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Self-demolishment
An essay by Alfonsina Storni
Alfonsina Storni was an Argentinian writer born in 1892 in Switzerland. In 1938, in a fateful day in October, she threw herself into the sea from the docks in Mar del Plata. Before taking her life, she left behind the haunting poem, “Voy a dormir” (I’m going to sleep), which I have translated and published here.
With “Self-demolishment,” which is translated here for the first time in English, she offers an essay of great introspective critique and self-awareness. The author dissects her own identity, societal roles, and creative process with raw honesty and poetic sharpness in a tone reminiscent to that of Virginia Woolf.
“Self-demolishment” (1930) by Alfonsina Storni
Published in Repertorio Americano, June 7, 1930
Some extraordinary things had already happened to me in life; for instance: being a woman and having common sense; having common sense, and in spite of it, writing poetry; writing poetry and actually writing good poems. It had never, however, occurred to me that I’d dare to speak in an ill-manner about myself, even just a little, attempting at my self-demolition, convinced that in life we should aim for the least effort, since there are always obliging friends already devoted to this task.
