To Inquire the Past, to Safegard the Future - the poetry of Manuel Resende

Abstract

Reading the poem “Epigrama”, this paper tries to think about the way in which Manuel Resende inquires the past in his poetry, proposing the interruption of historical recurrence that leads societies towards catastrophe. The obvious symmetries between the rise of fascism in the first post-war period and the current resurgence of the far-right compel us to understand and to prevent the conditions that have originated it in the past as well as in the present. Using Walter Benjamin's vision of History, which appears to be of crucial importance in understanding Manuel Resende's poetry, it is suggested that only revolution will interrupt the course of time and redeem the losers in history. “Epigrama” emerges as a presentification exercise of a dark reality that, despite the differences of each historical circumstance, can once again happen in our times. Alerting to the serious consequences of this return is also, as I try to argue, one of the objectives of Manuel Resende's poetry.