Upcoming Events

Friday, April 26, 2013: The Rain Always Rises ~ A Symposium on the Poetry of Miguel-Angel Zapata

Presented by the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures

Hofstra University's Department of Romance Languages and Literatures is presenting an event titled The Rain Always Rises: A Symposium on the Poetry of Miguel-Angel Zapata. Dr. Zapata, Associate Professor of Romance Languages and Literatures at Hofstra, is considered one of the most innovative poets of his generation in Peru and one of Latin America's most influential poetic voices over the past 10 years. The symposium will be held at the Lowenfeld Conference and Exhibition Hall, 10th Floor, Axinn Library, South Campus, on Friday, April 26, 2013, from 2-5:30 p.m., followed by a reception.

This symposium is free and open to the public. For more information call 516-463-5140. (This event was originally scheduled for November 1, 2012, and was rescheduled because of Hurricane Sandy.)

Dr. Zapata was awarded the 2011 Latino Literature Prize in the Poetry Category for his book Fragmentos de una manzana y otros poemas (Fragments of an Apple and Other Poems), published by the Biblioteca Sibila/BBVA Foundation, one of the leading and most prestigious publishers in Spain. Among Dr. Zapata's recent published works are the celebrated Ensayo sobre la rosa. Poesía selecta (2010), Mario Vargas Llosa and the Persistence of Memory (2006), A Sparrow in the House of Seven Patios (2005), El cielo que me escribe (2002), Moradas de la voz. Notas sobre poesía latinoamericana contemporánea (2002), and Escribir bajo el polvo (2000).

The symposium itinerary:

2 p.m. Welcoming remarks

• Sabine Loucif, Professor of French, and Chair, Department of Romance Languages and Literatures, Hofstra University
• Bernard J. Firestone, Dean, Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Hofstra University
• Alfonso Garcia Osuna, Professor of Spanish, Kingsborough Community College-City University of New York

2:30-4 p.m. Panel 1

• Moderator: Greg Pell, Associate Professor, Department of Romance Languages and Literatures, Hofstra University
• Rolando Perez, Professor, Hunter College-City University of New York, Miguel Angel Zapata and the interior spaces of poetry
• Juan Carlos Villavicencio, University of Chile, Hacia una breve visión de la poética de MAZ
• Marta Lopez-Luaces, Associate Professor, Montclair State University, La mirada y la palabra poética en la obra de Miguel Ángel Zapata
• Ilan Stavans, Lewis-Sebring Professor in Latin American and Latino Culture, Amherst College, Viva Zapata!

4:30-5:15 p.m. Panel 2

• Moderator: Enrique Winter, MFA Fellow, New York University
• Armando Romero, Charles Phelps Taft Professor, University of Cincinnati, Miguel Ángel Zapata en el contexto de la poesía hispanoamericana actual
• Roger Santiváñez, Assistant Professor, Temple University, Miguel Ángel Zapata: Cuervo en el desierto/ el susurro de las rosas

5:30-6 p.m. Keynote Address

• Introduction by Sabine Loucif, Hofstra University
• Randolph D. Pope, Commonwealth Professor, University of Virginia-Charlottesville, What Makes a Real Poet?

At the end of the symposium there will be a poetry reading by Miguel-Angel Zapata (6-6:30 p.m.), followed by a reception.

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