A threshold for reading Octavio Paz’s Complete works, the prologues

Abstract

The present work studies the prologues of Octavio Paz (1914-1998) to his Obras Completas, published between 1991-1996. It seeks to prove that, even in a specialty considered as a secondary area, these prefaces contain aspects and reflections that contribute to the reconstruction of the Mexican author's thought. The so-called “intimacy” of his prologues refers to a repertoire of reading instructions that the poet inherits to argue (and influence) the future reception of his books. Despite the extensive bibliography raised by his books, the face of the prologue to his own works has basically been ignored. For this reason, from a general perspective, our hypothesis is sustained in the study of the prologue as a “paratext” (discussion proposed by Gerard Genette) prepared for reflection on the actuality and history of the Pacian studies: the prologue as an intimate text capable to think, at the same time, the cultural and historical state of its context.