SOURCE: Martinez, Nelly Z. “Cristina Peri Rossi's The Ship of Fools, or the Garden of Forking Desire(s).” In Latin American Postmodernisms, edited by Richard A. Young, pp. 271–82. Amsterdam: Rodopi, 1997.

In the following essay, Martinez identifies and discusses two of the dominant motifs in The Ship of Fools.

Two leitmotifs articulate Cristina Peri Rossi's The Ship of Fools (1984; La nave de los locos). The first, which extends over twelve brief chapters, focuses on the Tapestry of the Creation. An eleventh-century work depicting the creation of the world which was found in the Cathedral of Gerona, the Tapestry is described in detail in the novel. The second refers to a dream containing an enigmatic question which haunts Ecks, the male protagonist. His ability to eventually solve the riddle and answer the question justifies the quest in which he is engaged and renders it meaningful. To be sure, the protagonist's...