DECONSTRUCTING MYSELF

An ongoing, digressive conversation about all the possible changes in the human condition and the permutations of society throughout time.

Paes de Souza creates a rambling stream of consciousness narrative with allusions to mythology, biblical stories and events connected to the Spanish conquest of South America, home of the Aztec and Mayan empires. There’s plenty of free association here, with extended and inconclusive dialogue with the impersonal entity, “fate,” as the author segues from one subject to the next without warning. Indeed, there is virtually no structure in the text, save for quotes surrounding certain paragraphs, indicating that a conversation has occurred. To compound the confusion, short verses are interspersed with prose and cryptic upper case lines that readers may or may not be able to decipher. Yet the images he creates are sharp and powerful, and his command of language carries a strong emotional resonance. It’s like experiencing a bizarre, vivid dream, in which many distinct images flash through the consciousness but fail to cohere in any recognizable thematic fashion.

Chaotic and circuitous, but highly evocative images of desolation and suffering may reward the diligent reader.