Homagno: Performatividad, polifonía e hibridez en José Martí

Abstract

In the following essay I explore the performance of identity in José Martí’s “Homagno” a poem well known for its dramatic exposure of the self and the anguish it expresses. I read Martí’s hybrid style as another instance of this performance of multiplicity, as “protean” in nature, and another link to Emerson’s writing on the self. My intention is to reveal Martí’s construction of the self vis-à-vis a hypothetical reader who becomes disillusioned by the many faces he exhibits. This opens up the text to multiple readings and in particular to Paul Ricouer"s characterization of modern narratives: a series of strategies of deception, structured to motivate in the reader a critical and creative thinking.