Narrative Strategies for Reclaiming the Memory of Historical Events in Theodora Dimova’s Novel The Defeated
Narrative Strategies for Reclaiming the Memory of Historical Events in Theodora Dimova’s Novel The Defeated

Summary/Abstract: This essay analyses The Defeated (2019), the latest novel by Bulgarian writer Theo-dora Dimova, as well as the ways in which literary narrative can affect collective memory.Dimova’s book references events that unfolded in Bulgaria in the aftermath of the commu-nist coup on 9 September 1944. The analysis relies on methodology developed in the field ofmemory studies, focusing on collective memory (A. Assmann, J. Assmann), as well as the inter-relationship between literature and memory (Erll). The concept of postmemory, as describedby Hirsch, is also critical to the arguments presented here, alongside trauma and affect studies(LaCapra, Caruth).

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