Avant-garde and composition: silent dialogues between Borges and France

Abstract

The relationship between Borges and France has been revisited more than once from many perspectives. This paper does it from a novel point of view: that of the account of composition. On the one hand, this paper presents the account of composition (that is, a narrative about the writing process) as a conceptual instrument that can be used to think and perceive the literary experience in general. On the other, it seeks to show that these narratives are a productive tool to analize key aspects of the relationship between Borges and France: they let us articulate a way of viewing Borges' position in relation to the avant-gardes, which in turn enables us to trace a line covering from Borges' Ultraist origins to the much later resonance of Borges' literature and ideas in the works of the French literary group Oulipo. Incidentally, this paper also suggests a hitherto unnoticed relevant connection between "The Aleph" and Plato's Republic.