Figuralism as an Aesthetic Model of Historical Interpretation: an Analysis of the “Child of Desaparecido” Figure

Abstract

In this work I resort to the notion of “Figuralism” to account for the specific intervention of the children of the desaparecidos of the past Argentine dictatorship, in the field of memory discourse. I suggest that this aesthetical understanding of historical events allow us to productively analyze the representations of the children of the desaparecidos of Argentina’s recent past. Indeed, when one considers the figure of the desaparecidos, the children of the desaparecidos can be seen as the fulfillment of this figure. Finally, I analyze two documentary films that allow us to corroborate this suggestion.