Violence, outskirts, migrations: notes for comparatIve literature

Abstract

This article aims to discuss dimensions of violence, focusing on the literature on migratory flows. The introduction presents some dimensions of the concept of violence that are relevant for thinking about its scope in literary representation. In the sections that follow, the focus is on forms of violence in spaces of origin, in settlement spaces and in the family sphere. In all these dimensions, violence is not explicitly recognized as such, given the discursive configuration in which it is perpetrated. For its recognition, a sensitivity that allows seeing alternative interpretations of reality is necessary, in order to contest dominant practices and to name forms of violence. Literary art, by nature, is interested in perception and sensitivity, and can contribute to problematize experiences of violence. In this sense, the methodology of comparative literature is especially interesting, as it allows recognizing parallels and gaining access to new forms of perception.