Paradiso, Antillian Grimoire by José Lezama Lima. Another Perspective of Hermeticism in Paradisiac Language

Abstract

The study of baroque language has been carried out by recognized investigators in the field and this paper explores the hermetic discourse used by José Lezama Lima in Paradiso. The objective is to show that it is possible to observe two meanings of the word “hermetic” in the global context of this novel. The first one is a stylistic baroque resource. The second is related to non-orthodox traditions in Western culture. It is not intended to negate or ignore the fact that Lezama uses the rhetoric of baroque obscurity as has been indicated by numerous theoreticians. But it can be considered, in a hypothetical manner, that this discourse is very similar to that of hermeticists and it is also dark and full of allegories, analogies and allusions. The difference lies in the fact that the purpose of the latter is not to challenge the reader to “engulf himself in the pleasure of discovering” (Méndez Pidal) –as in baroque hermeticism– but it is for hiding a content considered sacred through the use of words and enigmatic images that permit a judicious combination of speech and silence. If, as Calvino states, the excessive ambition of purpose is not reprehensible in literature, why not admit that when Lezama takes advantage of hermetic thought, he simply attempts to provide another option for the search for existential enigmas?