Kiss of the Spider Woman (novel)
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| Kiss of the Spider Woman | |
| Author | Manuel Puig |
|---|---|
| Original title | El beso de la mujer araña |
| Country | Argentina |
| Language | Spanish |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publication date | 1976 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
Kiss of the Spider Woman (Spanish: El beso de la mujer araña) is a 1976 novel by the Argentine writer Manuel Puig.
The novel tells the story of two prisoners, Molina and Valentín, and their relationship in prison. Molina, an effeminate and openly homosexual window-dresser, is in jail for "corruption of a minor," while Valentín is a political prisoner who is part of a revolutionary group trying to bring down the government. The two men, seemingly opposites in every way, form an intimate bond in their cell, and their relationship changes both of them in profound ways. The novel's form is unusual in that there is no traditional narrative voice, one of the primary features of fiction. It is written purely as dialogue, without any indication of who is speaking, except for a dash (-) to show a change of speaker. Due to the absence of an "authoritative" narrator, the reader is required to participate more actively in the interpretation of the story and, therefore, becomes part of the telling of the tale. In addition to the conversations of the prisoners, there are other "artefacts" in the novel that help tell the story. For example, the author includes official reports as well as a long series of footnotes on the psychoanalytic theory of homosexuality.
The novel was adapted for the stage play by Puig in 1983 (English translation by Allan Baker). It was also made into a film (1985) and a Broadway musical (1993).
