The Year of Octavio Paz (Part 2)

The Significance of Beginnings

2014 is officially “The Year of Octavio Paz” in Mexico, and Wordfest is celebrating the occasion with a weekly series of blog posts exploring Paz’s contribution to the cultural landscape. The series wraps up on May 29 with a panel discussion at 5:30pm at the Kahanoff Centre (105 12 Ave SE #200, Calgary), organized by The Casa México in Alberta Foundation.

Octavio Paz: The Meaning of the Centenary Celebrations

It seems fitting that we are celebrating the centenary of the Octavio Paz’s birth rather than commemorating the anniversary of his passing. The date marking Paz’s entry into the world and his journey as a poet, writer, thinker and citizen seems far more significant than the moment of his departure — and rightly so.

When Mexico officially named 2014 “The Year of Octavio Paz,” it was in the spirit of honouring the continuation of his legacy as much as it was about reflecting on his past, his career and what he left behind.

To be sure, observers and students of his work had good reason to mourn the passing of the Nobel Prize-winning poet, writer, essayist and diplomat as “the end of an era for Mexico.” Paz helped define modern writing in Mexico and in World Literature. This CBS Night Watch video from 1990 offers a nice overview of how Paz shaped literature at home and abroad. (Of course, feel free to skip over the dated commercial breaks).

Unlike most stories that are conventionally held together by a beginning, a middle and an end, there is perhaps no definitive ending to Paz’s “life-as-story” in this case, so long as there are others to carry his work forward.

Next week, Wordfest will explore some of the traces of Paz’s influence and how contemporary artists across disciplines have drawn inspiration from his writing.

Wordfest’s mini-series on Octavio Paz includes the following articles:

– The Year of Octavio Paz [Part 1]
– The Significance of Beginnings [Part 2]
– Octavio Paz: Philosophy & Poetry Interpreted [Part 3]
– Mexican Literature “after Octavio Paz” [Part 4]
– Alberto Ruy Sanchez on Octavio Paz [Part 5]