Guest of the ilb 2004
Javier Cercas was born in Ibahernando/Cáceres,
Spain, in 1962. He lectured at the University of Illinois, USA, for two
years in the 1980’s, and has been a professor of Spanish Literature at
the University of Gerona since 1989. He has published literary studies,
translations and essays and has been a regular columnist for »El País«
In 1987, his first volume of short stories appeared »El móvil« (t: The
motive), followed by his first novel »El inquilino« (1989; t: The
tenant). Its protagonist is a professor of literature at an American
university who has »a difficult relationship with reality«. As a member
of an academic microcosm bounded by conceitedness and competitive-ness,
Professor Mario Rota is confronted by his own fears after suffering a
minor injury. His anxiety disorders are reinforced by the sudden
appearance of Mr. Berkowickz, who not only moves into the adjacent
apartment but, also takes over both the professors's classes and his
girlfriend. The novel is an ironic variation on the traditional
doppelganger motif, playfully depicting the concept of dual reality.
Javier Cercas's further novels are equally marked by irony, by the
paradox of a seemingly »realistic narration« and by references to the
act of writing and to literature per se. He has published another
novel, »El vientre della ballena« (1997; t: The belly of the whale),
and a collection of short stories »Relatos reales« (2000; t: True
tales). His novel, »Soldados de Salamina« (2001; Eng. »Soldiers of
Salamis« 2004), became a resounding success and gained numerous awards
including the Premio Salambó in 2002. An authentic event of the Spanish
Civil War is presented in a self-reflective tone as the core of the
book. The notorious episode recalls how Rafael Sánchez Mazas, chief
ideologist and co-founder of the fascist Falange, escaped from a
Republican firing squad only because the soldier tracking him down
spared his life. The narrator, a journalist and unsuccessful writer,
launches a search for that unknown soldier. He plunges himself into
investigations, files and documents, talks to contemporary witnesses,
and encounters obstacles - with surprising results. Above all, he is
obsessed with writing »a truly authentic story« about it all. With his
particular narrative strategy Cercas lets the reader participate in the
making of the novel and, at the same time, reflects on the quest for
truth versus forgery, documentary versus fiction. He comes to the
conclusion that »literary truth is neither historical nor journalistic,
it is a different kind of truth, more universal and more valuable; it
is a moral, a poetic truth«. The novel was made into a movie by David
Trueba in 2003. Javier Cercas lives in Gerona.
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