[En Español]

Se inventó una cara.

Detrás de ella

Vivió murió y resucitó

Muchas veses.

Su cara

Hoy tiene las arrugas de esa cara.

Sus arrugas no tienen cara.

[In English]

He invented a face for himself.

Behind it,

He lived, died, and was resurrected

Many times.

His face now

Has the wrinkles from that face.

His wrinkles have no face.

EL OTRO by OCTAVIO PAZ

I’m starting this presentation with a poem, because although Octavio I’m starting this presentation with a poem, because although Octavio Paz served as a diplomat, activist and critic, he was foremost, a poet. Paz served as a diplomat, activist and critic, he was foremost, a poet.

Please click to continue. Please click to continue.

YES, BUT WHAT YES, BUT WHAT

DO I WRITE EXACTLY? (1)DO I WRITE EXACTLY? (1)1.) Describe the Spanish Cultural Aspect you are going to discuss in your project.

What? Octavio PazWhere? Mexico City to the WorldWhen? 1914-1998How? ...Who is Involved? ...

2.) Why did you choose this particular aspect for your project?

I enjoy poetry. Learning about a Mexican poet allows me to learn about two things at once. One, Spanish Culture, two, poetry. I find that incorporating two things I admire allows me to learn much more of what I want to know because it overlaps with what I need to know for class. Besides, it’s fun! (Time consuming, but fun nonetheless). It surprised me to learn that I could translate some of the poems with my meager knowledge of Spanish, that made me feel good!

3.) What other information did you gather about this aspect from doing research on the topic? Other then information about Paz, I learned names of other famous

Spanish-Speaking poets that I didn’t know about. This gives me leads to research the subject for myself after this project.

Who was Octavio Paz?Who was Octavio Paz?((A question without an easy answer. ))

First (and most simply): A Man

Second: A Mexican Man - Although there was the world in Paz, he is always identified with his native land.

A Poet – Whether it’s looking deeper into things or just using words like no one else can, Octavio Paz had these qualities, and knew how to use them.

Third:

Fourth: A Proponent of Freedom – Throughout his life, Octavio Paz fought to protect the artist’s right to think and the people’s democratic rights to live.

Fifth: An Essayist and Critic – Aside from poetry, Octavio Paz wrote a wide array of expository prose pieces.

First Published in First Published in 1950, one of Paz’s 1950, one of Paz’s

most famous works.most famous works.

Octavio Paz at 10 years old. Octavio Paz at 10 years old.

Octavio Paz Lozano was born on

March 31, 1914 to

Octavio Paz Solórzano

and

Josefina Lozano Paz

He began his life in Mexico City

But circumstances

(the revolution going on at the time)

Caused his family to move to a small village called

Mixcoac until paz was six years old.

At about that time,

Octavio was moved to

Los Angeles, where he attended kindergarten.

He was teased by the other kids for being different.

After a year, Octavio moved back to

Mixcoac.However, he was once

Again teased.He felt like,

“A Foreigner in his own country.” This was a theme that would

follow him throughout his life.

His YouthHis Youth

Octavio Paz at 18Octavio Paz at 18

Teenage YearsTeenage Years

Octavio Paz at 16Octavio Paz at 16

At 16, Octavio entered National Preparatory School in San Ildefonso.

The disposition of the school was quite liberal at the time, and Octavio Paz was drawn into the fervor.

In his second year, Paz and friends started a “small literary review” called Barandal.

In 1932, Paz graduated from the National Preparatory School. His next stop was law school in Mexico City.

Literary InfluencesLiterary Influences

PABLO PABLO NERUDANERUDA

Federico

García

Lorca ELIOT

T.S

XavierXavier

VillaurrutiaVillaurrutia

Jorge

Luis

Borges

MARCEL PROUSTMARCEL PROUST

DiplomacyDiplomacyLaw school was not the place for Octavio Paz so in 1945(after

a trip to the United States on a scholarship) he accepted a diplomatic post for the Mexican government. Here, his travels

really began.

4 months in New Dehli

A Few Months A Few Months in Tokyoin Tokyo

5 years in Paris

Several Weeks in Geneva

In 1952 Octavio Paz returned to Mexico for a time. He would go on to spend time in New York, San Francisco, and in 1962 be appointed Ambassador to India. “In 1968, Octavio Paz resigned his post to protest the government massacre of student demonstrators in Mexico City shortly before the Olympic Games” (Eliot Wienberger)

WritingsWritingsPaz’s first book of poetry was published in 1933, it is called

Luna silvestre.

Along with countless books, Paz started and contributed to many literary magazines. Taller was started in 1938.

On the left is a visual poem, published in 1968 with a collection called, TOPOEMAS.

YES, BUT WHAT YES, BUT WHAT DO I WRITE EXACTLY? (2)DO I WRITE EXACTLY? (2)4.) How do you interpret the information you gathered about your topic? Why? How does this information compare to a comparable American cultural aspect?Well of course the first thing that comes to mind is the language difference. When talking about something as precise and dependent on the intricacies of a language as poetry, every word matters. I found that reading the poems in Spanish and seeing several different translations of the same words in English made me respect the depth of the Spanish language. As far as biographical aspects, obviously, some events of Octavio Paz’s life took place because he was Mexican. Other then that, I interpreted his life as I would that of an American poet.

5.) What did you learn about the Spanish culture from doing this project?I learned that the position of poet in Spanish-speaking countries is quite an exalted spot. Many poets are given diplomatic posts yet remain bound to their countries through their words. I learned to appreciate even more the uniqueness and beauty of Spanish. And I’m anxious to learn more words so I can understand the poetry!

TerminarTerminar

Octavio Paz died in 1998,

but not before receiving the 1990

Nobel Prize for Literature.