#VoyYVuelvo: Performances of Chilean identity and cultural memory on Instagram after Nicanor Parra's death

Abstract

This paper examines an analysis carried out of the mediations and remediations of Nicanor Parra’s image and poetry online, focusing on how digital methods can be used for qualitative analysis, their relevance for current research, as well as some ethical considerations. Nicanor Parra was a revolutionary Chilean poet, a national icon whose death in 2018 represented a significant memory site where contemporary understandings of Chilean identity can be studied. Through digital qualitative methods, I traced the use of the hashtag #nicanorparra after his death. The data was analysed using discourse analysis, both textual and visual, to properly weigh the mix of images and captions that Instagram posts offer and interpret how these ‘media of memory’ articulate discourses around Chilean identity and memory today. The posts constructed a figure of Parra akin to a modern prophet, whose message of “anti-ness” called on users to act on issues such as economic inequality and the impact of industrial development on the country's environment. Through Parra's poetry, digitally expressed through vernacular creativity, a collective mnemonic imagination sketches expectations for Chile, which are particularly crucial after the massive protests demanding profound political and economic change of 2019.