In an interview with Magnarelli in Reflections/Refractions: Reading Luisa Valenzuela, Luisa Valenzuela discusses her views on censorship, describing the different ways censorship can affect individuals. In particular, Valenzuela points out that one type of censorship occurs when an individual ‘‘will often refuse to read what he fears might hurt him, what might raise his consciousness…
Tag: Luisa Valenzuela
The Censors by Luisa Valenzuela – Setting
Government Oppression in Argentina in the 1970s and 1980s Valenzuela’s ‘‘The Censors’’ was written in the aftermath of a period of great turmoil in Argentina’s history. Juan Pero´n was a popular president in Argentina when he was first elected and during the early years of this administration (1946–1952). A supporter of unions and the working…
The Censors by Luisa Valenzuela – Literary Devices
Irony Valenzuela uses irony throughout ‘‘The Censors.’’ Irony is a literary technique in which an author conveys to the reader that there is a discrepancy between what appears to be true in the story and what is actually true. Often the characters in the story are not aware of this discrepancy. In ‘‘The Censors,’’ Juan…
The Censors by Luisa Valenzuela – Themes
Paranoia Without knowing the context within which ‘‘The Censors’’ was written, it would be easy to view Juan’s actions and perceptions in the story as paranoid. However, many of his fears, when considered within the framework of the repressive Argentine government that Valenzuela lived through in the 1970s and into the 1980s, may have been…
The Censors by Luisa Valenzuela – Characters
Juan Juan is the main character in Valenzuela’s ‘‘The Censors.’’ He enthusiastically writes a letter to Mariana, a woman with whom, it appears, he has been romantically involved. Juan is convinced that Mariana is still interested in him, and having received her address (the reader is not informed of the source of this information), he…
The Censors by Luisa Valenzuela – Summary
As Valenzuela’s ‘‘The Censors’’ opens, the narrator relates that Juan, the main character, has recently received the address of a woman, Mariana, with whom Juan appears to have had a relationship. Mariana now lives in Paris, France, and Juan is certain, having been given Mariana’s address from ‘‘a confidential source,’’ that Mariana still cares for…