Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Dedication
- Foreword
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction
- 1 Entre visillos
- 2 Short Stories
- 3 Ritmo lento
- 4 Retahílas
- 5 Fragmentos de interior
- 6 El cuarto de atrás
- 7 Nubosidad variable
- 8 La Reina de las Nieves
- 9 Lo raro es vivir
- 10 Irse de casa
- 11 Essays and Historical Writings
- 12 El cuento de nunca acabar
- 13 Theatre and Poetry
- 14 Children's Literature and Los parentescos
- Conclusion
- Further Reading
- Bibliography
- Index
4 - Retahílas
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 March 2023
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Dedication
- Foreword
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction
- 1 Entre visillos
- 2 Short Stories
- 3 Ritmo lento
- 4 Retahílas
- 5 Fragmentos de interior
- 6 El cuarto de atrás
- 7 Nubosidad variable
- 8 La Reina de las Nieves
- 9 Lo raro es vivir
- 10 Irse de casa
- 11 Essays and Historical Writings
- 12 El cuento de nunca acabar
- 13 Theatre and Poetry
- 14 Children's Literature and Los parentescos
- Conclusion
- Further Reading
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
Toma hilo, dame hilo.
(Take a thread, give me a thread.)
Introduction
Retahílas was published by Destino in 1974, just before the death of Franco, at a time when Spain was engaged in a tentative transition period. It was submitted to the censors on 11 May 1974 and a verdict of authorization was returned on 13 May. The short censor's report stated:
Carmen Martín Gaite vuelve a recordarnos ‘Entre visillos’ con esta novela esencialmente femenina y de gran calidad, llena de matices que a veces nos recuerdan una comedia de Strindberg, otras a Katherine Mansfield, relatándonos la historia de una anciana señora gallega que desea ir a morir al lugar y hogar de nacimiento, no pisado desde hace tiempo por los familiares. Ambientada a principios de siglo, el contenido no ofrece nada que objetar. Está lleno de reminiscencias.
(Carmen Martín Gaite reminds us again of Behind the Curtains with this novel that is essentially feminine and of great quality, full of nuances that at times remind us of a Strindberg play, at times Katherine Mansfield, telling us the story of an old Galician woman who wants to go to die at the place of her birth, where family members have not set foot for a long time. Set at the start of the century, the content offers nothing objectionable. It is full of reminiscences.)
This report is interesting insofar as it seems to show that the censor had not read the novel. Not only does he fail to identify correctly the protagonist, but also the time in which the novel is set. The report therefore constitutes a depressing indictment of the censorship process, especially when one realizes the impact that these reports could have on an author.
Martín Gaite includes epigraphs and a series of definitions of the term Retahílas at the start of the book, drawing the reader's attention to the form of the novel itself, and to its main theme of communication through dialogue. Framed by the largely narrative prelude and epilogue, the novel is a dialogue between two characters, 45-year-old Eulalia and her 22-year-old nephew Germán, who have travelled to the old family home in Louredo, Galicia, to await the death of her grandmother, his great-grandmother. The location itself marks a symbolic return to the past. The prelude is suggestive of a mystery story.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- A Companion to Carmen Martín Gaite , pp. 71 - 86Publisher: Boydell & BrewerPrint publication year: 2009