<p> Antipoetry, a form of poetry developed by the Chilean poet Nicanor Parra, instances a privileged example of a self-regulatory trait of the poetic genre which responds to poetry’s need to destroy itself in order to renew itself. This need reveals a structural mechanism or a logic of autoimmunity, which informs the possibility of language and, moreover, of all living beings. </p><p> Antipoetry’s departure from the Nerudean poetic tradition justifies the use of a colloquial language that also preserves and continues Neruda’s interest in opening a space for the “popular” in poetry. Against Neruda, Antipoetry also consciously repels romantic and heroic aesthetic principles and ideas. </p><p> Parra’s aesthetic principles, however, do not result solely from avoidance. Parra is a realist poet heavily influenced by physics. His poetry needs to mirror reality. The principles of relativity and indetermination play major roles in his poetic experimentations, and will come to the aid of Antipoetry’s need to create in times of censorship. Parra’s experiments with language are in large measure interpretations of the laws of physics. In this regard, his scientific realism is related to Gertrude Stein’s work. The poetry and poetics of the latter provides a touchstone and a constant reference in <i>Autoimmunity in Antipoetry</i>. </p><p> Like all artistic expressions during the Chilean military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, Antipoetry was forced to negotiate what could be said with what the poet wanted to say. The necessary negotiation that Parra’s poetry needed to undergo gave rise to many experiments with language, including systematic ambiguity, contestation of the authority of the author, and of his own authorial control over his poetry. The use of masks, the multiplication of referents, and the systematic use of contradiction name some of Antipoetry’s tools for obstructing the univocal determination of meaning. </p><p> Antipoetry’s systematic explorations toward the creation of a poetry that attempts to fight all forms of dogmatism nevertheless reaches a limit in its figuration of gender. Antipoetry’s gender politics makes concessions to a type of gender dogmatism (sexism and homophobia) that contradicts the antipoetic program and reveals an inherent fear of gender contamination that jeopardizes Antipoetry’s most fortunate aspects.</p><p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:10639684 |
| Date | 04 April 2018 |
| Creators | Cucurella, Paula |
| Publisher | State University of New York at Buffalo |
| Source Sets | ProQuest.com |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | thesis |
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