Memory, Truth, and Narrative Ethics in Christina Rosenvinge’s Debut

Abstract This chapter examines the themes of memory, truth, and narrative ethics in Spanish singer-songwriter Christina Rosenvinge’s memoir Debut: Cuadernos y canciones (2019). Having worked in the field since the 1980s, Rosenvinge has a lengthy history in music. Her parents moved to Spain from Denmark in the 1950s; she has also lived in New York, recorded albums in English, and toured extensively in Latin America. In Rosenvinge’s book, memories are inextricably associated with musical creation, making the two inseparable from one another. Keeping narrative ethics in mind, the focus of this chapter is on truth as it connects with remembering, a question that is ultimately linked to issues of survival, and also to ethics. This article examines Rosenvinge’s text and considers the ethical possibilities of storytelling in her memoir.