Memoirs of an Anti-Careerist
In Itinerary: An Intellectual Journey (New York: Harcourt, 2000), the Nobel Prize-winning poet Octavio Paz reminisces about, among other things, his years in the Mexican foreign service: I do not disown the years spent in the Mexican diplomatic service, on the contrary I recall them with gratitude. Apart from the fact that, grosso modo, I ...
In Itinerary: An Intellectual Journey (New York: Harcourt, 2000), the Nobel Prize-winning poet Octavio Paz reminisces about, among other things, his years in the Mexican foreign service:
In Itinerary: An Intellectual Journey (New York: Harcourt, 2000), the Nobel Prize-winning poet Octavio Paz reminisces about, among other things, his years in the Mexican foreign service:
I do not disown the years spent in the Mexican diplomatic service, on the contrary I recall them with gratitude. Apart from the fact that, grosso modo, I was nearly always in agreement with our foreign policy, I could travel, know countries and cities, deal with people of diverse trades, languages, races, capacities, and, in the end, I could write. My career, if I can call it that, was obscure and sluggish, so much so that I sometimes had the far-from-disagreeable impression that my superiors had completely forgotten about my existence. My insignificance prevented me from having the slightest influence on our foreign policy; on the other hand, it left me free. When, after twenty years service, the person who was then secretary for foreign affairs, Manuel Tello, offered me the post of ambassador, he did so in a somewhat abrupt and frank way in these words: ‘I can only offer you India. Perhaps you might have wanted more, but, bearing in my mind your record, I hope you’ll accept it.’ I was not offended by his words or by the tone of his take-it-or-leave-it offer. I accepted straight away.
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