Forms of Utopia in La guerra mortal de los sentidos, by Roberto Castillo

Abstract

Roberto Castillo’s novel La guerra mortal de los sentidos (2002) presents two contrasting worldviews structured around conflicting social, political, ethnic, and economic dimensions, which are transformed within the text into two distinct ways of confronting reality. Through these opposing perspectives, the author reexamines Honduran identity and the tensions arising from their ideological differences. These dimensions are embedded within a discourse that invites multiple interpretations and critical readings. This study explores the significance of these interpretations by identifying the forms of utopia that Castillo imagines within the novel as a means of explaining the dynamics of domination and resistance between marginalized groups and hegemonic power in the context of Honduran historical development. The utopian ideal is woven into the novel through the construction of narrative counterpoint, as though the author sought to articulate a response to the crisis of values that characterized a pivotal period in the nation's history.