The imaginaries of replacement

Replacement is a noun that describes the act of replacing, originally from the verb “replace” and derives from the noun or verb “place”. Etymologically, the word “place” has its origin in the Greek “plateia hodos” which means “broad” when applied to a way and from the Latin “platea” meaning “open space”. The latter was also the origin of the word “plateia” in Portuguese which means audience. These etymological origins become interesting as these places are spaces that need audiences. This means the spaces need people to acknowledge their existence. Also, places are spaces that are representational of a culture. Which leads us to question: what can imaginary spaces reveal us about culture? Therefore, this essay aims to cross several works on the importance of the imaginary places, namely Benedict Anderson’s imagined communities, Nelson Goodman’s ways of worldmaking, Marie-Laure Ryan’s possible worlds theory, Ruth Levinas’ literary utopias as well as other relevant utopian studies contributions. We receive knowledge about these imagined worlds through narratives, that can be transmitted through many media and in diverse styles, but the narrative component is a transversal element to communicate these ideal worlds. Thus, for the argument to sustain, the inclusion of Jerome Bruner’s theory on the narrative construction of reality is pivotal. What are these imagined places? Are the spaces we create in fictional narratives the embodiment of our wishes for another world, aiming for replacement? These are some of the questions that can contribute to understand how utopias and alternative imaginary worlds are a significant part of our human cultural narratives