Pizarnik’s Origen
A few hours sleep and then more translations. Z. Nelly Martínez, writing in Salgado's anthology of Spanish American poets, notes that before Pizarnik committed suicide, she left behind, "a few words scribbled on a slate that same month, reiterating her desire to go nowhere 'but the bottom,' [which] sum up her lifelong aspiration as a human being and a writer" (page 283)1 That might be true, I do not yet know enough about Pizarnik to comment. However, in this short poem, Origen, we witness a poetic philosophy that, from all accounts, Alejandra will return to. To continue with Martínez's quote:
The compulsion to head for the 'bottom' or 'abyss' points to her desire to surrender to nothingness in an ultimate experience of ecstasy and poetic fulfillment in which life and art would be fused, albeit at her own risk … (ibid.)
Here we have the poet declaring the need to save the wind by going back into the natural world and pain in order to join with Los pájaros queman el viento, "birds that burn the wind," the creative element. It will be interesting to see if this theme reappears and under what form it takes.
| Origen Alejandra Pizarnik |
Origin translated by ZJC |
|---|---|
|
Hay que salvar al viento |
It is necessary to save to the wind |
- Salgado, María A. (ed.)Modern Spanish American poets. First series. Detroit: Gale (2003) [back]