Nicanor Parra

Nicanor Parra is a person who I admire. I think he is one of the most remarkable chileans of our times. He’s had a strong impact on the national literature because he’s a subversive figure in the artistic field. He’s found different styles, languages and expressions of contemporary art. I think the value of his deed consist in he’s developed his own poetic aesthetic and he incorporated elements of the rural traditional culture.

In 1954 he published his book Poemas y Antipoemas. Doubtless, that’s his more emblematic play. The book represented a deeply change in the spanish american and national literature. His literary proposal uses a daily language and with a good deal of irony. This model has gone evolved through his long trajectory.

Parra inaugurates a New Poetry. This New Poetry tries to present a realistic view of sociocultural reality and at the same time it exposes an eagerness to destroy traditional writing which don’t talk about reality. Antipoesia is a place where poetry can be critical with itself. 

In a recent interview Nicanor Parra was critical of his nephew Angel Parra because of their collaboration in the movie of Violeta Parra. For him, this tape is nothing more than an appropriation by the bourgeoisie of this popular icon, showing a "smooth" version the singer. He’s really cool.

Sadly, I think Parra haven`t social recognition in Chile and I’m not talking about prizes or awards… He’s obtained a lot of international awards. In 1969 he got the Nobel Prize of Literature. The last one was the Cervantes Prize in 2011. Some people says that’s not enough but I think Parra doesn`t mind those things. So, I would like to  ask him which way he wants to be remembered. 

"Hay dos panes. Usted se come dos. Yo ninguno. Consumo promedio: un pan por persona"