THE DICTATOR: LITERATURE, LAW AND POWER

Abstract

The relationship between power and law has been approached from various theories, however, few analysis have studied this topic based on the cultural phenomena of the region, especially from literature. This research addresses this relationship from the figure of the dictator as a differentiated narrative object, whose central feature is the exercise of power without limits. For this purpose, some examples of literary works are taken, such as: The Feast of the Goat (2000), The Autumn of the Patriarch (1975) and I the Supreme (1974). After a hermeneutical process, the break in the traditional conception of law as a container and limiter of power is identified. The study of the dictatorial character in Latin American literature reveals the political dimension of the legal order and the weakness of its structures in the face of the excessive power of the dictator.