The Hidden Utopia: Strategies for Nationalizing the Science Fiction Adventure in El Eternauta (1957-1959) by Héctor G. Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López

This article explores the reasons that led the Argentine comic book El Eternauta, created by Héctor German Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López, to become a success during its original publication in Hora Cero Semanal (1957-1959), as well as in subsequent reprints, until becoming into a “classic” o...

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Autor principal: Quereilhac, Soledad
Formato: Artículo publishedVersion
Lenguaje:Español
Publicado: Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Buenos Aires 2022
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Acceso en línea:https://revistascientificas.filo.uba.ar/index.php/matadero/article/view/13668
https://repositoriouba.sisbi.uba.ar/gsdl/cgi-bin/library.cgi?a=d&c=matadero&d=13668_oai
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spelling I28-R145-13668_oai2025-11-17 Quereilhac, Soledad 2022-11-08 This article explores the reasons that led the Argentine comic book El Eternauta, created by Héctor German Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López, to become a success during its original publication in Hora Cero Semanal (1957-1959), as well as in subsequent reprints, until becoming into a “classic” of Argentine fiction. The article analyzes Oesterheld’s work at the magazine Más Allá (1953-1957) and his beginnings as a short story writer, comic book scriptwriter, and disseminator of scientific knowledge in commercial publishing houses and, later, in his own company, Frontera. The author’s professional profile was the emergence condition of a particular form of Argentine comics, where cultural industry conventions and an individual creative project were effectively combined. This article sustains the hypothesis that, in El Eternauta, behind the dystopian scene, the utopia of an Argentinean life with prospects of progress emerges as subtext, defined by male sociability and the harmony of a nuclear family, the handling of technical-scientific knowledge that covers the broad spectrum of academia, industry, and amateurism, and the bonds of solidarity and philanthropy that mobilize the actions of the resistance. Thus, the dystopia allows that idealized and positive representation of the life in common to emerge in a position of risk and threat. El presente artículo indaga en las razones que llevaron a la historieta argentina El Eternauta, creada por Héctor German Oesterheld y Francisco Solano López, a convertirse en una obra de exitosa recepción durante su publicación original por entregas en Hora Cero Semanal, entre 1957 y 1959, y en las sucesivas reediciones posteriores, hasta convertirse hoy en un “clásico” de la ficción argentina. Se analiza el paso de Oesterheld por la revista Más Allá (1953-1957) y sus comienzos como cuentista, guionista de historietas y divulgador de temas científicos en sellos comerciales y, luego, en su propio sello, Frontera. El perfil profesional del autor fue la condición de emergencia de una forma particular de la historieta, donde se combinaron con eficacia convenciones de la industria cultural y un proyecto creativo individual. Se sostiene la hipótesis de que, en El Eternauta, tras la escena distópica, aflora como subtexto la utopía de una vida argentina con perspectivas de progreso, marcada por la sociabilidad masculina y la armonía de una familia tipo, el manejo de saberes técnico-científicos que recorren el amplio espectro de lo académico, lo fabril y el amateurismo, y los lazos de solidaridad y de filantropía que movilizan las acciones de la resistencia. La distopía permite hacer emerger, así, en posición de riesgo y de amenaza, esa construcción idealizada y afirmativa de la vida en común, de identificables rasgos nacionales. application/pdf https://revistascientificas.filo.uba.ar/index.php/matadero/article/view/13668 10.34096/em.n16.13668 spa Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Buenos Aires https://revistascientificas.filo.uba.ar/index.php/matadero/article/view/13668/12099 El Matadero Revista Crítica de Literatura Argentina; Núm. 16 (2022) 2683-9687 0329-9546 argentine comics science and popuular imagination utopia argentine science fiction cultural nationalism historieta argentina imaginación técnica popular utopía ciencia ficción argentina nacionalismo cultural The Hidden Utopia: Strategies for Nationalizing the Science Fiction Adventure in El Eternauta (1957-1959) by Héctor G. Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López La utopía encubierta: estrategias de localización de la aventura de ciencia ficción en El Eternauta (1957-1959) de Héctor G. Oesterheld y Francisco Solano López info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion https://repositoriouba.sisbi.uba.ar/gsdl/cgi-bin/library.cgi?a=d&c=matadero&d=13668_oai
institution Universidad de Buenos Aires
institution_str I-28
repository_str R-145
collection Repositorio Digital de la Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA)
language Español
orig_language_str_mv spa
topic argentine comics
science and popuular imagination
utopia
argentine science fiction
cultural nationalism
historieta argentina
imaginación técnica popular
utopía
ciencia ficción argentina
nacionalismo cultural
spellingShingle argentine comics
science and popuular imagination
utopia
argentine science fiction
cultural nationalism
historieta argentina
imaginación técnica popular
utopía
ciencia ficción argentina
nacionalismo cultural
Quereilhac, Soledad
The Hidden Utopia: Strategies for Nationalizing the Science Fiction Adventure in El Eternauta (1957-1959) by Héctor G. Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López
topic_facet argentine comics
science and popuular imagination
utopia
argentine science fiction
cultural nationalism
historieta argentina
imaginación técnica popular
utopía
ciencia ficción argentina
nacionalismo cultural
description This article explores the reasons that led the Argentine comic book El Eternauta, created by Héctor German Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López, to become a success during its original publication in Hora Cero Semanal (1957-1959), as well as in subsequent reprints, until becoming into a “classic” of Argentine fiction. The article analyzes Oesterheld’s work at the magazine Más Allá (1953-1957) and his beginnings as a short story writer, comic book scriptwriter, and disseminator of scientific knowledge in commercial publishing houses and, later, in his own company, Frontera. The author’s professional profile was the emergence condition of a particular form of Argentine comics, where cultural industry conventions and an individual creative project were effectively combined. This article sustains the hypothesis that, in El Eternauta, behind the dystopian scene, the utopia of an Argentinean life with prospects of progress emerges as subtext, defined by male sociability and the harmony of a nuclear family, the handling of technical-scientific knowledge that covers the broad spectrum of academia, industry, and amateurism, and the bonds of solidarity and philanthropy that mobilize the actions of the resistance. Thus, the dystopia allows that idealized and positive representation of the life in common to emerge in a position of risk and threat.
format Artículo
publishedVersion
author Quereilhac, Soledad
author_facet Quereilhac, Soledad
author_sort Quereilhac, Soledad
title The Hidden Utopia: Strategies for Nationalizing the Science Fiction Adventure in El Eternauta (1957-1959) by Héctor G. Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López
title_short The Hidden Utopia: Strategies for Nationalizing the Science Fiction Adventure in El Eternauta (1957-1959) by Héctor G. Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López
title_full The Hidden Utopia: Strategies for Nationalizing the Science Fiction Adventure in El Eternauta (1957-1959) by Héctor G. Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López
title_fullStr The Hidden Utopia: Strategies for Nationalizing the Science Fiction Adventure in El Eternauta (1957-1959) by Héctor G. Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López
title_full_unstemmed The Hidden Utopia: Strategies for Nationalizing the Science Fiction Adventure in El Eternauta (1957-1959) by Héctor G. Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López
title_sort hidden utopia: strategies for nationalizing the science fiction adventure in el eternauta (1957-1959) by héctor g. oesterheld and francisco solano lópez
publisher Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Buenos Aires
publishDate 2022
url https://revistascientificas.filo.uba.ar/index.php/matadero/article/view/13668
https://repositoriouba.sisbi.uba.ar/gsdl/cgi-bin/library.cgi?a=d&c=matadero&d=13668_oai
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