Paradiso by José Lezama Lima
"Paradiso" is a seminal novel by José Lezama Lima, exploring the intricate tapestry of Caribbean and Latin American culture through the lens of a young Creole protagonist, José Cemí. The narrative is rich with poetic and mythical elements, depicting Cemí's quest for familial, individual, sexual, and cultural identity as he seeks to shape these experiences into his artistic legacy. The novel delves into profound themes such as family dynamics, death, transcendence, and the complex interplay of humanity's fall and resurrection through art.
Drawing inspiration from Dante Alighieri's "Divine Comedy," "Paradiso" employs allegory, Christian symbolism, and baroque imagery to create a text that challenges readers with its complexity. The story begins in Cemí's childhood, marked by the trauma of his father's sudden death, which deeply influences his journey. Throughout the novel, allegorical figures, including Oppiano Licario, play pivotal roles in Cemí's life, guiding him through challenges including his sexual awakening and the chaos of worldly desires.
The portrayal of homoerotic experiences within the narrative has sparked debate, particularly in the context of Cuba's sociopolitical landscape. Initially published in a limited edition, "Paradiso" remains a crucial work for understanding Lezama Lima’s artistic philosophy and the cultural heritage of Cuba, although it has faced challenges in terms of accessibility and reception within the country. Overall, "Paradiso" stands as a multifaceted work combining elements of family saga, artistic autobiography, and allegorical coming-of-age narrative.
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Subject Terms
Paradiso by José Lezama Lima
First published: 1966 (English translation, 1974)
The Work
José Lezama Lima’s masterpiece novel, Paradiso, is an amalgam of Caribbean and Latin American culture. The narrative is a dense, poetic, and mythical portrayal of a young Creole man in search of his family, individual, sexual, and cultural identity, which he plans to make the foundation of his artistic accomplishment. Family cohesion, death and transcendence, and the Fall of humanity and its resurrection through artistic creation are some of the novel’s underlying themes. The title alludes to Italian poet Dante Alighieri’s story of his journey through Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise. Lezama Lima’s Paradiso relies heavily on allegory, Christian symbolism, baroque imagery, and arcane cultural allusions, creating an immensely complex text that is daunting to general readers.
The novel opens with its protagonist, José Cemí, at age five, having an asthma attack. The family name comes from the great god of the Taino Indians, the inhabitants of Cuba at the time of the Conquest. The first name identifies the protagonist with the author, whose life story the novel loosely follows. Through José Cemí, Lezama Lima assumes as his own the cultural heritage accumulated in his country from pre-Columbian times to the twentieth century. José Cemí is also an Everyman plotting his steps on an allegorical world stage.
The novel continues with the sudden death of the boy’s father. Making sense of the loss becomes an obsession for the family and for the protagonist. Allegorical characters appear at decisive points in the protagonist’s life, such as Oppiano Licario, a symbol of Icarus, of initiation, and a surrogate father figure for the orphan. The next hurdle for the protagonist is his sexual initiation and his fall into the chaos of worldly temptations. Homosexual experience is joyfully described; only later it seems that homosexuality is philosophically (or rather, theologically) disavowed, leaving some perplexity about the author’s intentions. Allegorical characters appear, staging as an exterior dialogue what actually may have been happening in Lezama Lima’s mind. Finally, Oppiano Licario reappears to pass on the flame of artistic inspiration to the protagonist, who is, at the end of the novel, ready to start.
Paradiso is a family saga, an artistic autobiography, an allegorical Bildungsroman, a long baroque poem in prose, and a summation of Lezama Lima’s poetic philosophy. The homoerotic episode and the discussion of homosexuality in the novel have caused some consternation among the homophobic revolutionary establishment in Cuba. Paradiso, which appeared in a limited edition in the first place, has not been reissued in Cuba since.
Bibliography
Hassat, J. J. Assimilation/Generation/Resurrection: Contrapuntal Readings in the Poetry of José Lezama Lima. Lewisburg, Pa.: Bucknell University Press, 1997. Lezama Lima’s prose often contains striking poetic images. Although this volume does not deal directly with Lezama Lima’s fiction, it is a valuable resource for understanding the way Lezama Lima’s poetry and prose influence each other and interact.
Pellon, Gustavo. José Lezama Lima’s Joyful Vision: A Study of “Paradiso” and Other Prose Works. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1989. A definitive study of Lezama Lima’s novel, it is an excellent full-length study that places his book within the context of his other works. Includes an index and a bibliography for further reading.
Pollard, Scott. “Canonizing Revision: Literary History and the Postmodern Latin American Writer.” College Literature 20 (October, 1993): 133-147. Pollard examines the literary histories of Alejo Carpentier, Lezama Lima, and Carlos Fuentes. He argues that these writers revise Western literary history in order to enhance the position of Latin American narrative within it. Of the three authors Pollard discusses, he particularly credits Lezama Lima with differentiating Latin American history from European history in his fiction.