Victoria Gornopolskaya

The story “Tlon, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius” by Gorge Luis Borges was very fantastical in its elements. It deals with the lost civilization of Uqbar, in which the Tlon people flourished. There is no account of this place in an Atlas or an Encyclopedia, it is simply untraceable. Somehow, someway newer and newer secrets are being discovered pertaining to this “lost world”, because a few lucky treasure seekers bring some of this scattered information to light. Borges illustrates the theme of a labyrinth in this story with the seemingly nonexistent world of the “Tlon”. It assures us that a reality can exist within our hearts even though it has no physical medium. The world as described by Borges simply isn’t ready for a new world order, which is why these texts continue to remain hidden from the public. He does however prophesize that someday when we are ready, the languages, customs and ideas of the “Tlon World” will become one with our world.