The configuration of the "prisoner of war": Nunca estuve sola (1988) by Nidia Díaz

Abstract

Considering that one of the innovations of the "new history" was to question the concept of source and to include in the historical analysis other records (diaries, letters, memoirs, novels, photographs) that did not express the official point of view, the examination of the testimony of the former guerrilla Nidia Díaz is crucial to the study of the discursive representation of the guerrilla in El Salvador. For this reason, it is worth paying attention to how Díaz's writing contributes to the documentation of episodes in which she played a leading role and whose relevance has been omitted by hegemonic narratives. In order to understand the ideals of the guerrillas and the ways in which they were adopted by their members, the testimonies offer a rich and interesting field of study. In addition, the testimonies written by women offer nuances that deserve attention. Perhaps the most relevant and valuable is the one that hovers over the representation of "woman". In this sense, this article aims to analyze the testimony of Nidia Díaz as a space of conflict where the intersections of gender, politics, and discourse converge, collide, or repel each other, creating tensions that are unavoidable in the moment of configuring her identity as a revolutionary woman.