From 1984 to Sueños digitales: The Dystopian Novel in the Age of Globalization

Authors

  • Helene De Fays University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Keywords:

Literature, Latin American Politics, George Orwell, Paz Soldán, Dystopian Worlds

Abstract

In 1949, George Orwell’s novel 1984 was received by readers and critics as botha reaction to the political, economic and social changes that had taken place in the world after World War II and a warning of their possible consequences. Fifty years later, José Edmundo Paz Soldán updated this classic dystopia with Sueños digitales (2000). Like 1984, Paz Soldán’s novel can be read as both a response to the changes that have takenplace in the world since the end of the Cold War and a warning of the consequences thesemight bring. Sueños digitales, however, is much more than a simple rewriting of 1984. Unlike Orwell’s futuristic tale, Paz Soldán sets his novel in the present and, rather than warning  us of what might happen  in  the future, he opens the reader’s eyes to  thecontradictory effects of globalization and technological development on today’s society. Hence, Sueños digitales is a poignant commentary  on the socio-political situation  ofcontemporary Spanish America and a wake-up call for the world at large.

Author Biography

Helene De Fays, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Hélène de Fays se doctoró en literatura latinoamericana y cine de la Universidad de North Carolina—Chapel Hill. Actualmente enseña cursos de gramática, literatura y cultura. Su investigación gira en torno a la teoría posmoderna, la ficción futurística, y la tecnología y ecología en la literatura.

Published

2005-09-10

How to Cite

De Fays, H. (2005). From 1984 to Sueños digitales: The Dystopian Novel in the Age of Globalization. A Contracorriente: Una Revista De Estudios Latinoamericanos, 3(1), 114–147. Retrieved from https://acontracorriente.chass.ncsu.edu/index.php/acontracorriente/article/view/179

Issue

Section

Articles / Artículos