March 7th, 2024 (3:00 – 4:30pm Boston | 21:00 Madrid) | via Zoom
RSVP: https://bit.ly/RSVPObservatorio or info-observatory@fas.harvard.edu
The Observatorio commemorates this year’s International Women’s Day with a panel dedicated to examining, from various perspectives, the vast complexity in Gabriela Mistral's life and art (1889-1957). The Chilean writer, diplomat, and educator lived a life of travel, with extended stays in Chile, Mexico, France, the United States, Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Brazil. In 1945, she received the Nobel Prize in Literature, and her words and poetry still resonate throughout the Spanish-speaking world, where schools, streets, and squares are named after her. Elizabeth Horan (Arizona State University) will explore the concepts of anti-imperialism and mestizaje in the post-revolutionary Mexican context, Central America, and New York—the city where Mistral first revealed her mestiza identity. Marjorie Agosín (Wellesley College) will delve into Mistral’s final exile before her death, particularly her role as a consul in Los Angeles, her teaching at Barnard College, and the significant possibilities and opportunities that living in the United States provided her. Lastly, Velma García-Gorena (Smith College) will focus on the correspondence between the author and her partner, the American Doris Dana, in which Mistral reveals her ambivalent stance toward the United States—admiring its efficiency and economic power while perceiving how it obstructs Latin America’s development.
Marjorie Agosín is the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities at Wellesley College (Massachusetts). She is an award-winning poet and human rights activist. Her recent creative work has focused on young adult novels, memoirs, and critical essays. Among her recent accolades are the Pura Belpre Award from the American Library Association and the Jasper Whiting Traveling Fellowship. Additionally, Agosín has been honored with the 'Gabriela Mistral' Medal of Honor by the Chilean Government.
Velma Garcia is professor emerita of government at Smith College (Massachusetts). She is notable for her work Gabriela Mistral’s Letters to Doris Dana (published by the University of New Mexico Press, 2018). She has recently completed the translation of Gabriela Mistral’s latest poetry book, Poema de Chile, in collaboration with Kate Berson. Garcia is currently working on translating the political writings of the Chilean author, which include essays advocating for the rights of women, children, and indigenous people.
Elizabeth Horan, is a professor of English at Arizona State University. She has recently published her book titled Mistral, una vida through Penguin Random Lumen in 2024. In addition to her translations and articles about the Chilean author, Horan has edited several collections of Mistral’s letters, including Preciadas cartas (published by Editorial Renacimiento, 2019) and Esta América nuestra (Editorial El Cuenco de Plata, 2007).
Language: Spanish