Margo Glantz
Encyclopedia
Margo Glantz is a Mexican
writer, essayist, critic and academic.
in the 1920s. Her father, Jacobo Glantz, met her mother, Elizabeth (Lucia) Shapiro in Odessa
, where they married. They tried to emigrate to the United States of America
, where they had relatives, but were denied entry and had to remain in Mexico. Although they stayed faithful to Jewish traditions, they soon moved in Mexican artistic circles. Her father was a friend of Diego Rivera
, and had great interest in the new cultural currents of his new adoptive country.
For many reasons, the family (including four daughters) had to move quite often. As a result, Margo went to several schools. She spent two years in the Secondary School No. 15, a year in the Israelite School of Mexico, and earned her baccalaureate in the National Preparatory School Number 1, the old school of San Ildefonso, where she was strongly influenced by one of her teachers, Agustín Yáñez
.
From 1947 to 1953, Margo Glantz studied English and Spanish Literature, as well as Art history, majoring in Theater History at the National Autonomous University of Mexico
. Here she had many outstanding professors, among them writers and philosophers such as Alfonso Reyes
, Julio Torri
, Rodolfo Usigli
, Samuel Ramos
and Leopoldo Zea. In 1953 she left for Europe, where she earned her doctorate in Hispanic Literature at the Sorbonne
. It was there where she presented her thesis on "The French Exoticism in Mexico (From 1847 to 1867)".
On her return to Mexico, she became a teacher in the Department of Theater History in the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature. In 1959 her first daughter, Alina, was born. After a journey to Cuba in 1961, she started to teach a course in Mexican Literature at the National Preparatory School Number 1, as well as courses in Universal Literature and of Mexican Literature at the Preparatory No. 5. In the same year she started to teach at the University Center of Theatre, at the School of Theater and Fine arts of the UNAM
, and at the Center of Classic Theater of the "Casa del Lago" (Lake House). During these years she published several essays and theater reviews in a variety of cultural magazines and handouts.
In 1966 she became a permanent, full-time Professor at the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature, specifically in Hispanic Literature and Comparative Literature. She founded and directed the university magazine Punto de Partida. She was also the director of the Israel-Mexico Cultural Institute until 1969. In 1971 her daughter Renata was born. In the same year she set out for the United States of America, where she taught classes at Montclair State College in New Jersey
. She published Onda y escritura en Mexico (Wave and writing in Mexico), Jovenes de 20 a 33, which gave name to a wave of emerging literature in the 60s, the "Onda" (the Wave).
She returned to Mexico in 1974, where she rejoined the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature, teaching courses in Latin American and Mexican Literature. In 1978 she edited her first fictional book, Las mil y una calorias, novela dietética (A Thousand and One Calories: A Dietetic Novel), which inspired a great number of other books in the field of creation and criticism (see bibliography). In 1981 she dedicated her autobiographic work, Las genealogias, to her father, who died one year later.
In 1983 she was named Director of Literature at the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes (INBA
), where she promoted and directed a number of publications. A year later she obtained the "Premio Xavier Villaurrutia" (The Xavier Villaurrutia Award
) for her work Síndrome de Naufragios. In 1986 she set out for England, where she worked as a Cultural Associate in the Mexican Embassy in London, until 1988.
That same year she returned to Mexico, and since has led courses at the Faculty of Philosophy and in numerous universities overseas. In 1989 she was named Member of the National System of Researchers. In 1991 she obtained the National University Prize and again in 1994 she was given the title of Emeritus Professor, both by UNAM
. Likewise, the University of Princeton has since awarded her the nomination of Honorary Emeritus Creator of the National System of Creators, as well as the Council of Humanities Fellow.
In 1995 she was elected to be a member of the Academia Mexicana de la Lengua
(Mexican Language Academy). In 2004 she was awarded the "Premio Nacional, campo I, Área de Lingüística y Literatura" (National Prize, field 1, Are of Linguistics and Literature). That same year she was granted the distinction of Emeritus Investigator of the Sistema Nacional de Investigadores (National System of Investigators). A year later, in 2005, she was honored with the Doctorate Honoris Causa by the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana and with her nomination as an Emeritus Honorary Creator of the National System of Creators. In 2006 a web page was published about her, which was coordinated by Beatriz Aracil Varón, in the Virtual Library Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, of Alicante University.
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
writer, essayist, critic and academic.
Biography
Margo Glantz's family immigrated to Mexico from UkraineUkraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
in the 1920s. Her father, Jacobo Glantz, met her mother, Elizabeth (Lucia) Shapiro in Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
, where they married. They tried to emigrate to the United States of America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where they had relatives, but were denied entry and had to remain in Mexico. Although they stayed faithful to Jewish traditions, they soon moved in Mexican artistic circles. Her father was a friend of Diego Rivera
Diego Rivera
Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez was a prominent Mexican painter born in Guanajuato, Guanajuato, an active communist, and husband of Frida Kahlo . His large wall works in fresco helped establish the Mexican Mural Movement in...
, and had great interest in the new cultural currents of his new adoptive country.
For many reasons, the family (including four daughters) had to move quite often. As a result, Margo went to several schools. She spent two years in the Secondary School No. 15, a year in the Israelite School of Mexico, and earned her baccalaureate in the National Preparatory School Number 1, the old school of San Ildefonso, where she was strongly influenced by one of her teachers, Agustín Yáñez
Agustín Yáñez
Agustín Yáñez Delgadillo was a notable Mexican writer and politician who served as Governor of Jalisco and Secretary of Public Education during Gustavo Díaz Ordaz's presidency...
.
From 1947 to 1953, Margo Glantz studied English and Spanish Literature, as well as Art history, majoring in Theater History at the National Autonomous University of Mexico
National Autonomous University of Mexico
The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México is a university in Mexico. UNAM was founded on 22 September 1910 by Justo Sierra as a liberal alternative to the Roman Catholic-sponsored Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) (National Autonomous...
. Here she had many outstanding professors, among them writers and philosophers such as Alfonso Reyes
Alfonso Reyes
Alfonso Reyes Ochoa was a Mexican writer, philosopher and diplomat.-Early life:Alfonso Reyes parents were Bernardo Reyes and Aurelia Ochoa...
, Julio Torri
Julio Torri
Julio Torri Maynes was a Mexican writer and teacher who formed part of the Ateneo de la Juventud . He wrote principally in the essay form, although his limited production included short stories and scholarly works as well...
, Rodolfo Usigli
Rodolfo Usigli
Rodolfo Usigli was a Mexican playwright. He was called the "playwright of the Mexican Revolution."Usigli born to an Italian father and a Polish mother in Mexico City. He studied drama at Yale from 1935-1936 on a Rockefeller scholarship, later becoming a professor and diplomat...
, Samuel Ramos
Samuel Ramos
Dr. Samuel Ramos was a Mexican philosopher and writer.Ramos was born in Zitácuaro, Michoacán, and in 1909 entered the Colegio de San Nicolás in Hidalgo. He published his first works in the school's student publication Flor de Loto...
and Leopoldo Zea. In 1953 she left for Europe, where she earned her doctorate in Hispanic Literature at the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
. It was there where she presented her thesis on "The French Exoticism in Mexico (From 1847 to 1867)".
On her return to Mexico, she became a teacher in the Department of Theater History in the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature. In 1959 her first daughter, Alina, was born. After a journey to Cuba in 1961, she started to teach a course in Mexican Literature at the National Preparatory School Number 1, as well as courses in Universal Literature and of Mexican Literature at the Preparatory No. 5. In the same year she started to teach at the University Center of Theatre, at the School of Theater and Fine arts of the UNAM
Unam
UNAM or UNaM may refer to:* National University of Misiones, a National University in Posadas, Argentina*National Autonomous University of Mexico , the large public autonomous university based in Mexico City...
, and at the Center of Classic Theater of the "Casa del Lago" (Lake House). During these years she published several essays and theater reviews in a variety of cultural magazines and handouts.
In 1966 she became a permanent, full-time Professor at the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature, specifically in Hispanic Literature and Comparative Literature. She founded and directed the university magazine Punto de Partida. She was also the director of the Israel-Mexico Cultural Institute until 1969. In 1971 her daughter Renata was born. In the same year she set out for the United States of America, where she taught classes at Montclair State College in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. She published Onda y escritura en Mexico (Wave and writing in Mexico), Jovenes de 20 a 33, which gave name to a wave of emerging literature in the 60s, the "Onda" (the Wave).
She returned to Mexico in 1974, where she rejoined the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature, teaching courses in Latin American and Mexican Literature. In 1978 she edited her first fictional book, Las mil y una calorias, novela dietética (A Thousand and One Calories: A Dietetic Novel), which inspired a great number of other books in the field of creation and criticism (see bibliography). In 1981 she dedicated her autobiographic work, Las genealogias, to her father, who died one year later.
In 1983 she was named Director of Literature at the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes (INBA
Inba
INBA or Inba may refer to: Chile*Internado Nacional Barros Arana, a prestigious secondary school Germany*InBA - Institut des Bewertungsausschusses, a german institution that supports the board which negotiates the ratings for medical treatments in national health services. India*Inba , a 2008...
), where she promoted and directed a number of publications. A year later she obtained the "Premio Xavier Villaurrutia" (The Xavier Villaurrutia Award
Xavier Villaurrutia Award
The Xavier Villaurrutia Award is a prestigious literary prize given in Mexico, to a Latin American writer published in Mexico. Founded in 1955, it was named in memory of Xavier Villaurrutia....
) for her work Síndrome de Naufragios. In 1986 she set out for England, where she worked as a Cultural Associate in the Mexican Embassy in London, until 1988.
That same year she returned to Mexico, and since has led courses at the Faculty of Philosophy and in numerous universities overseas. In 1989 she was named Member of the National System of Researchers. In 1991 she obtained the National University Prize and again in 1994 she was given the title of Emeritus Professor, both by UNAM
Unam
UNAM or UNaM may refer to:* National University of Misiones, a National University in Posadas, Argentina*National Autonomous University of Mexico , the large public autonomous university based in Mexico City...
. Likewise, the University of Princeton has since awarded her the nomination of Honorary Emeritus Creator of the National System of Creators, as well as the Council of Humanities Fellow.
In 1995 she was elected to be a member of the Academia Mexicana de la Lengua
Academia Mexicana de la Lengua
The Academia Mexicana de la Lengua is the correspondent academy in Mexico of the Royal Spanish Academy...
(Mexican Language Academy). In 2004 she was awarded the "Premio Nacional, campo I, Área de Lingüística y Literatura" (National Prize, field 1, Are of Linguistics and Literature). That same year she was granted the distinction of Emeritus Investigator of the Sistema Nacional de Investigadores (National System of Investigators). A year later, in 2005, she was honored with the Doctorate Honoris Causa by the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana and with her nomination as an Emeritus Honorary Creator of the National System of Creators. In 2006 a web page was published about her, which was coordinated by Beatriz Aracil Varón, in the Virtual Library Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, of Alicante University.
Prizes and scholarships
- Premio Magda Donato, 1982
- Premio Xavier Villaurrutia, 1984
- Premio Universidad Nacional, 1991
- Rockefeller Scholarship, 1996
- Guggenheim Scholarship, 1998
- Finalist of the “XX Premio Herralde de Novela 2002” for El rastro.
- Premio Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, 2003
- Premio Nacional de Ciencias y Artes, 2004
- Doctorate Honoris Causa by the Universidad Autónoma MetropolitanaUniversidad Autónoma MetropolitanaThe Metropolitan Autonomous University is a public university located in Mexico City, Mexico...
, 2005 - Premio FIL de Literatura, 2010.
- Doctorate honoris causa by the Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo LeónUniversidad Autónoma de Nuevo LeónThe Autonomous University of Nuevo León is a public university with seven campuses across the Northern state of Nuevo León, Mexico. Founded as University of Nuevo León on 25 September 1933, it is the oldest and largest university in the state in terms of student population and it is currently...
, 2010. - Doctorate honoris causa by the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 2011.
Novels, short stories and autobiographies
- Las mil y una calorías, México, Premiá, 1978.
- Doscientas ballenas azules, México, La máquina de escribir, 1979; second edition: Doscientas ballenas azules y cuatro caballos...,México, UNAM, 1981.
- No pronunciarás, México, Premiá, 1980.
- Las genealogías, México, Martín Casillas, 1981 (Premio Magda Donato 1982); reediciones: México, Alfaguara, 1997 y Valencia (España), Pre-Textos, 2006. English Translation: The Family Tree: An Illustrated Novel; translated by Susan BassnettSusan BassnettSusan Bassnett is a translation theorist and scholar of comparative literature. She served as pro-vice-chancellor at the University of Warwick for ten years and taught in its Centre for Translation and Comparative Cultural Studies, which closed in 2009...
. London: Serpent's Tail, 1991. - Material de lectura: Margo Glantz. Fragments from Las genealogías, No pronunciarás, Síndrome de Naufragios, México, UNAM, 1990. Reedición, UNAM, 2006.
- Apariciones, México, Alfaguara, 1996. Second Edition. México, Alfaguara-Universidad del Claustro de Sor Juana, 2002.
- Zona de derrumbe, Rosario, Beatriz Viterbo, 2001. Second edition, 2006.
- El rastro, Barcelona, Anagrama, 2002. Premio Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz 2004. The Wake, translated to English by Andrew Hurley, Connecticut, Curbstone Press, 2005.
- Animal de dos semblantes, Santiago de Chile, Editorial LOM, 2004.
- Historia de una mujer que caminó por la vida con zapatos de diseñador, Barcelona, Anagrama, 2005.
- Saña, Lima, Sarita Cartonera, 2006.
Essays and criticisms
- Viajes en México. Crónicas extranjeras, México, Secretaría de Obras Públicas, 1964.
- Tennessee Williams y el teatro norteamericano, México, UNAM, 1964.
- Narrativa Joven de México, (coord. y prol.), México, Siglo XXI, 1969.
- Onda y escritura, jóvenes de 20 a 33, (prol. y ant.), México, Siglo XXI, 1971.
- La aventura del Conde de Rousset Boulbon, México, SepSetenta, 1972.
- Doscientas ballenas azules, México, La Máquina de Escribir, 1979.
- No pronunciarás, México, Premià, 1980.
- Repeticiones. Ensayos sobre literatura mexicana, México, Universidad Veracruzana (UV), 1980.
- Intervención y pretexto. Ensayos de literatura comparada e iberoamericana, México, UNAM, 1981.
- El día de tu boda, México, Secretaría de Educación Pública (SEP) / Martín Casillas, 1982.
- La lengua en la mano, México, Premià, 1984.
- De la amorosa inclinación de enredarse en cabellos, México, Océano, 1984.
- Erosiones, México, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México (UAEM), 1984.
- Síndrome de naufragios, México, Joaquín Mortiz, 1984 (Premio Xavier Villaurrutia 1984).
- Bordando sobre la escritura y la cocina, (coord. y presentation), México, INBA-SEP (Colección Estanquillo Literario), 1984.
- Cuentistas mexicanos del siglo XX. Vol. I: Fin del viejo régimen, (compilator), México, SEP, INBA, DDF, 1984.
- Guía de Forasteros, estanquillo literario (paper of history on Mexican literature), vols. I, II, III, IV (editor), México, Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes, 1985.
- Borrones y borradores. Ensayos sobre literatura colonial, UNAM / El Equilibrista, México, 1992; reedition with the title: La desnudez como naufragio: borrones y borradores, Madrid Iberoamericana, 2005.
- Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, Notas y documentos, México, Conaculta, 1993.
- Esguince de cintura (enssays on Mexican narrative of the XX century), México, Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes, 1994.
- La Malinche, sus padres y sus hijos, México, UNAM, 1994; reedition: México, Taurus, 2001.
- Obra selecta de Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (selection y prologue by Margo Glantz and chronology and bibliography by María Dolores Bravo Arriaga), Caracas, Biblioteca Ayacucho, 1994.
- Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, ¿hagiografía o autobiografía?, México, Grijalbo, Universidad Nacional Autónoma, 1995.
- Huérfanos y bandidos: “Los bandidos de Río Frío”, , México, Instituto Mexiquense de Cultura, 1995.
- Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz: saberes y placeres, Toluca, Instituto Mexiquense de Cultura, 1996.
- José Gorostiza y Juan Rulfo (reception speech in the Academia Mexicana de la Lengua), México, Condumex, 1996.
- Del fistol a la linterna, Homenaje a José Tomás de Cuéllar y Manuel Payno en el centenario de su muerte, 1994, (coord.), México, UNAM, 1997.
- Sor Juana y sus contemporáneos , (coord.), Memoirs of the Congress on Sor Juana and her contemporaneous (1995), México, UNAM-Condumex, 1998.
- Sor Juana: La comparación y la hipérbole, Mexico, Consejo Nacional de la Cultura y las Artes, 2000.
- Obras reunidas: Tomo I: La literatura colonial, Fondo de Cultura Económica, México, 2006.
Further reading
- Erna Pfeiffer: EntreVistas. Diez escritoras mexicanas desde bastidores. Frankfurt: Vervuert 1992, ISBN 3-89354-051-2
- Julio Ortega: Taller de la escritura: conversaciones, encuentros, entrevistas. México: Siglo Veintiuno Editores, 2000; ISBN 968-23-2214-6.
- Celina Manzoni (coordinadora): Margo Glantz: Ensayos y Relatos. Margo Glantz y la crítica. Madrid, Editorial Excultura (Colección Entramados), 2003; ISBN 980-6647.
- María Dolores Bravo y Blanca Estela Treviño: Margo Glantz: 45 años de docencia. México, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, UNAM, 2006; ISBN 970-32-2936-0.