The Past, the Present, and Belli's Polyphonics

       Gioconda Belli’s “The Inhabited Woman” creatively relates the Sandanista opposition to the Somoza dynasty in Managua, Nicaragua in this magical narrative of female possession and resistance. Using the technique coined by Mikhail Bakhtin, Belli intertwines polyphonics with magical realism to create a dialogic between past and present in the socio political environment of Faguas, (a stand in for Managua) a city on the brink of revolution. In this manner, the main character, Lavinia, is “inhabited” by the orange tree blossoming in her inherited garden, which itself is inhabited by Itza, Lavinia’s indigenous female ancestry, and together they create multiple voices and perspectives from past, present, rich and poor. Belli, however does not just simply permit nature, in the form of a tree, and an indigenous warrior woman present the perspective of resistance in Nicaragua. Through Bakhtin’s dialogic, as Helene de Fay asserts, Belli “allows the different characters that populate her novel to present their own opinions on the questions at issue.” Since the testimony in the “Inhabited Woman” is “ of no one in particular, but rather a collective experience that was very important in “Nicaragua” it is important to recognize that in this novel Lavinia’s perspective is presented alongside of and in contrast to her “others.” That is, her perspective is presented in contrast and in conversation with Felipe, Flor, Sebastian, Adrian, and Itza. As Lavinia searches for her truth and identity in this intricate weaving of past, present, poor, rich, privileged and oppressed, she must formulate her opinion against and alongside that of all the representatives of Nicaragua. Belli presents the revolutionaries' ideology alongside the dictatorships disregard; the aristocracy’s apathy and ignorance alongside the resigned hopelessness of the impoverished and oppressed. She demonstrates the silence of the educated working class alongside the same sort, quietly and not so quietly, rebelling against the administration. This sort of constant dialog invites the reader to question and explore the very multi voiced multi faceted nature of the liberation movement in Nicaragua.

Ultimately, Giocondi Belli’s use of magical realism and polyphonics presents a realistic presentation of the civilian perspective in the development of the Nicaraguan liberation movement. Belli utilizes the flavor nascent in Latina American literature that, when combined with her lyrical style, enhances the student of politics’ understanding of the complexity of movements and rebellion, culture and history, and provides copious material for the lover of literature to dissect and analyze. Successful in both scholarly fields, this book comes highly suggested to all interested in the field of Nicaraguan literature and politics.