Knowledge Bank

The socio-­‐economic restructuring that occurred in Central America in the aftermath of the civil wars led to the rise of neoliberal discourses and multicultural discussions. This rhetoric resulted in a new “awareness” of cultural diversity and ethnic pluralism, and led to the emergence of multicultural initiatives at local and national levels. The spillover effect of such projects on contemporary literary production in noteworthy, particularly when it involves narratives that aim to rewrite History from a black perspective. This essay focuses on two Costa Rican novels and the strategies they use to take their intended readers to “black times” and “black places” on the Atlantic Coast, enveloping them in a wider neoliberal and multiculturalist project that aims to reassess both national and regional identities.