El personaje aniquilado en Estrella distante de Roberto Bolaño

Abstract

In this article, the author discusses some detective fiction strategies used in Estrella distante (1996), paying particular attention to those ones present in the configuration of the character Alberto Ruiz-Tagle/Carlos Wieder, who displays some recurring themes in Bolaño’s work: a parody of the literary world, the link between art and violence, and the representation of absolute evil, among others. The author also stresses that even though most of the Chilean writer’s work is built on the basic tenets of crime fiction, it should not be considered part of this literary genre.