Postcolonial Borges: Argument and Artistry, by Robin Fiddian, is one of the most interesting recent publications to discuss Borges's creative process. Fiddian situates Borges's work within the debates surrounding postcolonial literary theory and assesses Borges's identity as a postcolonial author of Argentina and beyond. He explores both geopolitical and historical issues – the argument, as well as aesthetic issues – the artistry. These combine to make Borges the master craftsman who, by harnessing the conventions of many different genres, by expressing himself and his thematic repertoire in prose and poetry of many kinds, creates his own unique postcolonial signature. Fiddian describes Borges's ‘repertoire of personal, national and regional concerns’, which focus on the River Plate area and the history of South America, but which are also relevant to many different postcolonial contexts, including the Francophone, Hispanophone, and Anglophone Caribbean, and other countries such as Ireland, India, and Nigeria. Borges also imaginatively recreates relationships between the periphery, where he is situated, and the centres of power, including New York, Paris, London, and Madrid.

My chapter will not focus on postcolonial themes, but it will have various points of contact with Fiddian's book. For instance I will focus on Borges's relationship with his male ancestors, which Fiddian contextualises: ‘The history of nineteenth-century South America, including Peru and Chile as well as Uruguay and Argentina, provided Borges with raw materials for a uniquely personal narrative. Borges's male forebears, in particular, could be seen as embodying creole virtues transmitted along the Suárez-Laprida-Borges axis all the way down to its youngest scion, Jorge Luis.’

Fiddian describes Borges's writings about South American history and his family's relationship to it: