Truth and Conjecture in Juan Gabriel Vásquez's La forma de las ruinas

Abstract

This article discusses Juan Gabriel Vasquez’s La forma de las ruinas, analyzes its use of narrative protocols and its metafictional, philosophical, literary, and ethical implications, observes the intertextuality with Jorge Luis Borges, and situates the text’s relevance within political discussions contemporary to its publication. It argues that this text addresses different conceptions of history and their determinative role in motivating individual and collective action. By exposing different conceptions of time, such as teleological, predetermined by a divine plan, or contingent, the novel exposes the competing visions of history.