Las Quebradas de la Memoria: Una cartografía narrativa sobre el campamento minero Potrerillos (1930-1973).
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Date
2026
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Publisher
Universidad de Concepción
Abstract
El asentamiento minero industrial Potrerillos, ubicado en la III región de Atacama, albergó a sus habitantes desde 1918 hasta el año 2000 cuando se concretó su desplazamiento ambiental tras ser declarada zona saturada de contaminación, dejando atrás lugares y memorias que hoy pretenden ser rescatadas del olvido para su reivindicación como patrimonio cultural de Chile. En esa línea, y ante la pérdida de los testimonios de habitantes más antiguos, la investigación comienza con la interrogante ¿Cuáles fueron las condiciones estructurales y simbólicas bajo las que se habitó Potrerillos y cómo fueron vivenciadas por sus habitantes durante el periodo 1930-1973? Para esto se diseñó una metodología cualitativa de carácter etnográfico (Restrepo, 2016) desde un enfoque biográfico-narrativo (Arfuch, 2002; 2018) que se articula a partir de la técnica del relato de vida (Pujadas, 2000; Correa, 2001; Bertaux, 1999; 2005; Cornejo, 2006) y la cartografía social (Correa, 2007; Barragán, 2019; Basini, 2022) para caracterizar aspectos de las subjetividades, lo comunitario y su relación con el espacio social. Los resultados se presentan desde una cartografía narrativa enfocada en estructuras temporales (Leccardi, 2015) donde se señalan tres épocas diferenciadas: 1) La génesis de la comunidad y sus instituciones (1930-1941), 2) La época de oro y los grandes cambios (1942-1958), y 3) los nuevos protagonismos y las luchas del campamento (1959-1973), concluyendo que los fenómenos identificados como los cambios del territorio, las zonas de pertenencia y exclusión o los sistemas de sentido en las infancias son parte de un sistema afectivo (Ariza, 2020) que promueve una “dominación por afectos (Vázquez, 2022) disimulando las diferencias sociales y los modos de explotación en lo laboral y doméstico, extendiendo el concepto de “Cuerpos de Cobre” (Weinberg, 2021) no solo a quienes trabajan el material sino además para la comunidad que se erige culturalmente a su alrededor, situando la reflexión no solo en el pasado construido sino también en el presente que nos constituye.
The Potrerillos mining and industrial settlement, located in the III Región de Atacama, Chile, housed its inhabitants from 1918 until 2000, when their environmental displacement was finalized after being declared a saturated pollution zone, leaving behind places and memories that today seek to be rescued from oblivion and reclaimed as Chile's cultural heritage. Along these lines, and given the loss of the testimonies of its oldest inhabitants, the research begins with the question: What were the structural and symbolic conditions under which Potrerillos was inhabited, and how were they experienced by its inhabitants during the period 1930–1973? For this purpose, a qualitative methodology of an ethnographic nature was designed (Restrepo, 2016) from a biographical-narrative approach (Arfuch, 2002; 2018) that is articulated from the technique of the life story (Pujadas, 2000; Correa, 2001; Bertaux, 1999; 2005; Cornejo, 2006) and social cartography (Correa, 2007; Barragán, 2019; Basini, 2022) to characterize aspects of subjectivities, the community and its relationship with social space. The results are presented from a narrative cartography focused on temporal structures (Leccardi, 2015) where three distinct periods are indicated: 1) The genesis of the community and its institutions (1930-1941), 2) The golden age and the great changes (1942-1958), and 3) the new protagonisms and struggles of the settlement (1959-1973), concluding that the phenomena identified, as changes in the territory, zones of belonging and exclusion or systems of meaning in childhood, are part of an affective system (Ariza, 2020) that promotes a "domination by affects (Vázquez, 2022) concealing social differences and modes of exploitation in labor and domestic spaces, extending the concept of "Copper Bodies" (Weinberg, 2021) not only to those who work the material but also to the community that is culturally erected around them, placing the reflection not only in the constructed past but also in the present that constitutes us.
The Potrerillos mining and industrial settlement, located in the III Región de Atacama, Chile, housed its inhabitants from 1918 until 2000, when their environmental displacement was finalized after being declared a saturated pollution zone, leaving behind places and memories that today seek to be rescued from oblivion and reclaimed as Chile's cultural heritage. Along these lines, and given the loss of the testimonies of its oldest inhabitants, the research begins with the question: What were the structural and symbolic conditions under which Potrerillos was inhabited, and how were they experienced by its inhabitants during the period 1930–1973? For this purpose, a qualitative methodology of an ethnographic nature was designed (Restrepo, 2016) from a biographical-narrative approach (Arfuch, 2002; 2018) that is articulated from the technique of the life story (Pujadas, 2000; Correa, 2001; Bertaux, 1999; 2005; Cornejo, 2006) and social cartography (Correa, 2007; Barragán, 2019; Basini, 2022) to characterize aspects of subjectivities, the community and its relationship with social space. The results are presented from a narrative cartography focused on temporal structures (Leccardi, 2015) where three distinct periods are indicated: 1) The genesis of the community and its institutions (1930-1941), 2) The golden age and the great changes (1942-1958), and 3) the new protagonisms and struggles of the settlement (1959-1973), concluding that the phenomena identified, as changes in the territory, zones of belonging and exclusion or systems of meaning in childhood, are part of an affective system (Ariza, 2020) that promotes a "domination by affects (Vázquez, 2022) concealing social differences and modes of exploitation in labor and domestic spaces, extending the concept of "Copper Bodies" (Weinberg, 2021) not only to those who work the material but also to the community that is culturally erected around them, placing the reflection not only in the constructed past but also in the present that constitutes us.
Description
Tesis presentada para optar al grado de Magíster en Investigación Social y Desarrollo.
Keywords
Cartografía, Literatura, Estructura social, Mineros Chile, Patrimonio cultural