A Portrait of Rosa Chacel as a Joycean: Epiphany, Eros and Paralysis

Rosa Chacel (1898-1996) is a Spanish exiled writer who was part of the Generation of ’27. Even though she claimed the work of James Joyce as one of her major influences, there is minimal scholarly research about this relationship, and her contribution to the Spanish Joycean tradition has subsequently been overlooked. This thesis aims to demonstrate why Chacel should be considered a Joycean among her peers by exploring influence and a case of confluence in Chacel’s use of the device of the epiphany and the theme of paralysis in her novels La sinrazón (1960) and Barrio de Maravillas (1976). These two literary elements, which are pivotal in Joyce’s work, appear in the work of Chacel with new characteristics. This thesis also analyses Chacel’s innovations regarding these two literary elements in their connection to Chacel’s theory of Love and Eros.