PhD Thesis

PhD Thesis Title: "Mapuche Girlhood during the Dictatorship" 

PhD Supervisor:  Nicole Bourbonnais

Right after the end of the Chilean dictatorship, a tremendous amount of work was done on memory. This fabrication of the dictatorship's history is criticised for its biased rendition of the reality of the Pinochet regime. Through its considerable influence from a legal basis and the contemporary issues regarding the transitioning democracy, History-making maintains a male gazed and colonial memory of the dictatorship, highlighting the majority of male Chilean perspectives. In this research, through its methodology and protagonists, Mapuche Girlhood will explore other narratives through a decolonial and gender perspective. Close to a dissection of the emotional anatomy of the Mapuche girls living their young years under a repressive regime. This research is an ode to the Girlhood and Mapuche's fight for autonomy and the ecological defence of the Wall Mapu. Observing Mapuche Girlhood during the dictatorship means exploring a complicated age during a complicated time. In its roots, it implores the reader to judge with their heart, lose themselves in the dreams and fears of others, and follow a new generation of girls with its very own cultural identity.
 

PROFILE

Francesca’s academic background is in International History and Political studies. Her current research at the Graduate Institute explores Mapuche Girlhood during the dictatorship. Her academic journey, either through the Graduate Institute in Geneva (IHEID) or at El Colegio de México (COLMEX), revolves around Latin America, Gender Studies, Oral History and Colonial Switzerland. Her master thesis, « El testimonio de mi Madre», explores her mother’s memory of the Chilean dictatorship and her exile to Switzerland through oral history and the testimonial genre.
 

Research Interests
 

• Cold War in Latin America
• Gender studies
• Girlhood and Youth Culture
• Borders, migrations and diasporas
• Queer Studies
• Colonial Switzerland
   

Publications
 

• Martens F. (2023), El Testimonio de mi madre, Master thesis exploring her mother’s history as a Chilean political refugee and a mother, through a testimonial style, gender and diasporic perspectives, Geneva Graduate Institute (IHEID)
• Martens, F. (2023), Violeta Parra dans l’Anthropocène, Through Violeta’s work we can explore the meaning of Anthropocène and recenter ecology within indigenous and gender perspectives, Geneva Graduate Institute (IHEID)
• Martens, F. (2022), Chile: ¿transición a la democracia completa?, With the 2019 protest in Chile and Las Tesis success song, this paper reflects on the continuity of the dictatorship, El Colegio de México (COLMEX)
• Martens, F. (2021), Les Maternités durant les juntes militaires: le cas du Brésil et du Chili, This work reflects on how motherhood is political and can be a powerful tool, especially within Latin America, Geneva Graduate Institute (IHEID)
• Martens, F., (2021), L’Histoire coloniale de la Suisse, L’élite protestante genevoise et ses liens avec la vie philanthropique de la ville, This Bachelor thesis analyses how the Geneva elite implemates the philanthropic life to Geneva, through its Calvinist and colonial roots, Université de Genève (UNIGE)