Maria Luisa Bombal’s “The Shrouded Woman” revolves around the life of Ana María, a woman from an aristocratic Chilean family. The novel is structured around Ana María’s funeral, where she narrates her story from within the coffin, providing insight into her thoughts, emotions, and experiences. While Ana María is physically dead, her soul and awareness seem alive as her subconscious is able to witness the mourning of her death to her family. I loved how the novel was written in first person as it helped me feel more connected to the novel itself and Ana María. One thing that stood out to me was how descriptive the sentences were, similar to Proust’s imagery; it allowed me to visualise the events and feel as if I was in the novel.
I really liked how the book is open to the thought of an afterlife and how people are still able to be aware of their surroundings while they’ve passed. It reminded me of the Disney movie ‘Coco’ as families mourn over lost ones; however, the dead can see their families and death itself isn’t portrayed as something completely negative, which is similar to how Bombal depicts death. I enjoyed reading this book as it gave me a new perspective on what happens after death. It made me wonder if it’s true that people see many memories soon after they pass.
Through her dispersed memories, we see how her persona changes according to the person she’s with. It allows us to portray her as a nuanced, multifaceted person as every exchange she has with other characters in the novel sheds light on her intricate inner world and the difficulties she encounters balancing her connections with social expectations. The way she acts depends on the person she is with, which can be very relatable. For example, when she’s with Rodrigo (her husband), their relationship is depicted as strained and distant, characterised by emotional detachment and unfulfilled desires. This leads Ana María to seek fulfilment outside their relationship by having an affair with someone else. Whilst with her lovers, she’s depicted as a passionate lover, and these lovers serve as foils to Rodrigo, representing different facets of Ana María’s desires and emotions.
I was intrigued as I perceived this novel as shining a more positive light on an event that isn’t usually seen as positive. Ana María can reflect and reminisce on her memories in the afterlife and look through all the fun and upsetting times spent with her family and friends. She can reflect on her struggles as a woman in the early 20th-century Chilean society and dwell on her life and experiences. She also confronts her identity and desires, ultimately asserting herself in a world that seeks to confine her. Ana María views death as a spiritual event that helps her comprehend many aspects of her life. The author rejects the negative connotation of death and accepts it as an unknown process. To Bombal, she sees death as the last act of life. After passing away, Ana María develops knowledge and independence, and in the universe, she represents the uniqueness of every human. This novel demonstrates how insightful death may be for a person and how death doesn’t always have to have a negative connotation to it.
My question for you is: Do you, like Bombal, believe there’s such a thing as an afterlife and that death can be depicted as things other than negative? What do you think you’d see in your memories after you pass?
Meave's RMST 202 blog 