Memories of the Dictatorship from Chilean Exiles in Australia: Affect and Positionality in a Complex Mnemonic Field

Abstract

This thesis explores the memory of the Chilean dictatorship led by Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990) through the voices of Chilean exiles in Australia, who had to migrate due to their political affiliations and activism against the dictatorship. The thesis analyses how emotions, or affective practices, shape how exiles remember the dictatorship. The memory of the Chilean dictatorship is a complex mnemonic field in which remembering primarily involves taking a position in relation to other voices. While previous research has shown that ideological and intergenerational dynamics are key elements that explain the disputes and contestations between different actors and groups, emotion has yet to be the research focus. In developing the analysis, I propose the concept of 'affective-mnemonic practices' to capture the complex articulations of memory, affect, ideology and intergenerational transmission. Emotions or affective practices are a crucial element of mnemonic processes, as they orient the positionality of people when remembering, thus shaping the meaning of the past in the present.

Over 20,000 Chileans migrated to Australia following the civil-military coup d'etat on September 11th, 1973, and during the 17 years of dictatorial rule. Most of these migrants stayed in Australia after the restoration of democracy in Chile. In this context, during 2020, in-depth interviews were conducted with 46 participants (28 from the first generation and 18 who were children of exiles), in which I asked them to tell their histories and experiences of the dictatorship and exile. The interviews were recorded and transcribed, and a thematic analysis was performed to identify salient topics and emotional patterns.

The findings show that multiple emotions shape the memory of the dictatorship in complex ways. Participants remember with pain and sadness the traumatic events of the coup and the process of forced migration. These emotions are entangled with the ideological positions of participants in the context of the defeat symbolised in the coup and the post-dictatorial structural violence. However, trauma does not define the memory of exiles, as they also remember joyful moments of political activism. Activism before and after the coup is remembered with pride and esteem, in which ideological connections define these memories' 'positive' meaning. Nevertheless, activism was a topic of contestation in exile, as conflicts and tensions between different groups provoked misrecognition. This shows that identifying with left-wing values does not necessarily equate to community homogeneity or coherence. Additionally, children of exiles relate to the memory of the dictatorship through stories and objects in complex intergenerational transmission processes. A distinction is made between children who had a direct experience of the dictatorship and children born in Australia. The findings suggest that different forms of nostalgia shape the meaning of exile in both groups of children, thus configuring liminal senses of identity. Finally, the thesis explores the relations between the memory of the dictatorship and the imagination of the future after the social uprising of 2019. Participants imagine the future oscillating between fear, pessimism and hope, suggesting that complex emotions mediate between the memory of the dictatorship and the imagination of the future. Overall, the thesis reveals how the memory of the dictatorship is a living process among the Chilean diaspora in Australia. The findings contribute to political debates and contemporary activism, revealing the complex multidirectional relations between memory, emotions, and imagination. The concept of affective-mnemonic practices is offered as a useful tool to analyse complex stories about the past. Show more