Study and edition of La otra mitad, the Rafael Chirbes' short story about the ethical and moral ruin of the capitalist society

Abstract

This article offers a study and edition of La otra mitad, an unpublished short story by Rafael Chirbes dedicated to Vázquez Montalbán about an intermediary between Chinese clothing and footwear manufacturers and Western department store executives. The narration encapsulates some of Chirbes’ favourite subjects such as betrayal, devastation or the collusion between money and power, it experiments with the third-person narration and repetition, and it helps to document the twelve years of the writer’s residence in Valverde de Burguillos (Badajoz), a little-known but key period for the reaffirmation of his ideals and for his recognition as a novelist at the beginning of the 21st century.