“Sudden Interrupted Death”, a collection of poems by Mario Aráez

“Sudden Interrupted Death”, a collection of poems by Mario Aráez that focuses on anxiety as a generalized state of society.

By Eva Fraile.

The other day, walking through the Madrid Book Fair, my father asked me if the poetry It was very successful among readers. I didn’t know what to answer because I don’t have specific data about the genre, but I did reflect on what poetry is and which of all its versions currently sells the most.

Mario Araez breaks into the publishing market with a collection of poems, Sudden interrupted death, which is not intended to be rushed or serve as a slogan on Facebook, as will be explained below. It also delves into a theme that requires a version of poetry that is also transformative: the anxiety.

• Mario, there is something that I really liked about you and it was the way in which you define poetry as something slow that flees from immediacy. Could you expand on this thought?

It is difficult to really explain what it means to flee from immediacy when everything is immediate. It is quite difficult for me to think of slow poetry when we see that the market is flooded with collections of poems with poems that could be Facebook phrases without any kind of meaning. I don’t want to say that I criticize those who like that type of poetry, but, honestly, that is not my concept. A poetry that flees from immediacy is one that does not intend to become just a Facebook or Instagram post, but rather to follow in the footsteps of other authors who sought something greater and that is to make poetry a genre of reflection and relief. As Borges said: the task of art is that, to transform what continually happens to us into symbols, music, into something that can last in the memory of men.

• The writing of Sudden uninterrupted death You have also taken it slowly…

I don’t know if slowly, but it is true that many things are erased and written when writing a work. It happens in the novel, in poetry, in the essay… In general, all creative processes are slow, although sometimes there are stages in which everything comes out very quickly because everything depends on the desire and the state of mind. Now I’ve been quite “lazy” for a few weeks and I spend more time reading than anything else, but maybe in a month I’ll write a collection of poems at once. You never know, I’m not an office writer.

• The title is somewhat alarming. What do you want to tell us with it?

I haven’t actually looked for the alarm, but yeah, it may seem like it, lol. What really happens is that sudden death is very scary because it ends everything (or so it seems), but if it is interrupted you don’t die. In reality, in the end it is more hopeful than anything else: there is always hope and you can get out of the discomfort.

• Is it exclusively about anxiety or do you touch on other topics?

Depending on how you look at it. For me it’s not just about anxiety because there are many other issues that are related. In the end I wouldn’t even know how to define what exactly anxiety is, but many topics can make you anxious. We must move from defining anxiety as a clinical concept to a generalized state of society, that is, a pandemic.

• As a society, where are we with a disorder like anxiety?

As I was commenting, this is no longer an individual problem, but rather a social one. I think what clinical psychology can do now is put patches. A system that generates these things is a system that is making us much worse people and that is making monsters grow all over Europe. Recently the news came out that the Generalitat Valenciana had not purchased any books during 2024 for the regional libraries. I believe that we all have the right to beauty and this state we find ourselves in is a point of no return. From here we can only support each other and change things so that sitting down to read a book one afternoon is not something strange, but the norm.

• Do you think you can make poetry out of anything?

I don’t know, maybe so. If anyone has the answer, they will have to explain it to me. What I do know is that I’m not sure I can write about anything.

• For me, for example, it is very difficult for me to review poetry because I feel that I lack technical information about it (meter, structure,…). Are you very purist with this or is your collection of poems contemplated in a more free way?

Purism is a cancer for literature. If we became purists we would still be writing only sonnets. I’m reading now Life by Marga Carneci, I’m loving it and people would be amazed by the structure and meter of her poems. Poetry is a genre that stands out for its versatility. We have to demand a lot from him in transmitting and little in form.

• What plans do you have for Uninterrupted sudden death?

Well, I have to think about it for when the summer ends. I need to rest a little and spend time with my friends and family. Of course, in my town (Quart de Poblet) there is a cultural center, because calling it a bar is a bit strange when they don’t stop doing concerts, book presentations and more things there, and if I don’t do the presentation at least there they will kill me and death will no longer be interrupted. I don’t know if David and Ana, who are the owners of La llar dels somnis, are reading this, but there will be a presentation. Sooner rather than later and if they want, of course.