The River As An Open Wound in Latin America’s Cities

Abstract

In the work of Alfredo Gómez Morel, the image of the river is the metaphor of progress, since the channeling of the Mapocho river is one of the most important modernizing landmarks in Chile. Paradoxically this symbol is a wound of the Latin American city. The river from the beginning is the residual zone where the orphaned children go, evidencing the shortcomings of the supposedly modern city. When the delinquent has already established himself in adulthood and has internationalized his criminal career, the river passes from being the training space of the delinquent to a space of redemption.