CORE Lecture Study Questions Suggestions

The Labyrinths of Modernity: Mexico -- Mid 20th Century #2

Bruce-Novoa

Reading: Octavio Paz, The Labyrinth of Solitude

May 25-6

1. According to Paz, what did the Revolution fail to create in Mexico.

2. What does Paz mean when he says that the Mexican labyrinth is now the same one for everyone?

3. In Chapter 8 what does Paz focus on in his discussion of the results of the Revolution?

4. Why did Prof. Bruce-Novoa say that Paz's style changes in Ch. 8?

5. Why can it be said that that change is a threat to Paz?

6. Who went through a similar experience in Mexican history? What was that person's fate?

7. How does Paz respond to that threat?

8. What kind of revolution does Paz call for in his last chapter?

9. What does Paz mean when he says that society will always make love impossible?

10. According to Paz, what happens if someone manages to express real love?

11. What was new and different about the University City project?

12. How did the University City combine international and national elements?

13. How did the Mexican architects include pre-Columbian references in the project?

14. According to Prof. Bruce-Novoa, how do the murals work against the goals of the University City?

15. What does The Labyrinth of Solitude and the University City have in common?

16. What kind of architecture did the Latin American Tower represent?

17. How did Mathias Goeritz' Echo project represent a third alternative to the University City and the Latin American Tower.

10. How can the Echo be seen as a WOUND in Octavio Paz's sense?

11. How does the Echo sculpture of the Serpent represent a liberation of the Mexican national symbol?