Description
Book SynopsisBased on ethnographic research in the foothills of the Argentine Andes, Gastón R. Gordillo reveals the spatial, historical, and affective ruptures embodied in debris. For the rural poor, the rubble left in the wake of capitalist and imperialist endeavors is not romanticized ruin but the material manifestation of the violence and dislocation that created it.
Trade Review"[I]t is the signal merit of Gordillo’s book to remind us of the value of the loose, but productive and fertile, horizontal connections and communities that make up the network of nodes and constellations that we too easily dismiss as 'mere' rubble." -- Jon Beasley-Murray * Posthegemony blog *
“
Rubble: The Afterlife of Destruction is theoretically dense and richly illustrated with diagrams and photographs. The ethnographic detail is often engrossing, while the overall argument challenges heritage and regional specialists to engage in more penetrating analysis of how historic forces of destruction shape the world and add to the rubble that piles up along the way.” -- Diane Barthel-Bouchier * Journal of Latin American Geography *
“Rubble is remarkable because Gordillo does not shy away from complex theorizing while also providing us with rich ethnographic storytelling. The result is a book that is as engaging as it is innovative, and which should capture the interest of a diverse audience. … dealing with the social production of space, racialized and ethnicized relations in Latin and South America, human-environment relationships, and affect theory. If the purpose of a book is to change the way one sees the world, Rubble succeeds.” -- Roberto E. Barr * Journal of Anthropological Research *
“Both the idea of rethinking ruins and going deep into the Chaco region are original and a welcome foray into events and people that have been side-lined by official histories. ...
Rubble gives us layers of history, of rubble, overlapping stories of indigenous identity and conquering violence.” -- Marcela López Levy * Latin America Bureau blog *
“
Rubble makes a series of generative interventions into the vast literature on memory and heritage studies in Latin America. Particularly rewarding for historians, anthropologists, and geographers interested in critical perspectives on modernity.” -- Mónica Salas Landa * Hispanic American Historical Review *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix
Introduction: Constellations 1
Part One. Ghosts of Indians
1. A Haunted Frontier 31
2. On the Edge of the Void 53
Part Two. Lost Cities
The Destruction of Space 77
3. Land of Curses and Miracles 85
4. The Ruins of Ruins 111
Part Three. Residues of a Dream World
Treks across Fields of Rubble 125
5. Ships Stranded in the Forest 131
6. Bringing a Destroyed Place Back to Life 153
7. Railroads to Nowhere 169
Part Four. The Debris of Violence
Bright Objects 185
8. Topographies of Oblivion 191
9. Piles of Bones 209
10. The Return of the Indians 229
Conclusion: We Aren't Afraid of Ruins 253
Notes 271
References 287
Index 303
