In Search of the Subaltern Voice: A Conflict History of Subaltern Experiences and Subjectivity in Rural Guatemala

The overall goal of this research project is to provide a subaltern history of revolutionary Latin America in the second half of the 20th century. By integrating an oral history methodology into the theoretical framework of Subaltern Studies, this research advances the position of the subaltern as a historical actor in his own right. Consequentially, this research aims to methodologically renew the subaltern field by shifting the focus from a deconstructive discourse-centred approach to a reconstructive actor-centred approach. In doing so, it will provide subaltern theory with an empirical basis by means of a bottom-up analysis of individual and communal experiences and subjectivities in rural Guatemala. Through ethnographical fieldwork, this case study will further challenge the current historiography in which subaltern agency and community rebelliousness are made contingent upon external pressures.

Keywords:rural guatemala, subalterniteit

Disciplines:History