Paradoxes of Stasis - (New Hispanisms) by Tatjana Gajic (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Paradoxes of Stasis examines the literary and intellectual production of the Francoist period by focusing on Spanish writers following the Spanish Civil War: the regime's supporters and its opponents, the victors and the vanquished.

Concentrating on the tropes of immobility and movement, Tatjana Gajic analyzes the internal politics of the Francoist regime and concurrent cultural manifestations within a broad theoretical and historical framework in light of the Greek notion of stasis and its contemporary interpretations. In Paradoxes of Stasis, Gajic argues that the combination of Francoism's long duration and the uncertainty surrounding its ending generated an undercurrent of restlessness in the regime's politics and culture. Engaging with a variety of genres--legal treatises, poetry, novels, essays, and memoir--Gajic examines the different responses to the underlying tensions of the Francoist era in the context of the regime's attempts at reform and consolidation and in relation to oppositional writers' critiques of Francoism's endurance.

By elucidating different manifestations of stasis in the politics, literature, and thought of the Francoist period, Paradoxes of Stasis reveals the contradictions of the era and offers new critical tools for understanding their relevance.

Review Quotes

"Paradoxes of Stasis: Literature, Politics, and Thought in Francoist Spain, by cultural critic and theorist Tatjana Gajic, is a sophisticated exploration of political ideas about the (desired, feared, impossible, necessary) continuity of Francoism as a political culture."--Carlos Varon Gonzalez, Public Books-- (4/9/2021 12:00:00 AM)

"Given the novelty, the historical and philosophical importance, and the brilliance of this project, I don't have any doubt that it will be of much relevance, indeed, a very influential book, for the field of Spanish and European Studies. Tatjana Gajic shows outstanding scholarship, erudition in the European philosophical traditions, sophistication in her literary, historical, and political analysis, and a very approachable writing style."--Cristina Moreiras-Menor, professor of Spanish and Women's Studies at the University of Michigan-- (3/5/2018 12:00:00 AM)

"Remarkable. Paradoxes of Stasis sheds important new light on the Iberian archive, a topic of continuing debate within the field of peninsular studies. Written with great facility, clarity, theoretical ambition, archival depth, and intellectual rigor, this book represents a solid contribution to the field and is a major piece of serious scholarship."--Germán Labrador Méndez, associate professor in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese Languages and Cultures at Princeton University-- (3/5/2018 12:00:00 AM)

About the Author

Tatjana Gajic is an assistant professor in the Department of Hispanic and Italian Studies at the University of Illinois, Chicago.