Theme of the Traitor and the Hero

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"Theme of the Traitor and the Hero" is a metafictional short story by Jorge Luis Borges that explores political conspiracy, betrayal, and the blurring of history and theatrical illusion.

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Statements (46)

Predicate Object
instanceOf literary work
metafictional work
short story
author Jorge Luis Borges NERFINISHED
character Kilpatrick NERFINISHED
Ryan NERFINISHED
concerns ethical ambiguity of political action
relationship between truth and representation
role of the historian as narrator
countryOfOrigin Argentina NERFINISHED
genre metafiction
political fiction
short story
hasForm prose fiction
inspiredBy the assassination of Abraham Lincoln
the life and death of Julius Caesar NERFINISHED
literaryMovement magic realism
postmodern literature
metafictionalAspect reflection on how history is staged like theater
self-conscious reference to literary and historical models
motif repetition of historical patterns
scripted assassination
theater as politics
narrativeDevice metafictional commentary
story-within-a-story
unreliable historical record
notableFeature intertextual allusions to Shakespeare
parallel between traitor and hero in a single figure
use of detective-story elements in a political context
originalLanguage Spanish
periodOfPublication 20th century
protagonist Ryan NERFINISHED
setting an unnamed European country
structure investigative narrative
theme assassination
betrayal
blurring of history and fiction
construction of historical narrative
duplicity of public memory
heroism
myth-making
nationalism
political conspiracy
revolution
theatricality
treason

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Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Ficciones hasPart Theme of the Traitor and the Hero