PABLO DE ROKHA: BIOGRAPHY, STYLE, WORKS, AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS - BIOGRAPHIES - 2024

Pablo de Rokha (1894-1968), actually called Carlos Ignacio Díaz Loyola, was a Chilean writer and poet who is considered one of the most outstanding intellectuals of his country during the 20th century. The political thought of this author was aligned with that of the Communist Party and reflected it in several of

Pablo de Rokha (1894-1968), actually called Carlos Ignacio Díaz Loyola, was a Chilean writer and poet who is considered one of the most outstanding intellectuals of his country during the 20th century. The political thought of this author was aligned with that of the Communist Party and reflected it in several of his works.

Pablo de Rokha's literary work was characterized by being critical, controversial and sharp. His texts had a political, social and religious tone. The writer used a cultured language that was difficult to understand. Although the poet defended freedom and democracy through his writings, he failed to approach the people due to the density and complexity of his poetry.

Pablo de Rokha. Source: See page for author, via Wikimedia Commons

Rokha's poetic production was extensive and covered philosophical, religious, political, ethical, moral, and economic themes. On the other hand, the author reflected in his poems the anguish and suffering due to circumstances in his life. Some of his most prominent titles were: Childhood Verses, The Devil's Sermon and Heroism without Joy.

Biography

Birth and family

Carlos Ignacio or Pablo de Rokha was born on October 17, 1894 in the town of Licantén in the Maule Region, Chile. The writer came from a cultured family and middle socioeconomic class. His parents were José Ignacio Díaz and Laura Loyola. The poet had a total of 19 siblings, of whom he was the oldest.

Rokha's childhood was spent in different cities in central Chile, such as Hualañé, Llico and Vichuquén. The author was involved in his father's work from an early age, and frequently accompanied him to perform his administrative jobs.

Studies

Pablo de Rokha's first years of educational training were spent at Public School No. 3 in the town of Talca, which he entered in 1901.

After overcoming this stage, little Rokha was enrolled in the San Pelayo Conciliar Seminary, but was quickly suspended for his rebellious attitude and propagating texts considered blasphemous by the institution. Later, he went to the Chilean capital to complete his studies.

At that time, the future writer began his contact with literature, especially with poetry. His first verses were signed as "Job Díaz" and "El amigo Piedra". When he finished high school, he enrolled at the University of Chile to study law, but did not finish his training.

Literary beginnings

Rokha's stay in Santiago was difficult, being a stage characterized by disorientation and the dissolution of his family. For this reason, Pablo acted with rebellion and disrespect before the norms established by society.

As far as the literary field is concerned, the nascent writer began working as an editor for the newspapers La Mañana and La Razón. In addition, he had the opportunity to publish some of his poems in the pages of the magazine Juventud, which was an informative organ of the Federation of Students of the University of Chile.

Return to Talca

Rokha returned to the town of Talca in 1914 because in the capital of the country he did not obtain the results he wanted. There she met Luisa Anabalón Sanderson, who gave her the book of poems of her authorship What silence told me, and which she signed as "Juana Inés de la Cruz."

Pablo and Luisa were married on October 25, 1916, after a period of dating. The wife changed her real name to the literary pseudonym Winétt de Rokha. The couple became inseparable and ten children were born as a result of love, two of them died when they were babies.

First publications

The poet released his first book Verses de Infancy in 1916. On the other hand, Pablo de Rokha carried out various tasks separate from literature in order to support his wife and home. The writer worked as a merchant, property salesman, and painter.

Signature of Pablo de Rokha. Source: Pablo de Rokha, via Wikimedia Commons

At that time, the intellectual consolidated his communist thinking and joined the International Anarchist Movement. Later, Pablo and his wife spent time between the cities of Concepción and San Felipe, where he published Los groans (1922) and created the magazines Agonal, Dínamo and Numen.

Communist and social literature

Pablo de Rokha oriented his poetry towards a social and communist content in the 1930s. In fact, at that time the writer joined the ranks of the Communist Party of Chile. Reflecting his political-social ideal, the poet published the works Jesus Christ, Canto de tinchera and Los thirteen.

Although Rokha tried to approach people through his poetry with a village tone, he did not succeed in making everyone like him. In the political sphere, the writer was a candidate for deputy on the side of the Communists, but was not elected.

Continuity in communism

The Chilean writer taught at the School of Fine Arts in the mid-1930s and was later nominated for the dean of that institution, but was unable to be elected. At the same time Rokha assumed the direction of the communist magazine Principles. The poet was also appointed president of the Casa América cultural entity.

His political and social ideal led him to join the Popular Front and set a position in favor of democracy and socialism. After the outbreak of the Spanish civil war, the poet supported the republican cause and made his verses an open window of expression against fascism.

Literary boom

Pablo de Rokha reached literary growth in 1937 with the publication of the works Imprecation to the fascist beast, Moses and Great temperature. A year later, the writer released Five Red Songs and left the Communist Party, but that did not mean a change in his thinking.

After a while, the poet began directing the cultural publication Multitud, in 1939. At that time Rokha achieved a certain fame due to the frequent insults he sustained with the intellectuals Pablo Neruda and Vicente Huidobro from the platform of the newspaper La Opinion.

Diplomatic work

The writer began diplomatic career in 1944 when he was appointed cultural ambassador of his country by the presidential president Juan Antonio Ríos. This is how Rokha visited more than nineteen countries in America in the company of his wife. The poet was in charge of conducting conferences, workshops and talks.

At that time, the intellectual met various personalities from the political, cultural and literary life of the American continent. Pablo strengthened ties of friendship with intellectuals of the stature of Arturo Uslar Pietri, Juan Marinello, Lázaro Cárdenas, Miguel Otero Silva and Juan Liscano.

Return to Chile

Rokha's tour of America culminated in the late 1940s, but the poet stayed in Argentina due to the political upheaval that occurred in his country after González Videla's persecution of the Communist Party. Once all the inconveniences were finished, the writer was able to reach Chile in 1949.

Pablo returned to his career as a writer as soon as he settled back in his country. At that time, the poet released two of his most relevant works, which were: Magna Carta of the continent and Arenga on art.

Hard time

Winétt de Rokha fell ill with cancer during her trip to the continent with her spouse. The health of the poet's life partner worsened when they arrived in Chile. Irremediably, the intellectual's wife died in 1951 after a hard battle against the evil that afflicted her.

Pablo de Rokha was devastated by the loss of his beloved and for a time he was mired in sadness and anguish. Two years after the unfortunate event, the writer published Black Fire, in memory of his wife. In that work the poet dumped all his suffering.

Against Pablo Neruda

Rokha always expressed his aversion against Neruda's poetic work. So he published Neruda y yo in 1955, in which he made harsh criticisms of his countryman, calling him false and hypocritical. With such action, Rokha earned the scorn of Pablo Neruda's followers.

Wooden sculpture in honor of Pablo de Rokha in Licantén. Source: order_242 from Chile, via Wikimedia Commons

Some time later, Rokha added "fuel to the fire" again with the publication of Genio del pueblo (1960). In this work, the writer mocked Neruda's life and literary work with an ironic tone. On the other hand, they were difficult times for the writer emotionally and financially. The poet suffered the loss of his son Carlos in 1962.

Last years and death

The last years of Pablo de Rokha's life passed between loneliness and sadness over the death of his wife and then that of his son. Even winning the National Prize for Literature in 1965 did not cheer his spirit.

The poet expressed in his welcoming speech: "… before the family was shattered, this award would have overwhelmed me with such immense rejoicing…". As if that were not enough, the darkness that the writer lived was added to the loss of his son Pablo and that of his friend Joaquín Edwards Bello in 1968.

As a result of all these sadness, the poet took his life by shooting himself in the mouth on September 10 of that same year at his residence in Santiago. At that time he was 73 years old.

Style

Pablo de Rokha's literary work went through various literary styles. His first poetic works were characterized by having certain features of romanticism and a vision against established laws. After that, the writer began in the vanguard movements and highlighted the peasant qualities of his country.

Later Rokha focused on the development of a poetry of political and social content regarding the events that occurred in Chile and in some communist countries.

The central theme was inequality, the defense of democracy and freedom. The language used by the author was cultured and dense, which made it difficult to understand.

Plays

Poetry

Biography

Birth and family

Carlos Ignacio or Pablo de Rokha was born on October 17, 1894 in the town of Licantén in the Maule Region, Chile. The writer came from a cultured family and middle socioeconomic class. His parents were José Ignacio Díaz and Laura Loyola. The poet had a total of 19 siblings, of whom he was the oldest.

Rokha's childhood was spent in different cities in central Chile, such as Hualañé, Llico and Vichuquén. The author was involved in his father's work from an early age, and frequently accompanied him to perform his administrative jobs.

Studies

Pablo de Rokha's first years of educational training were spent at Public School No. 3 in the town of Talca, which he entered in 1901.

After overcoming this stage, little Rokha was enrolled in the San Pelayo Conciliar Seminary, but was quickly suspended for his rebellious attitude and propagating texts considered blasphemous by the institution. Later, he went to the Chilean capital to complete his studies.

At that time, the future writer began his contact with literature, especially with poetry. His first verses were signed as "Job Díaz" and "El amigo Piedra". When he finished high school, he enrolled at the University of Chile to study law, but did not finish his training.

Literary beginnings

Rokha's stay in Santiago was difficult, being a stage characterized by disorientation and the dissolution of his family. For this reason, Pablo acted with rebellion and disrespect before the norms established by society.

As far as the literary field is concerned, the nascent writer began working as an editor for the newspapers La Mañana and La Razón. In addition, he had the opportunity to publish some of his poems in the pages of the magazine Juventud, which was an informative organ of the Federation of Students of the University of Chile.

Return to Talca

Rokha returned to the town of Talca in 1914 because in the capital of the country he did not obtain the results he wanted. There she met Luisa Anabalón Sanderson, who gave her the book of poems of her authorship What silence told me, and which she signed as "Juana Inés de la Cruz."

Pablo and Luisa were married on October 25, 1916, after a period of dating. The wife changed her real name to the literary pseudonym Winétt de Rokha. The couple became inseparable and ten children were born as a result of love, two of them died when they were babies.

First publications

The poet released his first book Verses de Infancy in 1916. On the other hand, Pablo de Rokha carried out various tasks separate from literature in order to support his wife and home. The writer worked as a merchant, property salesman, and painter.

Signature of Pablo de Rokha. Source: Pablo de Rokha, via Wikimedia Commons

At that time, the intellectual consolidated his communist thinking and joined the International Anarchist Movement. Later, Pablo and his wife spent time between the cities of Concepción and San Felipe, where he published Los groans (1922) and created the magazines Agonal, Dínamo and Numen.

Communist and social literature

Pablo de Rokha oriented his poetry towards a social and communist content in the 1930s. In fact, at that time the writer joined the ranks of the Communist Party of Chile. Reflecting his political-social ideal, the poet published the works Jesus Christ, Canto de tinchera and Los thirteen.

Although Rokha tried to approach people through his poetry with a village tone, he did not succeed in making everyone like him. In the political sphere, the writer was a candidate for deputy on the side of the Communists, but was not elected.

Continuity in communism

The Chilean writer taught at the School of Fine Arts in the mid-1930s and was later nominated for the dean of that institution, but was unable to be elected. At the same time Rokha assumed the direction of the communist magazine Principles. The poet was also appointed president of the Casa América cultural entity.

His political and social ideal led him to join the Popular Front and set a position in favor of democracy and socialism. After the outbreak of the Spanish civil war, the poet supported the republican cause and made his verses an open window of expression against fascism.

Literary boom

Pablo de Rokha reached literary growth in 1937 with the publication of the works Imprecation to the fascist beast, Moses and Great temperature. A year later, the writer released Five Red Songs and left the Communist Party, but that did not mean a change in his thinking.

After a while, the poet began directing the cultural publication Multitud, in 1939. At that time Rokha achieved a certain fame due to the frequent insults he sustained with the intellectuals Pablo Neruda and Vicente Huidobro from the platform of the newspaper La Opinion.

Diplomatic work

The writer began diplomatic career in 1944 when he was appointed cultural ambassador of his country by the presidential president Juan Antonio Ríos. This is how Rokha visited more than nineteen countries in America in the company of his wife. The poet was in charge of conducting conferences, workshops and talks.

At that time, the intellectual met various personalities from the political, cultural and literary life of the American continent. Pablo strengthened ties of friendship with intellectuals of the stature of Arturo Uslar Pietri, Juan Marinello, Lázaro Cárdenas, Miguel Otero Silva and Juan Liscano.

Return to Chile

Rokha's tour of America culminated in the late 1940s, but the poet stayed in Argentina due to the political upheaval that occurred in his country after González Videla's persecution of the Communist Party. Once all the inconveniences were finished, the writer was able to reach Chile in 1949.

Pablo returned to his career as a writer as soon as he settled back in his country. At that time, the poet released two of his most relevant works, which were: Magna Carta of the continent and Arenga on art.

Hard time

Winétt de Rokha fell ill with cancer during her trip to the continent with her spouse. The health of the poet's life partner worsened when they arrived in Chile. Irremediably, the intellectual's wife died in 1951 after a hard battle against the evil that afflicted her.

Pablo de Rokha was devastated by the loss of his beloved and for a time he was mired in sadness and anguish. Two years after the unfortunate event, the writer published Black Fire, in memory of his wife. In that work the poet dumped all his suffering.

Against Pablo Neruda

Rokha always expressed his aversion against Neruda's poetic work. So he published Neruda y yo in 1955, in which he made harsh criticisms of his countryman, calling him false and hypocritical. With such action, Rokha earned the scorn of Pablo Neruda's followers.

Wooden sculpture in honor of Pablo de Rokha in Licantén. Source: order_242 from Chile, via Wikimedia Commons

Some time later, Rokha added "fuel to the fire" again with the publication of Genio del pueblo (1960). In this work, the writer mocked Neruda's life and literary work with an ironic tone. On the other hand, they were difficult times for the writer emotionally and financially. The poet suffered the loss of his son Carlos in 1962.

Last years and death

The last years of Pablo de Rokha's life passed between loneliness and sadness over the death of his wife and then that of his son. Even winning the National Prize for Literature in 1965 did not cheer his spirit.

The poet expressed in his welcoming speech: "… before the family was shattered, this award would have overwhelmed me with such immense rejoicing…". As if that were not enough, the darkness that the writer lived was added to the loss of his son Pablo and that of his friend Joaquín Edwards Bello in 1968.

As a result of all these sadness, the poet took his life by shooting himself in the mouth on September 10 of that same year at his residence in Santiago. At that time he was 73 years old.

Style

Pablo de Rokha's literary work went through various literary styles. His first poetic works were characterized by having certain features of romanticism and a vision against established laws. After that, the writer began in the vanguard movements and highlighted the peasant qualities of his country.

Later Rokha focused on the development of a poetry of political and social content regarding the events that occurred in Chile and in some communist countries.

The central theme was inequality, the defense of democracy and freedom. The language used by the author was cultured and dense, which made it difficult to understand.

Plays

Poetry

- Childhood Verses (1913-1916).

- The devil's serial (1916-1922).

- Satire (1918).

- The moans (1922).

- Cosmogony (1922-1927).

- U (1927).

- Heroism without joy (1927).

- Satan (1927).

- South America (1927).

- Equation (1929).

- Writing by Raimundo Contreras (1929).

- The song of your old woman (1930-1932).

- Jesus Christ (1930-1933).

- Song of the trench (1933).

- The thirteen (1934-1935).

- Ode to the memory of Gorki (1936).

- Imprecation to the fascist beast (1937).

- Moses (1937).

- Great temperature (1937).

- Five red songs (1938).

- Morphology of horror (1942).

- Song to the Red Army (1944).

- The continental poems (1944-1945).

- Dialectical interpretation of America and the five styles of the Pacific (1947).

- Magna Carta of the continent (1949).

- Arenga on art (1949).

- Blood rifles (1950).

- Funeral for the heroes and martyrs of Korea (1950).

- Black fire (1951-1953).

- Big art or exercise of realism (1953).

- Anthology (1916-1953).

- Neruda and I (1955).

- Language of the world (1958).

- Genius of the people (1960).

- Ode to Cuba (1963).

- Winter Steel (1961).

- Song of fire to China Popular (1963).

- Red China (1964).

- Mass style (1965).

- Epic of the food and drink of Chile (1949) / Song of the old male (1965).

- Tercetos Dantescos to Casiano Basualto (1965).

- World to world: France (1966).

- El amigo Piedra (posthumous edition, 1990).

- Unpublished works (1999).

Brief description of some of his works

Childhood verses

First page of the emblematic work Sudamérica, by Pablo de Rokha. Source: Miguel Lahsen, via Wikimedia Commons

It was the first work that Pablo de Rokha published and was part of the poetry anthology Selva Lyrical. The writer reflected in the verses some traits of sentimentality typical of the romantic current. Now, in this collection of poems the author glimpsed his position vis-à-vis the politics and society of his time.

Fragment of "Genius and figure"

“I am like the total failure of the world, oh

peoples!

The song face to face with Satan himself, dialogues with the tremendous science of the dead, and my pain drips with blood over the city.

… The man and the woman have the smell of the grave;

my body falls on the raw earth

the same as the red coffin of the unhappy.

Total enemy, howl through the neighborhoods, a more barbarous horror, more barbarian, more barbarous

than the hiccups of a hundred dogs thrown to death ”.

The moans

It was one of the most important and well-known collections of poems by Rokha, with which the writer entered the avant-garde movements and broke into the poetry that was known at that time. The title of the book was associated with the expression of desire and at the same time fatality that the author felt about life situations.

Fragment of "Epitalamio"

“All of me, all of me made songs for myself in his broad attitude; his words are my organs; I wrote such a tune with the polyclinic signature of human cries on the tremendous macabre rock of the tombs; I sang with flames, burning, burning, with flames, I sang…

“Moan of a fierce animal in love, this 'song of songs' is the eternal song, the eternal song that someone taught us in the early days and we still sing… lice or mountains, diseases, gestures. By God you have a sweet tooth, by God!… ”.

Joyless heroism

This work was an essay that the Chilean writer developed on the perspective he had on the literary aesthetics that occurred in America in the first decades of the 20th century. In this text, the author gave the creator or artist the qualities of hero and savior, and also gave him the power to make reality new.

This work by Pablo de Rokha was made up of the following chapters or sections:

- "Action, pain."

- "The man in front".

- "Essay of aesthetics".

- "Platform of foreigners: the dark race".

- "About the world".

- "Tragedy of the individual".

- "Underground".

Fragment of "Essay of aesthetics"

“My art affirms two foundations: the logical and aesthetic truth of the world; two senses, two situations, two paths; the logical truth and the aesthetic truth of the world. That affirms my art, the philosophy of my art, I…

“The logical truth is situated in the conscience; aesthetic truth is situated in subconsciousness; logical truth emanates from intelligence, sophistry, reasoning… aesthetic truth emanates from memory without memory of eternal events; logical truth limits the world to psychic man, aesthetic truth derives from the whole man… ”.

Fragment of "Underground"

“Does man really die, or does man die just because we believe him dead? Really? Really yes, but what does reality matter?…

“However, something is going to change life in my incontestable events, something is going to die, yes, something is going to die in this hard moment. Or parallel to a great mountain growing an indefinable bird. Sobbing circumference, it is the new consciousness… ”.

Trench song

It was one of the works in which Rokha expressed militant poetry, that is, the writer reflected his political ideal and delved into the events that occurred both in Chile and in the rest of the continent. The author tried to combine the actions of the individual with his social environment.

In this text, the poet expressed his own feelings, his disagreements and his desire for change, as a kind of song. Pablo de Rokha used his customary cultured and dense language that earned him followers and detractors.

Morphology of horror

This work was part of the stage in which the poet made his poetry a song of expression of political and social content. The theme was centered on war conflicts, poverty, injustice and inequality. The author tried to connect the artistic with the reality of the individual.

Black fire

With this work, Pablo de Rokha took a break from his militant and political poetry to write about the pain and agony he felt at the death of his wife. The verses of this collection of poems reflected the darkness in which the author was plunged. The elegy was expressive and full of feelings.

Fragment

"Inside an arc of crying, which no human being will ever look at, I, drunk, stabbed, with my tongue burned by the ancestor of the world, and the useless cry, as inside the universal skin, I will keep calling you…

"I learned to write adoring you, singing you, idolizing you, and today I throw pieces of the world shattered, to your memory, smashing and from below, inside a pile of rubble, among the collapsing society… in which everything is broken and it doesn't make sense, everything is broken… ”.

Fragment of some of his poems

South America

“Saint of silver living in electricity, twisting geometry,

steering with pigeons without index, originating in adventure still

silence of flags, still moon so moon

from trade to man, towards the man still the married emerald

and the ship in indemonstrable character…

Knife thieves basking in the sun-wounded flower

with a voice like that surpassing the herds

more steel than ever corkscrew rounder

against the sky above the carved assassins… ”.

I am the married man

“I am the married man, I am the married man who invented marriage;

ancient and egregious man, girded with catastrophes, gloomy;

I haven't slept for a thousand, a thousand years taking care of the children and the stars

sleepless;

that's why I drag my hairy meat from sleep

above the guttural country of opal chimneys.

… I dominate them with the dead look of my tie, and my attitude continues to light the terrified lamps… ”.

Prayer to beauty

“Beauty, extension of the infinite and useless thing,

beauty, beauty, mother of wisdom, colossal lily of water and smoke, waters and smoke on a sunset, extraordinary as the birth of a man

What do you want with me, beauty, what do you want with me?

Dantesque third parties to Casiano Basualto

“Senile gallipavo and cogotero

of dirty poetry, of macaques, your belly is swollen with money.

Defecate in the portal of the maracos, your egotism of a famous idiot

just like the boars in the pigpen.

You become stinky of slimy, and the fools call you: 'great podeta'!

in the bedrooms of the dark.

If you were a rag of operetta,

and only a flutist bird, Just a couple of kicks to the butt!

… Great bourgeois, you kneel by the wall

from the pantheon of the Swedish Academy, to beg… impure dual amoral!

And the delinquent emerges towards the pleca

of the filthy face, that the dried criadilla exhibits in the sun… ”.

Awards and honours

- Chilean National Prize for Literature in 1965.

- Illustrious Son of Licantén on October 19, 1966.

References

1. Pablo de Rokha. (2019). Spain: Wikipedia. Recovered from: es.wikipedia.org.
2. Pablo de Rokha (1894-1968). (2019). Chile: Chilean Memory. Recovered from: memoriachilena.gob.cl.
3. Nómez, N. (2010). Pablo de Rokha: avant-garde, utopia and identity in Chilean poetry. Chile: Bus. Recovered from: ómnibus.miradamalva.org.
4. Pablo de Rokha. (S. f.). Cuba: EcuRed. Recovered from: ecured.cu.
5. Pablo de Rokha. (S. f.). Chile: Escritores.cl. Recovered from: writers.cl.