Narrative as Moral Action in Mérimée's Colomba

Mérimée's Colomba (1840) explores the nature of guilt, justice and truth, and their relationship to literature. By using techniques that would later become staples of detective fiction, Mérimée turns the seemingly familiar story of a vendetta into an epistomological problem. Both in the plot and in the narration, the importance of viewpoint and veracity becomes paramount as the question of vengeance is temporarily set aside so that the identity of the murderer can be confirmed. The narrative ultimately reaches a coherent ending in which justice is shown to be more desirable than truth, and where fiction becomes an ally of justice. (KJC)