Usted está aquí: Antigone against the Standardization of Violence in Contemporary Mexico

摘要

The reception and special attention that Sophocles’ Antigone has received in Latin America throughout the ages is undeniable. The play deals with many issues that are relevant to Latin America's own history, and Latin American playwrights have made good use of the tragedy to express the dilemmas of their own societies. Among many other plays, Antigone has been used to condemn the abuse of power and the oppression of minorities; it has also been employed to denounce the cowardice of a complacent society. In a recent play by Mexican writer Bárbara Colio, entitled Usted está aquí (You Are Here), the tragedy appears to serve a new purpose. As this article aims to demonstrate, in this play Antigone helps denounce the standardization and trivialization of violence in contemporary Mexico. Usted está aquí is a crude wake-up call for an unsuspecting Mexican audience. Even though it is evident that the play is not a new adaptation of Antigone, echoes of the tragedy can be heard throughout its pages. Sophoclean techniques and tragic motifs are exploited against the background of a truly alarming problem faced by Mexican society in recent times: the permanent threat of kidnapping.View full textDownload full textKeywords Antigone , kidnapping, Mexico, Usted está aquí , violenceRelated var addthis_config = { ui_cobrand: "Taylor & Francis Online", services_compact: "citeulike,netvibes,twitter,technorati,delicious,linkedin,facebook,stumbleupon,digg,google,more", pubid: "ra-4dff56cd6bb1830b" }; Add to shortlist Link Permalink http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08831157.2012.626379