Delia Domínguez


Delia Domínguez Mohr is a Chilean poet, a member of her country's literary Generation of '50.

Biography

A descendant of German settlers, Delia Domínguez lost her mother when she was five years old; Amalia Mohr died of tuberculosis in 1936. Her father, Luis Domínguez, a lawyer and judge, sent her and her brother Luis to boarding school. Delia studied at the Osorno School of German Nuns.
About her time as a schoolgirl, Domínguez remembered that she felt "very lonely, so much that I talked with dogs and horses."
She studied law at the University of Chile, but in her third year she abandoned this and dedicated herself to managing the family farm, Santa Amelia de Tacamó in Osorno. During her student days she suffered her second great tragedy : at age 20 she lost the love of her life. Delia recalled:
Domínguez has contributed to several publications, particularly magazine, of which she was editor-in-chief and a literary critic. She has also been a host of some television art programs on Channel 9 of the University of Chile, and a panelist on the program Carretera Cultural.
She was director of the and its magazine, Alerce.
As a member of the Academia Chilena de la Lengua, she occupied its 4th chair on 25 May 1992. Her incorporation speech was titled Señales de una Poesía Mestiza en el Paralelo 40° Sur.
Since her father died in 1970, she has lived in the same house in the Santiago neighborhood of Providencia.
Her poems have been translated into several languages, particularly German and English. She has been nominated for the National Prize for Literature four times.
Pablo Neruda, her friend, said of her:

Awards and distinctions