A Promise to the Dead: The exile Journey of Ariel Dorfman
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A Promise to the Dead: The Exile Journey of Ariel Dorfman is an exploration of exile, memory, longing and democracy as seen through the experiences of the world-renowned writer, Ariel Dorfman - author of numerous works of fiction, plays and essays in Spanish and English. Dorfman's books (including ‘Death and the Maiden’, ‘In Case of Fire in a Foreign Land’, ‘How to Read Donald Duck’ and ‘Other Septembers’) have been translated into over 40 languages and his plays performed in more than 100 countries.
Born in Argentina, but raised in New York until his family was exiled to Chile during the Red Scare, Dorfman became Cultural Advisor to the Chief of Staff of Chile's socialist president Salvador Allende. When the democratically elected government was toppled in the military coup of September 11, 1973, Dorfman was among a handful of Allende's inner circle to survive. Years later, he was told that his life was spared because "someone had to live to tell the story".
A Promise to the Dead was filmed in the USA, Argentina and Chile in late 2006, coinciding with the death of former Chilean dictator, Augusto Pinochet. The film is based, in part, on Dorfman's best-selling memoir, ‘Heading South, Looking North’.
Dorfman currently teaches at Duke University and lives with his family in Durham, North Carolina.
