Body and power in two works of Cuban prison literature: Before nightfall and Perromundo

This paper analyses the relationship between literature and power in two works of Cuban prison literature (the Reinaldo Arenas autobiography Antes que anochezca and the Carlos Alberto Montaner novel Perromundo) taking into account the research of Michel Foucault (Surveiller et punir) and his concept of "political body", "docile body" and "panopticon". The prisoner is subjected to a power structure while he himself establishes power relationships with other prisoners. Therefore the prison space turns into a power space with numerous signifiers and significances.