The Year of Octavio Paz (Part 4)

This post is the fourth installment in Wordfest’s mini-series commemorating the centenary of the Mexican author, Octavio Paz (1914-1998), a Nobel-prize winning poet, writer, essayist and diplomat. The series wraps up with a special event celebrating Paz’s legacy, held at the Kahanoff Centre (105 12 Ave SE #200, Calgary) on May 29, 5:30pm, organized by The Casa México in Alberta Foundation.

Mexican Literature “after Octavio Paz”

feelings, and the emergence of a “new” literature that today gives more priority to thinking.

To be sure, there is nothing wrong with telling stories that prompt readers to “think” — to reflect, for example, on the politics of the day, or the meaning of tradition, family and friendship, or the consequences of human action on the environment, or how different characters respond to various situations, real or imagined.

But, this invitation to “think” cannot be everything. It becomes clear towards the end of the lecture that, “after Octavio Paz,” contemporary Mexican Literature has unhinged itself somewhat from a concern for the same emotional horizon that once anchored the influential writers of the 20th Century. Frost seems to imply that when art becomes more about “thinking” than “feeling,” it is less able to grapple fully with the whole of human experience.

Do you agree?

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]