From the Lone Ranger to the reviewer of life. Programmatic texts from Bolaño and Zurita

Abstract

From the second half of the 20th century to the first decades of the 21st century, Chilean literature has produced an important array of manifestoes, proclamations and poetic creations. Among them Roberto Bolaño’s “Déjenlo todo nuevamente” and Raúl Zurita’s “¿Qué es el paraíso?” stand out. This reading, focused on how the craftsmanship of the poet is conceptualized, presents two main figures: the lone ranger and the reviewer of life, respectively. The metaphor of the lone ranger defines the poet through his nomadism, both of borders and of his inhabiting marginal spaces, where life is at stake. The representation of the poet as a reviewer of life positions him as an agitator of the historical version whose new edition manages to defeat violence.