The Mandalic Structure of Julio Cortázar’s Short Story “Axolotl”

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to propose that the figure of a mandala (Hindu and Buddhist geometric representation of infinity) can help us understand the structure of Julio Cortázar’s short story “Axolotl.” This text will show how the construction of time and space, and the use of symbols and imagery in Cortázar’s narration reveal the circular composition of the story, which is like that of a mandala mainly because the narrative time, like the characterization and the construction of space, produces a type of polarity. This gives way to a contrasting system like a “mirror” similar to a mandala for the following reasons: a) by joining the past and the present, the narrative time produces a cyclic temporality, which is repeated over and over again, given the circularity of the story; b) the narrative space can be seen as an empty interstice in which reality and fantasy interact, producing a site of constant interpenetration; and c) the imagery and symbols in the story work as metaphors that help achieve the disintegration of the self and the personality swap between the man and the axolotl.