ABSTRACT
Based on the assumption that narratives of memory are acts of the present, through which experiences and identities are rebuilt and visions of the world are expressed, this chapter presents and analyses personal testimonies of the Portuguese settlers about the moment of the Return from Africa. The focus is on the experiences lived during the Return, that is, throughout the events of the end of colonialism, the exodus, and the arrival in Portugal. Evidence is given showing that this time-period is narrated in a very impassioned and fragmented way, displaying an intrinsic difficulty in making sense of the past—both the personal and the national past. With the aim of inserting this particular case within a broader reflexion on the experience of history in contexts of personal and collective rupture and on the disruptive nature of violent pasts, the chapter ends with a discussion on the traumatic dimension of the event of the Return, both on a personal and on a social level.
