MISTRAL FredericABAA
Mistral GabrielaABAA
Chilean Poet Gabriela Mistral Writes on Xenophobia her "Deep Love" for Latin America and Traveling with her Lover Doris
16184Gabriela Mistral. Chilean poet educator and diplomat; she was the first Latin American woman to win the Nobel Prize for her poetry. Autograph Letter signed in ink. To her friend Anita Risdon in Los Angeles California. Mistral writes this personal and poetic letter touching upon her nomadic global lifestyle and romantic relationship with partner Doris Dana from her consular post in Jalapa Vera Cruz in Southeastern Mexico. Hotel Mocambo. January 11 circa early 1950s. <br/><br/>Awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature "for her lyric poetry which inspired by powerful emotions" Mistral writes this cryptically symbolic and emotionally powerful letter to Anita Risdon one of the inner circle of her female friends that formed the primary relationships in Mistral's life. By this time Mistral was a figure of international acclaim and symbol of Latin American strength and romanticism while ironically an exile from her own much loved Chile. She writes of something Risdon has written and sent her in the mail cryptically referring to it as a "yellow spur" and that "it seemed to me that the very heart hung upon the words." She refers to a "stumble by the Jalapa government" likely relating to her diplomatic post and the "xenophobia" she has encountered. <br/><br/>She writes that "I'm planning to leave to Italy in March" where she also held a diplomatic post. And she discusses her then relatively new relationship with Doris Dana Mistral's great love who first became her partner in 1948 and remained with her until death. "I'm trying to get Doris to accompany me but I still see her quite attached to New York. Demon cities that you have Los Angeles New York Chicago. The Horror! They are not even good enough for my cow to 'graze' on." The "cow" mentioned by Mistral may be literal in reference to the poor soil of the cities in relation to her beloved Chile or metaphorically a description of her inspiration for writing or some other mixed burden and blessing. Throughout the letter she makes reference to this "cow" saying that here in Mexico it is still with her and that she is "trying to give it to four Mexican friends" although she does not want it to fall into the hands of the government. <br/><br/>A recurring theme in Mistral's writing is sadness and nostalgia and here she writes of her "worn out heart" both figurative and literal. She also reveals the same complex emotions for her Latin American homeland as is explored in her poetry and played out in her life "I deeply love my Latin America dear but its personality is as trying as that of a sixty year old maid's that is to say like myself." With other wonderful poetic and cryptic content perfect for the investigation of a scholar. Letter in fine condition with mild toning and usual mailing folds. The letters Mistral received from Anita Risdon are today held by the National Archive in Chile as part of a gift from Doris Atkinson the niece and executor of Doris Dana upon her death in 2006. These letters have refueled scholarly investigation into Mistral's life and revealed the romantic nature of her relationship with Dana and other women throughout her life. However the archive holds relatively few letters such as this one by Mistral to her close female alliance. unknown books
Max Rambod Inc. · États-Unis1 500,00 $US≈ 1 269,15 €
