in isolation. The

shock of this rapid change upon the individuals in that society is

illustrated by the loss of significance of Dora's withered flower, the

flag incident of the two sisters, the painted and disguised faces which

the children wear. For the children, Parafso has been a playground with

real, deadly toys. Like the youths of Juegos de martos the logical expression and termination of the game they play is a killing. As

Professor Ouintana explains:

... Ha vivido demasiado aprisa para su edad. Las ruinas, los muertos, las balas han sido sus juguetes... Los padres deberan, en adelante, comprender este cambio. Si no ... se exponen a perder a sus hijos para siempre.^

It is only in collectivism that Elosegui could identify his signifi­ cance; only by collectivism could the children have their liberty.

The significance of duel in relation to the theme also acquires force through the idea of collectivism. The duel is fought not by individuals but in groups, therefore the opponent, the weapon, the place, the time become more arbitrary. The ritual of dueling is still evident in the

20th century in the aspect of war but the significance of the act becomes grotesque when enacted by children.

El circo, the Circus, described by the author as "una farsa que acaba mal" is also a title which indicates the atmosphere of the novel.

^Ibid., pp. 11-12.

5Ibid., p. 137. 13.

On one level, the town is preparing for a festival to celebrate the day

of the patron saint of the town. On another level this town seems popu­

lated with circus-like people who Goytisolo parades through the novel.

The real and unreal fuse together in this atmosphere. The real crime

planned by Atila, the fantasy crime imagined by Utah, the cowboy figure

of Pancho, the play gun he shoots in defense of Utah, the real guns shot

by the police. In this novel, Goytisolo most closely approaches the

technique used by his predecessor Cela in La colmena. Consequently

the fragmentary visions we see and the conversations we hear are indica­

tors of the validity of the existence of the characters, rather than a

developed symbol. The choice of the title, El circo, is an expression

of irony. The significance or insignificance of an act is to be

estimated by the reader. Only once do we hear the anguish articulated

directly by a "member of this circus."

El Canario returns from the celebration of the eve of the festival ...

La brusca conciencia de su aislamiento le produjo una incomparable amargura. Estaba solo. Sus hijos ya no eran sus hijos. El mundo por el que habia luchado y sufrido, se —- habia venido abajo. Y solo quedaba el otro, el presente, grotesca caricatura de sus suenos, corao^una cascara hueca y pretenciosa, vacia de todo significado.

The world which Goytisolo shows us is one of individual isolation, the

collective commitment of his earlier novels is not present.

The title, Fiestas, has the same function as ELL circo. That is,

it is not an expanding symbol but rather it is a description of the superficial mood of the town. The irony inherent in both these titles comes from the discrepancy between the atmosphere of a circus or holiday and the reality of what occurs within the novel so titled. In Fiestas

6Juan Goytisolo, El circo (Barcelona, 1957), p. 170. 14.

the holidays are imposed on a life which we see as inconsequential (Prof.

Ortega), unreal (Pira) , perverted (Benjamin), distorted (Pipo and Gorila).

Professor Ortega qualifies the atmosphere in which the characters of the

noyel live. In a discission with Don Paco he explains:

— N o, no me entiende usted. Lo que yo pretendia hacerle comprender era que, a fuerza de soportar arbitrariedades, ni usted ni yo, ni nadie, reaccionamos: hemos perdido la capacidad de rebelidn; estamos embrutecidos, como animales.

Something then in the moral, spiritual, social atmosphere of Spain

spawns members of that society who flourish in this vacuous atmosphere.

The titles of the novels of Goytisolo then do reflect in measure

the theme of the novels which is actually the atmosphere. The concern

of the novelist has been to select a narrative which simulates the

atmosphere which represents his perspective of post war Spain He is

forced to create a narrative which is somewhat chaotic, illogical, senseless and consequently brutal because he is creating an ambiente

in which there is a lack of positive values, where ritual has taken

the place of vital action and where fantasy or madness is the only escape. Goytisolo is known for using the slice of life narrative technique. Although this technique is not an original form - examples of this technique may be seen in Cela's novel, La colmena and Manhatten

Transfer by John Dos Passes - it is a relatively new medium of expression for the novel. It is a technique which was used by the motion pic- ture as a mean of giving a kaleidoscopic impression of people and events.

In order to describe this narrative phenomenon further, I would like to use the distinction between narrative elements which E. M.

7Juan Goytisolo, Fiestas (Buenos Aires, 1958), p. 178 15.

Forester made in Aspects of the Novel. Forester divided the narrative

elements into story and plot. The story is the basis of the novel:

"It is a narrative of events arranged in a time sequence."8 The

function of the story is to narrate the "life in time," but "what the

entire novel does--if it is a good novel--is to include the life by 9 values as well." The plot is a narrative of events but the emphasis

falls on the causality rather than the chronological time sequence.

The plot is therefore a more complex element than the story. Forester

demonstrates this point in the following manner: he says that the

reader is led forward in a story by the question ... "and then" ... a

technique of arousing curiosity and tension known to all story tellers.

The plot is revealed by the question, why? A story is more skeletal,

though essential, than the plot which is vital to the texture of the

novel.

In the novels of Goytisolo we notice that the story is not the

moving force. Although a crime is the central action of the story

in Juegosde manos, Duelo en e 1 p araiso, and in El circo, the story is not threaded by the "who dunnit" technique. There is an absence of

traditional, chronological sequence of action which would create an inner tension while the events move toward a climax. The traditional outer sequence of beginning, middle, and end, is also absent. There is no serialization of events - "life in time" as seen in the tradi­ tional novel. The author endeavors to keep all the "slices of life" or fragments of events in a constant present. "Life m time" for

8E. M. Forester, As£ects of the Novel (New York, 1927), p. 30.

^Ibid., p. 29. 16.

Goytisolo is evidently a life in an absolute sense of the present. He

creates the feeling of the immediate present in his stories in three

ways. First, chrough the narrative elements he contracts the outer

chronological time to a bare minimum: Jnegosde manos - nine inter­

rupted days, Duelo en e 1 paraiso - one day, El circo - two consecutive

daYs> Fiestas - five interrupted days. Second, by means of the inner

or psychological time, he shifts forwards or backwards within the outer

chronological time which has the effect of blurring any definite lines

of orderly progression. Third, he disrupts the causal sequence of

episodes in the novel thereby rupturing the implied causal order of

time and direction. For example, the author fastens a series of seem­

ingly unrelated events to a fixed chronological time in an effort to

force the reader to feel the simultaneity of his fictive reality. In

chapter IV of Fiestas, the following fragments are presented:

Frag. 1. Benjamin, a homosexual, meets with Jimenez in a case of mistaken identity and purpose. Benjamin suffers rejection from Jimenez while Jimenez's boyhood innocence and his trust in Professor Ortega are shattered.

Frag. 2. Pira is seen in a travel agency attempting to make her dream, reunification with her father in Italy, come true.

Frag. 3. Don Francisco dreams of the affections of a young girl. He is awakened, his dream interrupted, by the squabbling of his invalid wife, Cecelia, and her crippled son. Don Francisco descends to the relative peace of his garden only to discover that his tomato garden has been vandalized by the children.

Frag. 4. Don Enrique bicycles in a pathetic attempt to prove something to his malicious wife, Dona Francisca.

These fragments are not presented in a linear chronological order.

According to the time set, they each occur during the same late after-

„ i • „ „f u PfM are like the fragmented pieces noon. These cinematic "slices of lite are

T, nieces are related inasmuch as they are contained of a kaleidoscope. The pieces within the cylindrical form of the kaleidoscope; they function in rela­

tion to each other to present the impression of a mosaic to the viewer.

But they are not related in the sense of a logical image which is fixed

By distorting the causal relationship of events on the motivationa

level of the novel, Goytisolo forces the reader to search out a more

real significance for the acts that take place in the novel than the

significance given to the acts by the characters themselves. On the

temporal level, he suspends the causal sequence which fully compliments

the "slice of life" technique. The effect of this suspension of the

causal sequence is another device for focusing the reader's attention

on the significance or lack of significance of each fragment and the

significant relation of the fragments to the whole of the narrative.

Actually the reader ultimately understands the order of the apparent

disorder.

The causal relationship of events has been modified in the narra­

tive of many modern novelists. The change is caused by a different

concept of man and time. Hans Meyerhoff points out the fact that the

causal principal in nature defines order and direction, that it has a

sequence of earlier and later. Time in nature has these qualities and

also has a linear ordered movement of cause and effect. Though man is

an integral part of that nature, he does abstain from the complete

order and direction of nature by virtue of his memory which is not governed by the same laws. "Memory is a much more complicated and confusing recording instrument than nature, man made tools, or histori­ cal records. Its complexity and confusion arise from the fact that instead of a uniform serial order, memory relations exhibit a nonuni- ±a.

form, dynamic order of events..." The personal meaning or emotional

significance of things remembered cause the confusion within the memory;

the things remembered are not in sequential order of cause and e ffect,

but rather exhibit - as Bergson would say - a "dynamic interpenetra-

tion." This interpretation is pertinent for the relationship between

time and the self. The lack of traditional causal sequence in the

recording of man's inner time is justified by a concept of man which is

philosophically and psychologically different from the concept of man

before the 20th century. Many examples of the "dynamic interpenetration"

of cause and effect exhibited by the memory are recorded in the novels

of Goytisolo. In the opening chapter of Duelo en el paraiso, Martin

hears a shot (10:00 a.m.), recalls his desertion (8:00 a.m.), recalls

Dora's room - the dried rose, the departure of the trucks, the mood of

the children the day before, the disorder in the ranks that morning.

The sound of a shot stimulates his inner sense of time and self. He regresses from the outer chronological present (10:00 a.m.) to his inner, but also present time. Though he is remembering things that happened in the past, outer chronological time; he is remembering in the present chronological time. It is important to note that a regression within a novel to the inner or psychological time is actually a recording in the present. Cause and effect then are sequential in that something has provoked the release of the inner man, but the recording in literature of that release will not be ordered in linear fashion but will exhibit a dynamic order. The characteristic order - or disorder - has become a focal point "in the literary analysis of

10Hans Meyerhoff, Time in Literature (Berkeley and Los Angeles 1955), p. 21. 19.

time and in philosophical theories (like Bergson's) that have taken

the same phenomenon as their point of departure."11 If the dynamic

rather than causal sequence of events is a valid instrument for record­

ing a character's inner time, the novelist has a responsibility to cope

with this reality of man in literature. Goytisolo has attempted to do

this not only by using the memory of man to portray the inner reality,

but als o by limiting the created reality of man's outer world to frag­

ments which might be analogous to the dynamic order of his inner life.

The author tries to maintain these fragments in an actual sense of the

present in order that they might correspond with the present of man's

inner reality.

The distortion of the causal order of events in the novel is

accomplished through the author's power of selection of incidents as a

means of demonstrating his chosen theme. In Fiestas Goytisolo exposes

the novel like a cameraman would. He picks up a scene, pans in on

another, moves on to yet another. At one point he even allows the cripple, Arturo, to manipulate the figurative camera. Arturo peers

through his field glasses and reports the events which he chooses to describe. The significant logic of these events will not be one of cause and effect on the directional level, a progression from A to B which is irreversible; nor will it be primarily a fact of earlier to later. The logic of the events presented is determined by their rela-

r nov-el not by the causal or directional tion to the total meaning of the novel, noc y force of one fragment upon another.

For example, the four events which are fastened together in the

11Ibid., p. 23. same time space (cited before as examples of one of Goytisolo's time

manipulations) are not related to each other in a causal sense but are

related only by the fact that they occur in the same fictive present

and a re facets which represent part of the atmosphere being created in

Fiestas. The perversion of the fictive reality created by Goytisolo is

represented by Benjamin. When Jimenez encounters this element in his

world, he is shattered and unable to cope with it. Pira on the other

hand represents vitality in her world, but her world reality is based

on a dream. It is this dream which makes her capable of action. In

contrast, Don Francisco's day dream is an opiate but is not a dream

which creates a basis for reality, therefore he deludes himself only

in order to avoid his world which is filled with petty destruction.

Don Enrique chooses to bicycle in a grotesque attempt to prove his

human value. Thib display is reminiscent of the adventures of Don

Quijote. Notice that one event does not have a causal relation to the

other. But the cameraman, Goytisolo, presents these fragments to aug­

ment the multifaceted force of the theme of the novel. Jimenez and

Don Francisco can not react to the world in which they live. Pira by

means of a dream can act within the limits of her dream. Don Francisco

meanwhile can only show his desperate need to encounter some value within

himself since his world has no values to which he can relate.

Goytisolo manipulates the story element of his narrative in order

to focus the reader's attention on a greater reality. By greater

reality, I mean that the author strives to present a created reality

nattern of life which gives which involves the reader in a variegated patten

- .,„nfv nr lack of vitality. No longer can the the sensation of the vitality o 1 moving against a historical reader identify a few main characters moving ag nollv developed story. Rather, he must concern panorama within a sequentially himself with a welter of fragments which constitute a fictive reality.

This forces the reader to examine the events for their meaning or the

significance of their lack of meaning. If the combined effect of

Goytisolo's story telling technique and the story itself results in

the reader having to search out a new meaning in his story, the plot

must also compliment the direction and focus of the story narrative.

The plot according to Forester is a narrative of events in which

the emphasis falls on the causal order. In this aspect Goytisolo

contradicts the connotative meaning of causal sequence. He distorts

the implied cause and effect relationship. If the reader asks ... Why?

... concerning the incidents of the novel he is confronted with a superficial cause or motivation for the act which is not justifiable.

For example, inJuegos de manos Ana wants to kill Sr. Guarner because,

"Matarle - dijo - equivaldria a dar un golpe de muerte a la concepcion I o de vida que representa." Agustin wants the gang to have the chance to participate in an irrevocable act which will terminate the game that they play. The motivation for killing Abel consists of somewhat the same reasoning.

-jPor que causa? - dijo Santos-. ^Acaso os habia hecho alguna pasada?

- No, ninguna; pero el Arquero decfa que el pertenecia al otk bando y que era preciao matarle para sentrrnoa liberados.

'-'su familia era propietaria desde haci'a muchoa an'os y e'l teni,a dine ro en ,la^n epocans en quote nosorotros npa a sabamos hambre ... Ademas, todos le echaban la culpa de lo sucedido con Pablo...

12 Q-1 Juegos de manos, p.

13Puelo en e_l paraiso, p. 283. The explanation planted in the plot structure of the novel does not

seem valid, the accusations brought against the victim do not warrant

the measure of punishment. Why has the author created a fictive world

in which senseless crimes and perverted transgressions take place?

The author attempts to fix our attention on the world, the

ambiente, which is the greater reality of the novel. It is greater than

the created reality of brutal incidents, crimes, invalid motives, etc.

It is as if (Toytisolo presents what Meursault narrates in Camus' The

Stranger. He presents the estrangement of man and his society. The

narrative elements are used to focus our attention on the atmosphere

that nourishes a society capable of such brutality and bewilderment.

Members of Goytisolo's created society struggle in isolation because

there is no society as an abstract force which sets forth a system of

recognizable or acceptable values.

(Conversation between David and Agustin.)

-Sf. Hemos vivido muy aprisa; sin mirar nunca atras. A veces me pregunto qud ha sido de nosotros- dijo David.

-Me da la impresidn de que hemos muerto; de que ahora somos gente distinta.

-Es que nada nos liga al pasado-le interrumpid Agustin-. Ni siquiera al futuro. Vivimos al dia.

-Muchas veces al levantarme, me he preguntado qud hard nucnas veces, ax xe ' rooI.nnder Tengo la sensacidn al dfa siguiente, y no sd qud responder. W .niHpr. de estar buscando una respuesta y, en realxda , conozco la pregunta.

-Hemos perdido los mejores anos- nrnrmurd David-. Se habrd acabado el juego para siempre. m m of oast war Spain is implied by the above The most severe criticism or pas

"^Juegos de manos, p. 143. expression of the individual's struggle in his world, that is, that the

individual is looking for the answer to an unknown question. A nauseous sense of futility, of loneliness, of utter desolation is implicit. The anguished isolation of the individuals of Goytisolo's novels can be readily understood if the author successfully creates a futile reality.

Bereft of values the individual can not react vitally. His life is filled with ritual or dream but not original action. He is a victim. Chapter III

The point of view in relation to time

The point of view is the element of the novel by which the author

controls the inner or psychological time. The general point of view of

each of the four novels is the third person omniscient. Through this

literary device the author presents those attitudes and perspectives which

he judges necessary. It is not the "slice of life," narrative technique

which requires the third person omniscient; but rather the total crea­

tion, a kaleidoscopic panorama of the Spanish atmosphere, which requires

the presentation of many perspectives. The point of view and the charac­

ters are related since it is through the thoughts and actions of the

characters that we identify and discuss the purpose and effect of the

point of view in relation to the time problem. In chapter two of the

thesis we primarily observed Goytisolo's use of the narrative elements to

contract the chronological time of the novel and to distort the causal or

directional time of the novel. The author'.s use of inner time was noted

as a factor in maintaining the sensation of the present and as a factor

in the disruption of the causal sequence. Now, by analysis of the point

of view we can examine in detail these and other time factors.

The characters created within the fictive reality of the novel have

thematic and/or representational force. Each represents in measure the action, reaction, and thought of those who either maintain the sterile atmosphere or who are victims of that atmosphere. For example, Doha

Cn.in t-hp pr imitive mother who can not Estanislaa represents mother Spain, the primi joiner mother who believes her children are release her children, the doting motner U ,14 oof Participate in the same growth so exceptional that they should not partic p processes as other children. This represents an attitude long present

in the Spanish milieu. Don Francisco represents the force which main­

tains the status quo of a dulled Spain. In spite of the inequities

which surround him, he is pacified - "A1 menos tenemos paz, orden A publico - repuso Don Paco decidido a plantar cara-. A1 menos dorminos

tranquilos, sin temor de que alguien pretenda asesinarnos."^ Agustin

represents the anguish of the victims of this atmosphere: " ^Que ha o sido de nosotros?" Ahora podia contestar; - Estamos muertos los dos.

Inserted character fragments of this type present the many aspects of

the atmosphere. Also the amount of inner time exposed or not exposed

by a character measures the proportional value of his thematic or

representational force.

The third person omniscient point of view has another advantage.

As a literary device it allows the author the freedom to interpolate

other narrative devices. For example, Goytisolo often uses the flash­

back technique to explore the inner present of a character or to focus

the reader's attention on an event. This technique is particularly

evident in Duelo en e_l paraiso since the decisive argument of each chapter is cued by a flashback. Chapter I begins in the chronological

present narrated by the author. The sound of the shot heard in the

introductory sentence of the novel -"En la ladera del bosque de

j „ -vmo He fueeo no podia augurar nada alcornoques, el disparo de un arma • „ f i o ahhaclc. The shift exposes the inner bueno."- stimulates the opening or psychological present of Martin. He

^Fiestas, p. 177.

^Juegos de manos, p« 253. 26.

the atmosphere which made La desercion - preciso era possible his desertion reconocerlo - habia sido facil. La anarquia que desde hacia cierto tiempo reinaba entre la tropa, se contagiaba poco a poco a la totalidad de los mandos. ...

his own preparation for Hacia bastante tiempo que lo desertion which includes tenia todo dispuesto: en la a remembrance of Dora mochila guardaba un paquete de provisiones y el papaleo necesario para el momento de la entrega. Desde el vestibulo dirigio una ojeada al antiguo dormitorio de Dora; ...

•the retreat of the soldiers El camion partio a las ocho that morning con el sargento y los andaluces.

- the pillaging of the children El dia antes, la chiquilleria the day before de la escuela se entretuvo en pillar los carruajes que el rio de fugitivos abandonaba al borde de la cuneta. ...

the breakdown of discipline Aquella manana, en la escuela, evidenced that morning habia sido testigo de una escena extraordinaria: uno de los soldados andaluces se permitio insultar al teniente que intentaba requisar la camioneta. ...

- and finally he reflects on Con la huida, todo perdfa su the significance of the valor: ... (quoted m total flight of the people. in chaPter I];)«

The progression of events recalled by Martin are not orderly in their time sequence, but they do end in a reflection on the meaning of the flight of the people which by its essence does not pertain to the

„ •_ o- in'Hpd f rom specific events to abstract Jast. The introspection then is guided xrom f i for hi s re-entry into the chrono- reflections which prepare the reader for his re e y - ri. « - t-iio rhronoloeical present is controlled Logical present. The shift to the chronoiogi F

9-11. ^Duelo en el par aiso, PP* z /,

by the omniscient author. "Aunque el disparo habia sonado cerca -

trescientos metros a lo sumo - Martin vacilo antes de salir."4 This

skeletal exemplification of one type of flashback illustrates a formula

by which Goytisolo interjects the opinion or perspective of a character

upon past events. It is important to remember, as was pointed out in

Chapter II, that exposed inner time is technically a present time, it

is the all pervading, thinking present of the individual character.

The reader though senses this type of inner presence, one which recalls

past events, as a past. Goytisolo forces the reader to recognize this

inner reflection as a present by linking the inner and chronological

times. The hearing of the shot and the determination of its proximity

squeeze the three page flashback into a moment of time. That is, the

chronological time exerts a reductive force on the inner present.

The rigid linking of the inner psychological time of the individual

with the chronological time of the novel creates the blurring sensation

which ultimately maintains the sensation of present time. The linking

is also effective in the development of thematic values and symbols.

A variance of this technique is illustrated when a character controls

the chronological, reductive force. The elderly Rossi sisters are

perceived by Martin as he makes his way to the headquarters with the body of Abel. The sisters are arguing over a flag. Each wants to carry the flag in order to ingratiate herself with the new power, the

Nationalists. The dramatized scene is weaved into the actual, chrono

V i. Martin. "La escena habia durado logical time scheme of the novel y le hizo el efecto de que se pro- apenas dos minutos, pero a Eldsegu

4Ibid., p. 12. 28.

longaba casi anos." The scene of two minutes contrasted with the

inverted, elongated time effect on Martin infuses the seemingly flat,

ridiculous scene with a thematic depth which it would not otherwise

possess. The character, Martin, incorporates the chronological events

on the horizontal plane of the novel; but he is also the vehicle

through which the inversion of the chronological time to inner time is

effected. The value of Martin as a character and the significance of his perspective increases. The characters, though they represent aspects of the atmosphere, are not merely stock characters. They are developed characters who are static due to the environment in which they are created, not characters who are static due to lack of develop­ ment by the author. Goytisolo's characters, for the most part, are developed to the point that they can perform credible services within the novel such as converting time. For example, Filomena converts actual time into inner time indicating for the reader the overwhelming meaning and stunning effect of Abel's death. "Todo acababa de ocurrir aquella misma manana, pero a Filomena le hacia el efecto de que, desde entonces, habian transcurrido muchos anos." Abel s death that very morning has effected her inner time concept. The death then becomes a source of distortion. Abel's death, the focal point of the novel on the inner time level, becomes, through the probing of the inner time of the characters who are affected by his death, a symbol of the atmosphere which has already suspended their lives on the actual time level of the novel.

^Ibid., p. 23.

^Ibid., p. 84. 29.

The type ol flashback which records the inner or psychological time

of the ind ividual is a valid means for presenting a new perspective,

that is , a perspective which in tone is not the author's. Also it is

a method lor exposing past events as causal explanations for a present

situation. It is necessary to expose the past not only to give the

causal basis for a present state, but also the past is often necessary

for the dev elopment and vitality of a character. But there is the

novelistic problem, peculiar to Goytisolo's novels, of creating a

pervading, present atmosphere which is itself the causal factor for

the invalid, ritualistic existence of the characters. In Duelo en el

paraiso Abel has been killed by the refugee children. Why? The novel

could have been conceived as a single regression but since the cause of

the murder can only be explained by the multifaceted, abstract force

of the atmo sphere prevalent at that time, the artistic problem is to

create that present atmosphere. In deference to this problem,

Goytisolo uses a type of flashback akin to motion picture filming.

This cinematic flashback is skillfully incorporated in the novel and

is used t o focus the reader's attention on a certain time and place.

For example, the death of Abel is a catalyst for a series of flash

backs by several characters in the novel. In this cinematic flash­

back, the characters do not reveal their inner state. They are controls

by which the reader brings into focus the life of Abel. The inter­

polation of dramatic episodes as spurs to the flashback, rather

narrative episode, reduces the author's moderating force on the reader

. 4-i-io < 5rpfiGS and conversations and makes more real, that is, present le: Filomena dwells on Abel; we which we the readers view. For examp ,• i Am Filomena's life which simulates a see parts of Abel's life linked to

j. 30.

- Vivia con ustcdcs ese nino? (Alferez)

Pucs clara quo vivia... (Beginning of Filomena's remembrance.) La nistoria de Abel en aquella casa se remontaba a una manana apaciblo y soleada del ultimo invierno.

Fcndrfa listed la amabilidad de avisar a dona Estanislaa Lizarzaburu? El polo lo ca fa sobre la fr ente, rubio y anillado, e hlzo adcm.in dc r e c h az a r I o con los dedos. ...

Hab1 aba con una dosenvoltura impropia de un nino de sus alios y filomena lc c ontcmplaba boquiabierta. ...

At the start of the flashback, we the readers hear and see what Filomena

has seen and heard in dramatized episodes. Through her we are intro­

duced to Abel and the characters who are part of El Paraiso. After the

introduction of characters, time, and setting has taken place, Abel as

a character becomes independent of Filomena. He begins to think and

act independent of his literary bond with Filomena. During dinner of

the first evening of Abel's stay at El Paraiso, Abel has a flashback

within Filomena's flashback.

Hacfa unicamente dos meses, en la estacion del Norte, habia asistido a la 1 legada de una expedicion de refugiados. ...

Abel habia sentido una terrible opresion en la garganta. La escena le p arecia irreal, absurda. "De modo que esos ninos..." Ahora lo sabia ya. El hombre, su vecino, se habfa encargado de informarle: " A1 diablo! A reventar todos de hambre." El mundo era un lugar aterrador, donde cada cual miraba unicamente por si mismo y el que no se convertfa en opresor coma el riesgo de trocarse en explotado. ...

El recuerdo se mantenfa vivo en su memoria y se entretuvo en evocarlo: la atencion de Filomena le agra a a ' seguro ya jje su efecto, emprendio la tarea su hazana. AK 1 i llustrates his independence as an This intrusive introspection by Abel

Ibid., p. 86.

8 Ibid., pp. 92-93. individual character. Abel is now in focus for the reader. Though

F i 1 omen a introduces us to Doha Estanislaa and Agueda, it is through

Abel's conversations and reflections that we initially see their

representational force in the novel. Goytisolo has derived a twofold

benefit from this device: (1) he has freed his character from a

development dependent on the perspectives of others; (2) the author

has been able to introduce characters and their values needed to create

the kaleidoscopic pieces of his message.

In relation to the time problem the dramatic episodes as spurs

of a flashback maintain the sensation of the present although they are

in the past according to the chronological time of the novel. The

enacted episodes render a present sensation because the actual time

of a dramatic episode approximates more nearly a real life episode

than does a narrative rendition of that same dialogue or event. For

example, (in Juegos !e manos) one can compare the dramatized version of

Ana's history of her hatred of the bourgeous, and the narrative, auto­

biographical history of David's role as a victim.

Oscuramente sentia yo entonces la necesidad de hacerme perdonar mi posicion. Me sentia de los elegidos. Alguien habia hecho un sorteo y mi boleto era premiado. Y aun ahora, cuando me rodeo de un cerco de propinas, no lo hag^ tanto por generosidad como por timidez y afan de perdon.

The reader reads as David re-reads some notes he has written on his earlier life. As a time device this correlates the reader s

David's act of reading to the closest possible degree, but it does not simulate the sensation of a present happening which Ana's partially narrated, partially enacted account simulates. The difference being

Juegos de manos, p- 175. that in one instance the reader is being told, in the other instance

the reader sees, hears, gathers evidence and judges for himself. The

reader is activated by a dramatic episode whereas he becomes more

passive when confronted with a narrative passage. It is the combina­

tion of narrative and dramatic episodes which influence the total

rhythm or time sensation of the novel.

The formula for the cinematic flashback differs from the inner,

psychological flashback in that the essence of the former is the past.

Though the events of the cinematic flashback are past episodes the

technique used by Goytisolo in recording them endows them with a

greater sensation of present time than the inner reflections which are

actually present within the technical time scope of the novel. For this

reason Goytisolo uses the dramatic episodes as spurs to an initial

flashback. In Duelo en el_ paraiso the dramatic episode inserted within

the framework of the flashback is the primary means of increasing the

significance of the happenings of that one day. Each chapter and section has reference to the chronological time:

Ch. I - Martin hears a shot, finds the body of Abel, sees the sisters, and gives himself up.

Ch. II - The refugee children hassle after failure to kill Martin; the soldiers go to El Paraiso, Filomena is brought to the head­ quarters to identify the body.

Ch. Ill - Two groups of soldiers search for the children: Santos' group finds Quintana before he is burned in a fire set by the children, Garcia's group captures one child.

Ch. IV - Soldiers encounter el Gallego, tell him of Abel's death, the soldiers go on searching for the refugee children.

Ch. V - The Rossi sister and the guardian of the school, Pedro, visit; Pedro informs them of Abel's death; Gonzales recounts story of Pablo while the soldiers take a break; the sisters and Pedro are still visiting as evening begins to fall.

Ch VI - The bodies of the dead are laid out at the headquarters; among 33.

them is the body of Jordi; the priest comes to give the conditional last rites; Begona arrives and learns of Martin's whereabouts; the children have been rounded up; Santos' son, Emilio, tells the history of Abel and role of the children; Begona and Martin continue to visit; Abel's body is delivered to El Parai'so.

But the source of meaning of each of the chapters centers on the cine­

matic flashback which dramatically exposes the life and environment of

Abel, the environment or atmosphere which has culminated in his death,

the atmosphere which has drained meaning from the lives of those who

have lived in it. In Chapter I, Martin (pp. 38-63) reviews his associa­

tion with Abel, simultaneously exposing his own bewilderment at what has happened - the lack of meaning of his life since the death of Dora

etc. In Chapter II (pp. 86-120), Filomena's cinematic flashback covers many scenes which reveal the lack of significant commitment in the lives of Abel, Estanislaa, and Agueda. In Chapter III (pp. 135-181), Quin-

tana, after being rescued from the fire, directs a flashback in which

the history and symbolic meaning of Estanislaa and El Paraiso are developed. The futility of Estanislaa's dreams and the role of Abel as victim are clearly portrayed. Chapter IV (pp. 189-209), the

Gallego's acquaintance with Abel is reviewed. The Gallego's acceptance and response to the atmosphere in which he lives are in constrast with

Abel's response. Abel still wants to do something. He wants to parti cipate. Chapter V (pp. 223-266), a type of cinematic flashback is presented though it is not directly guided by any one character. In

this section the friendship between Pablo and Abel is exposed as is

their petty thefts from the house of the Rossi sisters. Abel and

Pablo's union leads to an encounter with Dora and the disclosure of a

conversation between Quintana and Dora. She is the symbol of a forlorn hope for normality. Her death and the death of the innocent child she was carrying repeats the history of Abel's mother and is the symbolic destruction of innocence and the hopeful return to normal living.

..."La gente - dijo - esta cansada de luchar y aspira a poder vivir un poco tranquila. La guerra ha sido util en cuanto ha facilitado nuestro propio conocimiento y en cierto modo, ha contribuido a purificarnos. Su prolongacion es innecesa- ria. Todos los hombres y las mujeres deberian volver a sus casas y trabajar. El pais anda necesitado de gente joven y laboriosa y sera preciso un gran esfuerzo para ponerlo de nuevo en marcha."

Quintana, a su lado, era aun mas pesimista: decia que los jovenes se habian educado en una atmosfera de sangre y de revuelta y^gue seria dificil hacer de ellos buenos ciudadanos. ...

Dora's point of view, which is also Filomena's, dies with her. It is

Quintana's view which predominates and which culminates in the novel with Abel's death. Chapter VI does not contain a cinematic flashback; rather, Emilio narrates the events which lead to Abel's death and t he events of that day.

The cinematic flashbacks with their dramatic spurs incorporate a much greater time scale: moments of Abel's life during his year stay at El Parai'so, the history of El Paraiso, glimpses of the life history of Filomena, Estanislaa, Martin, and Dora. The flashbacks and spurs are the vertical loopings which intersect the horizontal weave and give design and texture to the fabric of that one day.

The dramatic episode is not limited to usage as a spur by

Goytisolo. Throughout his novels the dramatic episode is interspersed in narrative episodes in its traditional function: to enact an event, to expose direct thought and speech of a character, to vary the tempo of the novel etc. The novelist, though, does make use of isolated

I0Duelo en el paraiso, p. 244. 35. dramatic episodes as a means of simulating the objectivity of a camera in presenting his message. This artifact was identified and discussed in Chapter II of the thesis in connection with the rupture of the causal sequence of the narrative as a means for maintaining the sensa­ tion of the present. Before discussing the isolated dramatic episode,

I would like to clarify two aspects of the dramatic episode itself.

First, in Chapter two of the thesis the interpolation of dramatic episodes was discussed as a rupture of the narrative causal order; in

Chapter three we are discussing the thematic significance of the en­ vironment which the dramatic episode contains. Secondly, the dramatic episode is not the sole solution to the problem of maintaining the impression of a whirling present because it does have its limitations.

Its most severe limitation is due to the fact that Goytisolo uses the dramatic episode to present thematic material, rather than using the episode as a means of moving the narrative toward a climax. It is the anticlimactic aspect of the dramatic episode which eliminates the traditional structure and tension of the novel:

beginning - middle - end (introduction of (clash of the (denouement, the solution the novelistice problematic and effect of the clash) problem) forces, the climax)

tension - climax of tension - resolution . . decline rising — tension

The dramatic episode used by Goytisolo as a spur, as events fastened in one point of time, or as isolated events, dissolves the climactic tension by suspending the reader in a present time that is out of the movement of the novel. The dramatic episode then tends to disorient JO. the reader if it is too extended or varied and it can shock the reader's time sensibility if the episode is not effectively introduced.

(Filomena's flashback exemplifies the disoriented effect, while

Chapter IV of Duelo en ej. paraiso illustrates the temporal shock which too loose a structure can produce.)

An effective use of the isolated dramatic episode has been illustrated in the four scenes selected from Fiestas in which each scene was fastened to the same moment in the chronological framework of the novel. The limitation of the isolated dramatic episode is well illustrated in the novel, El circo. The primary narrative device of the novel is the dramatic episode. The reader is jostled between two narrative threads: the crime planned and carried out by Atila and

Pablo; and the antics of Utah en route to his hometown. The threads coincide when Uta"h a rrives in his hometown and stumbles onto the murder of Don Julio. By forsaking the use of other devices, the inner flash­ back, narrative passages etc., which give depth to the novel, Goytisolo fails to create the weighty atmosphere which is the thematic substance of the other three novels. The objective shifting of scenes has weakened the total impact of the novel because the author has had to focus our attention on too many anticlimactic episodes in order to reveal the story. The characters are severely retarded m development due to the lack of inner exposure and narrative perspective. They are flat, one dimensional characters. The inability of Utah to distinguish reality from imagined reality in the face of Don Julio's death seems accidental (due to drinking) rather than a logical extension of his character (a dreamer who can not survive in the reality of his atmos­ phere.) The character of the dreamer is not new to Goytisolo, he has 37. repeatedly used this character type - Dona Estanislaa, Tanger, Pira -

to represent a reaction to the atmosphere which he has created. But whereas the characters mentioned above are capable of action and

reaction; Utah is only capable of the action of a stock character.

The lack of development of the theme and characters is caused by the

overuse of the dramatic episode. The author did not create the room

needed to fashion his characters, or the needed causal argument for the

environment. The advantages of the dramatic episode were lost because

the isolated dramatic episode was used to narrate the story instead of

being used to focus on certain pieces of the kaleidoscopic, "slice of life"

narrative. In conclusion, the lack of climactic tension was not supplan­

ted with the tension which the theme, narrative elements, and time element

can produce.

The loose structure permitted by the nature of the third person

omniscient is the means by which Goytisolo has controlled the inner

present or psychological time of a variety of characters. The time

element in relation to the point of view compliments the fragmented

narrative presentation. The third person omniscient, because it allows

for the interpolation of narrative devices, allowed the author to vary

the point of view from character to character and to objectify the

presentation of narrative elements through cinematic devices. Chapter IV

Rhythm in the novels.

Through artificial controls superimposed on the narrative and the­

matic elements and the point of view, it has been possible to identify

some of the more important mechanical aspects of the time element.

The identification and significance of the time element is necessary

as an explanation of the movement and rhythm of the novel. It is this

rhythm and new form which so intrigues today's critic.

In general, the analysis stated that the theme, the existing environ­

ment in Spain, required a restricted time span; the accomplishment of

this requirement was demonstrated. The narrative technique, "slice of

life," complimented the thematic need for a sensation of the present by

contracting the chronological time of the novel and by disrupting the

conventional, causal sequence. The traditional novel depends on the

directional (earlier to later) or motivational (action B is a result of

action A) force of the causal sequence to create the movement by whose

tempo and tension the reader is moved in pyramidical fashion through

the novel. In the novels of Goytisolo the pyramidical movement and

consequent tension and tempo was eliminated and supplanted by a conical

movement.

The "slice of life" technique eliminated the traditional plot structure by presenting a series of fragments of characters in a common environment. The fragments did not have the conventional causal rela­ tion, but rather had a causal or explanatory relation to the whole of the novel. For example: the significance of Pira's role in the novel,

Fiestas, did not influence the direction of Pipo s role in the novel, nor did Pipo cause a directional change in the life of Gorila or Pro­

fessor Ortega. (Though Pipo assumes the guilt for Gorila's capture,

the police officer assures him that the police were already closing in on him. Furthermore, Gorila seemed relieved when finally captured.)

Ortega's force as a character in the novel touched by proximity the

lives of Pira and Pipo but did not cause a change in either life. The isolation of the individual within his society is expressed through this technique; and the total impact of the circumstances of the atmosphere which confine the character to a ritual of living, that is, living with­ out the opportunity for change is emphasized. In regards to the the­ matic concept that the atmosphere condemns the characters in its environs to a ritual of living it is interesting to note that Professor Ortega, who possesses a philosophy for change, is defeated by the environment in his every act. He loses his teaching position due to the contrast between his beliefs and the expressed values of his environment; his influence over Jimenez is lost due to the element of perversion in the environment. Pira also is defeated in her attempt to change the course of her life by the perverted element in the atmosphere. The characters i due to the environment are not capable of change. The confinement to a ritualistic, stagnant life is further emphasized by the development of characters against the background of a game, a duel, a circus or religious convocation, and finally in Fiestas against the background of the religious celebration of the first day of the town's patron saint.

The character fragments are presented in disjointed fragments.

Though they share proximity due to their confinement within the environment they do not affect each other; rather they relate directly to the portrayal of the theme. The narrative technique used by Goytisolo establishes a conical movement in the novel by relating character and act "A" to the environment; character and act "B" to the environ­ ment; character and act "C" to the environment etc.

The image of the cone makes visual the expanding development of the characters in relation to the theme. Development of the characters as aspects of the theme is accomplished within the "slice of life" technique in two ways. First, by exposure of inner time, exposure through the perspective of other characters, and through participation in the action of the novel. Secondly, the character can develop or expand as a symbol. A symbol is not necessarily a character. It can be an inanimate object like the echo in Passage to India, the game in

Juegos de manos, the sea in The Old Man and the Sea. But a character may be a symbol. In Duelo en el parafso, Goytisolo develops Abel as a

"personaje" and as a symbol. In the first chapter Abel is found d ead, the "victim" of a killing. The biblical significance of his name is sealed by his fate as a victim. In chapter two, through his life in

El Parafso, he becomes enmeshed in the biblical significance of the garden of paradise from which he is expelled due to his own curiosity and desire for greater activity. The dual symbolic force of El

Parafso is expressed in its ironic portrayal of the garden of paradise

(Eden) and its future significance as the resting place, paradise, for the body of the victim. The biblical symbolism enhances the innocence of Abel while making a derogatory comment on Dona Estamslaa, symbolic of mother Spain and keeper of El Parafso. The integration of Spain and

Paradise is a comment on the stifling protective attitude of Spam.

The novelist and the critic meet a problem in trying to identify an expanding symbol as E. K. Brown explains: <41.

... The expanding symbol is repetition balanced by variation, and that variation is in progressively deepening disclosure. By the slow uneven way in which it accretes meaning from the succession of contexts in which it occurs; by the mysterious life of its own it takes on and supports; by the part of its meaning that even on the last page of the novel it appears still to withhold the expanding symbol responds to the impulses of the novelist who is aware that he cannot give us the core of his meaning, but strains to reveal now this aspect^ of, now that aspect, in a sequence of sudden flashes.

At best then, we can only note the symbolism and not fully explain it.

Goytisolo uses another means of expanding characters through symbolism. He employs the repetition of a fixed symbol. For example: a group of characters might reflect a single attitude or aspect of the environment. Rather than develop that attitude in the body of one character, the author presents many characters who are of the same basic attitude, but who present various aspects of that attitude.

The group of young people in Juegos de manos basically represent the frustration of the youth in Spain. But each character as a fixed symbol of that attitude is developed with a slight thematic variation.

Agustin establishes the frustration of the youths by their need to participate in an activity which will free them from the "playing of life" to which they are confined. Ana furnishes a means for terminating their game-like life by venting her frustration in hatred for the bourgeois. P4ez adds the note of cruelty which that frustra­ tion has nourished. Tanger, the dreamer, adds the aspect of unreality which life holds for each member of the group. He is unable to live in the reality of the groups situation and therefore escapes to his own world of fantasy. The group, unable to live in the reality of

lE. K. Brown, Rhythm in the Novel, (Toronto, 1950), p. 57. i 42.

their circumstances, escapes to a world whose reality they hope to attain by the crime which will separate them from their circumstances.

David is the victim as they are the victims. David's physical death

is predestined by his nature as the group's spiritual death is pre­ destined by the environment. The group then is a composite of fixed symbols whose repetition expands the significance of the attitude they represent in the thematic scheme of the novel. The repetition of different characters who have a fixed symbolic meaning compliments the conical movement of the narrative and produces a spherical tension in the nove1.

The narrative by its technique brought about the contraction of the chronological time and the rupture of the conventional causal sequence which changed the movement of the novel from a pyramidical movement to a conical movement. The development of characters as expanding symbols and the repetition of fixed symbols to provide a variation of the theme compliments the conical movement and created a spherical tension in the novel. The character fragments of the kaleidoscopic narrative relate to the large base of the cone which represents the theme. Each fragment augments a part of the theme and offers an explanation of the theme. Though some fragments reflect action stimulated by the atmosphere and others reflect reaction to that atmosphere, both types of fragments are confined within the deadening environs of the atmosphere. The spherical tension of the fragments is a crucial factor in the rhythm of the novel itself. This tension is caused by the dictate of the theme and the presentation of the narrative but it is sustained by the time element.

By means of a reduction of the chronological time, the rupture of causal time sequence, the linking of inner time to the chronological

time, the use of the cinematic flashback with its dramatic spurs,

and the use of the isolated dramatic episode, Goytisolo maintained

the sensation of the present time. The kaleidoscopic narrative

further developed the restricted span of present time. The effect of this control of the time element was to suspend the fragments and

the reader in the truculent atmosphere. The suspension of the characters in a time zone augments the sensation of the character confinement in the truculent, valueless, isolated atmosphere of post war Spain. The elements of the novel have combined their forces to create the confining sensation of the atmosphere for the reader by presenting him with a disjointed rhythmic pattern which entices his interest but does not lead him in any one direction. The rhythm of the novels moves the reader only within the confines of the atmosphere presented in the novel. The sensation he receives is akin to peering through a kaleidoscope.

I have used the analogy of the kaleidoscope first because the

"slices of life" presented by the author can be visualized as the differently shaped, sized, and colored fragments within the kaleido­ scope. Secondly, there is an implied analogy between the relation and non relation - o rder and disorder of the kaleidoscope's fragments and the kaleidoscopic relation and non relation - order and disorder of the fragmentary events in the novels. The fragments of the kaleidoscope are not like pieces of a puzzle which finally fit together. The frag­ ments do fall together to create the impression of a mosaic, just as the slices-of-1ife fragments fall together to create the atmosphere of the novel. I would hope that the analogy of the kaleidoscope would suggest the sensation of movement which the reader feels when con­

fronted by a seemingly random presentaiton of events. For all the

freedom implied by random movement among the fragments of the kaleido­

scope or the novel it must be noted that just as the fragments of the kaleidoscope are tightly contained by the scope itself; the fragments of the narrative of the novel are contained by the rigid scope of time in which they are suspended. The time element sustains the weight of the atmospheric theme and augments the significance of the theme. The time factor is significant in that it emulates the same deadening lack of motion as the stagnant atmosphere itself. Furthermore, it is the time element which determines the tension and rhythm of the novel. The spherical tension in Goytisolo's novels compliments and confines the fragmentary direction of the narrative element. The simultaneous occurrence of apparent movement in the novel contrasted by the concrete suspension of movement caused by the manipulation of the time factor emphasizes the life by ritual to which the characters are restricted by the theme. Pipo in Fiestas expresses this dilemna, perhaps better than any other character.

... A1 caminar, le parecio que alguien le tiraba, con hilillos, de las piernas y se detuvo de nHevo al pie de un arbol asediado por los cantos, las preces, las palabras... Todo rueda, todo da vueltas, todo ... A traves de una brillante pelxcula de lagrimas, descubrio a Benjamin que susurraba cumplidos dulces en la oreja de un chico y el recuerdo de lo ocurrido el dia de las bolas le alcanzo como un impacto. Benjamin repetia una vieja escena, sus movimientos adquirian un aire de contradanza. Iambien el gira. Tambien el esta preso en la telarana. El^ aislamiento contra el que todos se debatian le causo, de pronto, horror. Estamos solos.. Las. camino.s. no conducqn a, nineun sitio.^

Fiestas, p. 216. He is a victim of the web of the atmosphere. His life is suspended in the environmental web of post war Spain.

The time element is significant in Goytisolo's novels in that it rather than the plot, maintains the tension of the narrative presenta tion; that it sustains the theme; and that it, as an active force in the novels, augments the theme of the novels. List of Works Cited

Barrett, William. Irrational Man, A Study in Existential Philosophy. Barden City, New York, 1962.

Brown, E. K. Rhythm in the Nove1. Toronto, 1950.

Forester, E. M. Aspects of the Novel. New York, 1927.

Goytisolo, Juan. Duelo en e1 paraiso. Barcelona, 1960.

. EJ_ circo. Barcelona, 1957.

. Fiestas. Buenos Aires, 1958.

. Juegos de manos. Barcelona, 1960.

James, Henry. The Art of Fiction. London, 1948.

Lubbock, Percy. The Craft of Fiction. New York, 1957.

Mendilow, A. A. Time and the N ovel. London, 1952.

Meyerhoff, Hans. Time in Literature. Los Angeles, 1955.

Perez Minik, Domingo. Novelistas espanoles de los siglos XIX XX. Madrid, 1957.

Schwartz, Kessel. Introduction to Juegos de manos by Juan Goytisolo. New York: Dell Publishing Co., 1964.

Souchere, Elena de la. An Explanation of Spain. trans. Eleanor Ross Levieux. New York, 1965.