Des de la perifèria: la construcció d’un símbol a través de la biografia de Raimon, de Joan Fuster

Abstract

In 1964 Editorial Alcides published a biography of songwriter and singer Raimon written by Joan Fuster. This publication started the singer’s career within Catalonia and other Catalan-speaking regions. Therefore, in this article, I analyze the role and impact that this biography had on the construction of Valencian identity, since, from the periphery (Xàtiva, País Valencià), it became the center of a cultural movement called La Nova Cançó – which, in turn, helped to relaunch Catalan national identity. More concretely, and following initial, well-regarded scholarship (mainly the classical studies by Dosse and Madelénat), I examine the mechanisms and main features of the biographical genre used to construct Raimon’s identity.