Episode 65 - Spooktober: South American Horror Story
This week, head south to the misty, mysterious island of Chiloé, Chile, where Amber tells Anna a story of a powerful cult of warlocks that held the island in their grip in the late 19th century CE. But, as in all good horror stories, the true villain is possibly something else entirely. Sit down for a hearty meal of the spookiest spaghetti and explore indigenous Mapuche governance, colonization, and whether the ghost stories of Chiloé might be more meaningful than they seem.
Content warning: there is a brief scene describing graphic violence, but we’ll warn you when it’s time for sensitive ears to skip ahead.
Learn more:
Into the Cave of Chile’s Witches (Smithsonian)
The Myths and Mythologies of Chiloe, Chile's Most Haunted Island (Culture Trip)
Myth and Magic Infuse Chilean Island (NPR)
Invunche (Chiloé Mitologico)
The Cave of Quicaví (Voicemap Tours)
Rhetorical Imperialism (Digital Commons @DU)
Shamans' Pragmatic Gendered Negotiations with Mapuche Resistance Movements and Chilean Political Authorities (Identities: Global Studies in Culture and Power)
Imbunches and Other Monsters: Enemy Legends and Underground Histories in José Donoso and Catalina Parra (Journal of Latin American Cultural Studies)
Pueblos Originarios - Indigenous Populations of Chile Map
The Cinematic Spell in an Island of Uncertainty (Anthrovision)
Photo credit: El Invunche by Christian Córdova, licensed under CC BY 2.0.