Developing Empathy through Literature: Interspecies Relationship in La Mirada de Humilda by Alonso Sánchez Baute

Anna Maria Karczewska

doi:10.31261/ZOOPHILOLOGICA.2026.17.03

Published: 2026-05-14

2026

Developing Empathy through Literature: Interspecies Relationship in La Mirada de Humilda by Alonso Sánchez Baute

Anna Maria Karczewska

Section: ARTICLES

https://doi.org/10.31261/ZOOPHILOLOGICA.2026.17.03

Abstract

Alonso Sánchez Baute’s La Mirada de Humilda (Humilda’s Gaze) (2022) is a book about the interspecies relationship between the writer and his dog, Humilda, West Highland White Terrier. It tells a story of a friendship of two beings who observe, support and love each other and who are made to say goodbye one day. The aim of this article is to explore how Sánchez Baute’s book may shape the reader’s engagement with the text, how it fosters a sense of simulative empathy, enabling readers to emotionally connect with the canine’s experiences and the human–dog relationship depicted in the novel; how it enhances the emotional depth and appeal of the story, offering unique insights into the interspecies bond. To explore the abovementioned themes, the impact of the companion species on a human being will be analyzed, along with their communication and the process of grieving after the dog’s death.

Keywords:

posthumanism , inter-species communication , grief , becoming-with , animal narrative , simulative empathy

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Karczewska, A. M. (2026). Developing Empathy through Literature: Interspecies Relationship in La Mirada de Humilda by Alonso Sánchez Baute. Zoophilologica. Polish Journal of Animal Studies, 1–28. https://doi.org/10.31261/ZOOPHILOLOGICA.2026.17.03

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Anna Maria Karczewska

a.karczewska@uwb.edu.pl
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8644-4723

Affiliation:

University of Bialystok Poland

Bio Statement (e.g., department and rank)

Anna Maria Karczewska is Assistant Professor at the University of Białystok, where she teaches at the Faculty of Philology. She is a graduate in English and Spanish Philology; she holds a Ph.D. in cultural studies from the University of Social Sciences and Humanities (SWPS) in Warsaw. Her current research interests revolve around Latin American culture and literature and posthuman studies. In August–October 2020 she was a Visiting Fellow at The Pontifical Bolivarian University (UPB) in Medellín, Colombia. She is a recipient of the Polish National Science Center research grant Miniatura 5 (2021) for the project “Medellín: the portrait of trauma and urban violence in the works of Colombian journalists.” Her latest article “Hydrocentric Reading of Rivers. Waterways in Wade Davis’ Magdalena: River of Dreams. A Story of Colombia” is the result of a research stay in the Colombian city of Honda, at the Magdalena River Museum (The project was financed from the grant received from the Polish Ministry of Education and Science under the Regional Initiative of Excellence programme for the years 2019–2022, project number 009/RID/2018/19). E-mail: a.karczewska@uwb.edu.pl.

2026
Published: 2025-04-03

ISSN: 2719-2687

eISSN: 2451-3849

10.31261/ZOOPHILOLOGICA

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Developing Empathy through Literature: Interspecies Relationship in La Mirada de Humilda by Alonso Sánchez Baute

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Anna Maria Karczewska

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