3.5 stars...

It is a difficult book to read, not so much because of the way it is written, as if you are Mexican it uses many words that are not in the common vocabulary, but because it exposes in a pessimistic way what is the vision of the Mexican in general and of the Latino and human in general.

It is remarkable that it helps you to reflect on what it means to be Mexican and in fact it helps you to reflect on how much of your actions and those of others are marked by historical reasons.

Among the bad points that I see is that it views in a somewhat simplistic way how the relationships and actions of people are marked in the present, but it does give you a new mirror through which to see your reality. It has aged quite well after more than 50 years, but an update of the events is needed to get to know the current Mexican.

Even with the years that have passed since it was written, it must be admitted that it is a good introductory book to get to know ourselves as we are, as Mexicans, as Latinos. A solid book that every reader who wants to know Mexico and especially what it means to be Mexican must read.

Solitude: A National Characteristic?

Can solitude truly be regarded as a national characteristic and a trait of an entire culture or nation? The Nobel Prize-winning Mexican poet and critic endeavors to assert that Mexico is a maze of solitude, and this solitude is intrinsic to its historical nature and a crucial key for understanding its history.

Widely regarded as one of the most influential texts on Mexican culture, Paz initially expounds that the forms of solitude in a culture stem from a psychological complex of defeat. Commencing with the Aztecs, the suppression of their spirits began with their own highly authoritarian rulers, who were then overthrown and replaced by the authoritarian Spanish conquerors. Subsequently, during the period of Independence, they were replaced by authoritarian oligarchies, and finally, there was an added layer of intimidation by the United States. The outcome is an oscillation between violent resentment and passivity. However, as Paz repeatedly emphasizes, the sense of oppression is not a feeling of inferiority.

He further contends that Mexicans of all backgrounds and ages present a mask to the world for self-defense. They construct a kind of wall of indifference and remoteness between reality and themselves, a wall that is no less impenetrable despite being invisible. The Mexican, he states, is always distant from the world, from other people, and also from himself. This resulting solitude is not embraced or refined but rather a reaction that tends to oscillate between the extremes of defensiveness and aggression, with long-sufferings coexisting with distrust, irony, and suspicion.

This merely scratches the surface of what were essays of great profundity, transforming into a most stimulating, challenging, yet sometimes difficult read. Paz can become quite frenzied when he gets into the rhythm of things, especially when addressing politics and the relations between Mexico and the United States later on. For some reason (I suppose it's mostly Mexicans), he has been perceived as a Mexican offending his own country and heritage. However, I found his articulate and additive prose style captivating, capturing the spirit of his people with grace and with sadness.

He simply aggregates all of his country's conflicts and taboos and draws back the curtains, writing about his subject matter with dedicated passion.

The next time I think of Mexico (which is generally associated with Tequila, Drug Cartels, lucha libre (wrestling), Sombreros, and Salma Hayek), I will think in a more profound manner. Had he been a GR member, I would have surely recommended this book to that funny-looking guy who sits in the oval office wondering who else he can persecute.

The author in this book is in pursuit of explaining the dialectic of loneliness and connection throughout human life and in different social fields and so on. Throughout the book, topics such as language, love, the emergence and origin of myths, primitive religions, time and so on are interpreted under the concept of loneliness and connection.

Back cover of the book:

For love to be realized, it must trample on the laws of our world. Love is heresy and against the rules; it is a sin that two stars commit by leaving their prescribed orbits and joining together in the middle of space. The romantic concept of love, which involves dizziness, crying, and disaster, is the only concept of love that we know today because everything in our society prevents love from being freely chosen.

In the following note, among other things, the author's perception of love has been criticized.

Regarding love, the author associates it with free choice. This is why he believes that insisting on choices, marriage, and loyalty are in conflict with love in his view (or at least are unrelated).

Such a view of love is highly dependent on Western experience, especially in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Most thinkers and historians consider marriage (in the West) in this period to be influenced by strict social class systems and social contracts. With such a past, it should not be unexpected that someone like Giddens understands the history of love as a movement from passionate love to romantic love and then to a fluid, uncommitted, free, and temporary love. In contrast to these views, there are also those who consider such a perception of love to be influenced by consumer society and capitalist production. And they try to criticize it. One good model for explaining love can be seen in Sternberg's work, where love is a combination of lust, commitment, and intimacy (empathy). From Under and Above Love: A Journey in Theories and Approaches

With this short introduction, we will examine the author's expression of love in this book. The connection between love and free choice, its conflict with marriage, and so on, especially with our culture and perception of love, seems strange.

The translator's preface helps to understand this conflict. As they have written, the author lives in a highly stratified society. A place where social and moral contracts are in conflict with human nature, leading to internal conflicts, hypocrisy, and dishonesty in individuals in society. The moral rules for women and men are different, and everything leads to human alienation. Marriage only takes place within the framework of the social class and in a contractual way under strict moral laws. "Social life in any form eliminates the possibility of true amorous connection." p. 26 In such a society:

For love to be realized, it must trample on the laws of our world. Love is heresy and against the rules; it is a sin that two stars commit by leaving their prescribed orbits and joining together in the middle of space. The romantic concept of love, which involves dizziness, crying, and disaster, is the only concept of love that we know today because everything in our society prevents love from being freely chosen.

So it seems that, just as comparing the social conditions of stratified Mexico, its political gangs, and the customs and traditions of its Spanish immigrants at that time with our social conditions is a narrow comparison. In the same proportion, the author's understanding of love does not help to explain our experience of love.

The other topics in the book, although not without precedent and new (which can be found in other sources), but their juxtaposition under loneliness is interesting.

For example, on the same pages where love is discussed, it is quoted from Simone de Beauvoir how even in the case of love (which the author considered a remedy), the truth of love becomes something blind and absent. Such as:

A woman is a witch, a goddess, a mother, a sorceress, a fairy, but she is never herself. Therefore, our amorous relationships are doomed from the start, poisoned at the root. A semblance is born between us, and this semblance is her image; an image that we have given to her and that she has become attached to.

- p. 13

The author, desperate for all those cultural, social, and traditional limitations in Mexico, finds a way in breaking all these images. As he writes in inviting a woman:

Love makes a woman very different. If she has the courage to love bourgeoisly, if she has the courage to be herself, she must destroy the image in which the world has imprisoned her.

- p. 16

Even from this last invitation, one must ask what a woman or even a man is outside the image that society, history, and so on have created of them? At present, I think such an invitation is absent.

Questions of this kind may also take on more serious and essential dimensions. Is there anything in self-existence and self-will other than the existing entities themselves that have occurred in themselves throughout history?

The design of the origin of the story of the emergence of religions in primitive communities after the collapse of the myth-based society is also one of the other studies that the author has borrowed without directly referring to other sources. This design and story also conflict with what we know about divine religions, especially Abrahamic religions. Although there may be some similarities, for example, between the centrality of the Kaaba in the world and so on with these other primitive religions. It seems that the design of this story about primitive religions is correct, but its generalization to Abrahamic religions requires more proof and discussion and is incorrect in this regard.

Among the many topics scattered throughout the book to explain the dialectic of loneliness in human life, two other topics, in addition to love and religions, stand out more interestingly. One is the topic of language and the other is time. The transformation of the experience of distant time into a quantifiable time, and so on.

The dialectic of loneliness here has more brilliant and readable topics that there is no room to discuss in this short note.

The Dialectic of Loneliness, Octavio Paz

An articulate, intelligent, graceful, melancholy, well-written collection of essays truly captures the spirit of the ‘Mexican’.

The author delves deep into the Mexican history of oppression. It began with the Aztecs and then continued with the Spanish conquerors, which brutally crushed the spirits of the people.

I have a particular penchant for the first four essays. They mainly focus on the individual, the significance of the word ‘chingar’, and the importance of the ‘fiesta’.

The author vividly describes how the average Mexican oscillates between violence and resentment on one hand and passivity on the other. However, they do not view themselves as inferior. Instead, the Mexican builds a wall of indifference and remoteness from the world and other people, creating a sense of solitude.

This book is an absolute must-read for those who are interested in Mexican culture and its people.

It was first published in 1950. (I only possess the copy with nine essays, which regrettably does not include the essays written between 1950 and 1970).

Libro plagado de obviedades engalanadas de barroquismo superfluo. It is a book that is filled with trite and obvious statements, adorned with excessive baroque ornamentation. It seems to lack any real substance or originality.

Un trabajo de fin de curso impecable de un niño empollón a quien gusta escucharse. Sin alas, sin sorpresa, sin gracia. This is a flawless end-of-course project of a precocious child who loves to hear himself talk. It has no wings, no surprises, and no charm. It is平淡无奇 and fails to capture the reader's attention.

Reaccionario en cuanto a las ideas de fondo, soporífero en cuanto a la forma. In terms of its underlying ideas, it is reactionary, and in terms of its form, it is soporific. It offers nothing new or exciting, and its style is so dull that it is likely to put the reader to sleep.

The definition of woman was very interesting. In fact, woman is everything, the beloved goddess, the mother, but she is not herself.

The existence of woman is divided between what she is and what she thinks (based on the definition of family, religion, and even her lover).

Love is not a natural thing, love is a human thing, the most human thread in the personality of a human being.

And love is always the savior.

I really agree with this sentence that we are looking for ourselves in love (I am proud that I reached this sentence a few years ago :)))) Only in love can we see the realities for a moment.

Youth is the beginning of awareness and its end

Some parts of the book strongly reminded me of the book "Mila" in those places where it talks about the voices of the crowd and collective works and being away from loneliness.

Maybe from one place on, it can be found the reason for the failure of many revolutions in it. A society that has been continuous but has been torn apart and now has learned how to tear itself apart and become alone and then promise to return to the golden age.

Love and poetry are moments of the sacred union of time and place

Just like children's stories that have no time and start with a daily routine and every moment can start

When we wake up, maybe we will see that we have been sleeping with our eyes open!!

I must say that the book was strange and at the same time it talks about the topics that interest me, that is, love and time and what these two things are.

What is time really?

I don't think there is much to add about The Labyrinth of Solitude. It is perhaps the best essay in the history of Mexican literature.

The chapters on La Chingada and the fiesta have entered the Mexican collective unconscious, if such a thing exists, and Paz's way of describing the character and traits of his people is accepted as universal truth in the academy.

I gave it a star not for the essay itself, but for being the best exponent of a self-reflective essayistic genre that in the Mexican intellectual discourse is terribly tiresome and only reveals more and more that the points of the essay are true: Paz (and for the review, I too) was born in a country of very complex people.

This work delves deep into the Mexican psyche, exploring the various aspects that make up the national identity. It is a thought-provoking piece that challenges readers to think about their own cultural heritage and the forces that shape it.

Despite its complexity, The Labyrinth of Solitude is a must-read for anyone interested in Mexican literature and culture. It offers a unique perspective on a nation that has long been misunderstood and misrepresented.

Overall, I highly recommend this essay to anyone looking to gain a deeper understanding of Mexico and its people.

First of all, before starting to read this book, everyone should understand that this is an essay, not a novel. Apparently, the author tried to explain the nature of the Mexican mentality, why Mexicans are the way they are, and what historical reasons have caused this. But I didn't understand anything at all, and the Mexican mentality remained a mystery to me. The author uses a lot of general ideas and words that seem to say something but don't explain anything. For example, "Los mexicanos somos un pueblo triste y sarcástico" - what does this even mean? Compared with other nations, for example, Mexicans don't seem to me to be particularly sad or sarcastic. So I really want to ask, has the author ever been abroad at all, does he have anything to compare with? And generally speaking, can we generalize so strongly? In any case, this reading material is not simple, obviously not for the subway or the beach, and it needs to be read carefully and attentively.

Just lean back and let the pliable intelligence flow forth.

A Latin sage is discoursing on the neural constitution of the southernmost chamber of the North American heart.

In the latter essays, he further explores its relationship with the more thickly muscled and extensive northern ventricle, which is vigorously pumping a river of aerated blood down into it.

The saying "Pobre México, tan lejos de Dios, tan cerca de los Estados Unidos." comes to mind. It reflects the complex and often challenging position of Mexico in relation to the United States.

Mexico, with its rich history, culture, and natural resources, is both close and far from its northern neighbor.

The proximity has brought opportunities for trade, cooperation, and cultural exchange, but it has also led to issues such as illegal immigration, drug trafficking, and border disputes.

Understanding the neural constitution of this "heart" and its relationship with the northern ventricle can provide insights into the complex dynamics between Mexico and the United States.

It can help us better understand the challenges and opportunities that both countries face and how they can work together to build a more prosperous and peaceful future.

Oh my goodness! There is this huge crowd! It's like a sea of people. They are all gathered together for some reason. Maybe it's for a concert, a sports event, or just a big celebration. The energy in the air is palpable. People are chatting, laughing, and having a great time. Some are taking pictures, while others are just enjoying the moment. It's really an amazing sight to see. I can't help but be amazed by the size of this crowd. It seems like everyone in the city has come out to be a part of this. I wonder what will happen next. Will there be some kind of performance or speech? Or will people just continue to mingle and have fun? Only time will tell.

This article, if it could be considered a book, is actually a chapter of a larger book. However, even for a chapter of a larger book, it can hardly be said to be coherent.

It talks about many issues, far more than what could be accommodated in 50 pages. The writing style is of a particular kind. It is neither poetic, nor logical, nor philosophical. Perhaps the description "dense literary" is the best.

Nevertheless, it has an interesting perspective on issues, although the perspective on issues is more literary than logical. And although we may or may not agree with it, this way of presenting the content is not sufficient in my opinion. In a way, the book is like the pain and heart of a sage for his disciple!

I was in a dilemma whether to give it 3 stars or not, and I saw that one of my friends didn't give a rating. I came to the conclusion that this is the best thing to do, at least until I read the essence of the book. With all these characteristics, in my opinion, it is worth reading.

Yeah, donkey don, I see no way a twenty-year-old could get much out of this book.

It's so rich and deep that some life lived and a healthy dose of critical thinking is certainly required. Paz sets out to do nothing less than try and understand the totality of Mexican existence and identity. Which, understandably, poses quite a problem. As he puts it:

"The whole history of Mexico, from the Conquest to the Revolution, can be regarded as a search for our own selves, which have been deformed or disguised by alien institutions, and for a form that will express them."

The opening chapters, in which Paz directly investigates the'mask', the pachuco, the meaning and function of 'fiesta', myth, ritual, etc, are dark and poetic, but also somewhat academic and general. It's only at chapter four 'The Conquest and Colonialism' that, for me, the book takes off into serious five-star territory. Paz runs through the history of Mexico less concerned with chronology and personality than with why. Why! Why? Why!

He starts at the beginning: whereas their neighbors to the north obliterated the red man, tossed out the Europeans, and were thus placed in the magical blank-slateness of cherrypicking from the European tradition minus the burden of history, the Mexicans had a different situation altogether. The Spaniards chose rape and colonialism over genocide, thus creating the Mexican: a (second class) race of pre-Cortesian Aztec Indian mixed with Spanish blood. Pepper in Catholicism, colonialism and counter-reformation and it's problematic, to say the least.

Paz follows the line from Independence through the Revolution and beyond with penetrating and profound insight. But the core of all he lays out, the fundament running through his Labyrinth, I think, is that Mexico -- as with all individuals and nations and cultures and civilizations -- is not merely the end result of its history, but an ineffable collection and connection of all that they were and are and will be and all they've ever touched or dreamed or discarded. The challenge and necessity is to find that unique form by which to express this.