A tribute to the writer Carlos Pujol (1936-2012) on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of his death. The first of two sessions organised by the Universitat Internacional de Catalunya and Pompeu Fabra University to remember his life and celebrate his legacy was held on 16 December at UIC Barcelona. Researchers from the Carlos Pujol, Literature and Humanism research group (2017 SGR 383), along with other experts, discussed different aspects of the literary work of this multifaceted writer, essayist, critic, translator, editor and jury member for important literary prizes.
The Vice-Rector for Research, Innovation and Knowledge Transfer at UIC Barcelona, Cristina Monforte, and the coordinator of the conference and of the Carlos Pujol, Literature and Humanism research group, Teresa Vallès, opened the event by stressing the significance of Pujol's legacy. Vallès also presented three new publications that have been published on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the writer's death, which highlight Pujol's wealth of knowledge not only as a writer, but also as an academic and literary theorist.
The first block of lectures of the day focused on Carlos Pujol's dialogue with tradition and with authors such as Marcel Proust, Henry James and Conan Doyle. Eduardo Valls, lecturer at the Complutense University of Madrid, explained the different elements that Pujol inherited from Henry James on the vision of literature and the ability to speak of that which is not visible. Then, Carlos Villar, from the University of La Rioja, explained how Pujol borrowed elements from noir fiction, but that in reality he transgresses its foundations, because only thus can he create "literature with capital letters". Àngels Santa, lecturer at the University of Lleida, analysed the presence of Proust in the different forms of Pujol's narrative, such as the use of the passage of time as a theme, the investigation of truth and the centrality of style.
The second block of lectures looked at Pujol's literary theory based on his reflections on genres such as biography, essays, novels and poetry. Mapi Ballesteros, lecturer at the University of Barcelona, explained in her lecture that Pujol defends literary biography as a genre that does not claim the objectivity of history, nor is it pure fiction, but rather intends to take a detour through fiction in order to reach the hidden truth and the poetic truth. Domingo Ródenas, from the Pompeu Fabra University, then explained how the novelist Pujol emerged and how he felt the need to talk about himself through fiction instead of talking about others. Iris Llop, lecturer at UIC Barcelona, defended the author’s poetics based on the view of literature that each author expresses in prologues, reviews, interviews and essays. To conclude, Pere Ballart, from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, spoke about Pujol's poetry and the writer's ability to listen to his inner music, which he expressed audibly through these texts.
The conference also included short theatrical adaptations of stories from Fortuna y adversidades de Sherlock Holmes (‘Fortunes and Adversities of Sherlock Holmes’) by Carlos Pujol, which were performed in the breaks between presentations.
