During the 1970s, many countries in South America endured political upheaval and undeclared civil war as military dictatorships gained control of the government. This was a period of rapid political change marked by violence and oppression. Unelected military regimes seized power, justifying their actions within a Cold War context as efforts to root out communist or Marxist regimes. Following the restoration of democracy, investigations documented the murder or “disappearance” of thousands of citizens of these countries.

Isabel Allende was raised in an affluent Chilean diplomatic family. Her uncle, Salvador Allende, the first democratically elected Marxist president in the Western Hemisphere, died on September 11, 1973, during the violent coup d’état that gave General Augusto Pinochet control of the country from 1973 until 1990. The author was 31 years old at the time and fled to exile in Venezuela with her family. Her family’s subsequent escape and exile from Chile had a profound influence on Allende, and themes of political violence, social upheaval, and people who are “disappeared” by government regimes appear frequently in her work.

In “Two Words,” Allende draws upon her personal experience, setting the narrative during a time of political instability with a central character who leads a revolutionary group and wants to be president.