Isolina Estela “Isolda” Battistozzi

Isolina Estela “Isolda” Battistozzi died January 6, 2000, while vacationing in Puerto Escondido, Mexico. She was an assistant professor of Spanish at UW-L and was born and raised in Mendoza, Argentina.

Isolda earned degrees in philosophy (M.A. and B.A. from la Universidad Nacional de Cuyo, Mendoza), in Hispanic literatures (MA. from the University of Pittsburg) and in Hispanic and Brazilian languages and linguistics (Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota). She enjoyed a university teaching career that spanned over two and a half decades. Before joining the faculty here, she had taught philosophy and law in Argentina, and Spanish language and literature as a graduate student and at Carleton College, the College of St. Thomas, and Ripon College.

Professor Battistozzi’s area of specialization was contemporary Latin American literature, with an emphasis in Argentine prose and theater. A common theme in her research and writing is reflected in her doctoral dissertation, which explored strategies of literary expression employed by writers working under the constraints of censorship during a military regime. Professor Battistozzi left her native Argentina in search of greater freedom of expression as a scholar and teacher during a time of political repression, and continued to be fascinated by the ways in which literary discourse serves as a dissident cultural practice in relation to authoritarian discourse.

Professor Battistozzi kept a fine balance between her professional and personal life. She filled her friends’ lives with happiness, and inspired them to look closely at the meaning of life. Professor Battistozzi will be greatly missed, but her spirit lives on in the hearts of many and in the many books purchased in her memory, which are available at Murphy Library.

From:
UW-L Campus Connection
January 24-30, 2000

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