Excerpt of novel, Captivity

Abstract

This thesis is an excerpt of an original novel. The story begins nearly two years into the imprisonment of Eduardo Baltodano, a political leader who was kidnapped and taken to a remote estate converted into a military base by a rival revolutionary group. Though the Captain of the base assures his safety, Eduardo must carefully navigate threatening soldiers and repetitive political interrogations. These external forces are paired with his constant struggle with the monotony of his life at the base and the isolation he feels. He finds solace in writing heavily-censored letters to his wife, his daily walk through the grounds, drawing hibiscus flowers, an unlikely friendship with a young guard, and the leftover entries in a priest’s old diary. But one night he sees a light in a window on an unused floor and, for the first time in a long time, he feels he is not alone.

While writing, I sought to explore the juxtaposition and interplay between what is real and what is imagined. The world inside Eduardo’s head is a mix of memories, dreams, fantasies, and beliefs, that are beginning to fracture and erode under the pressures of his imprisonment. This deterioration takes place against a backdrop of a barren existence that is shadowed by the perpetual threat of violence.

This excerpt includes the first 21 chapters. I have written through the end of Chapter Thirty, at which point the novel is approximately 61,000 words. I expect that the completed novel will be between 90,000 and 100,000 words.

Date of Award	29 Jun 2021
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of St Andrews
Supervisor	Oliver Hazzard (Supervisor)