Paz Latorena
This article needs additional citations for verification. (September 2012) |
Paz Latorena jr. III | |
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Born | Paz Latorena 17 January 1908 Boac, Marinduque, Philippine Islands |
Died | October 20, 1953 Tawi-Tawi | (aged 45)
Occupation | Writer |
Nationality | Filipino |
Alma mater | University of the Philippines Manila |
Paz M. Latorena (pseudonym, Mina Lys; January 17, 1908 – October 19, 1953) was one of the notable writers of the first generation of Filipino English writers, in both literary writing and education. She was a poet, editor, author, and teacher.
Biography
[edit]Paz Manguera Latorena was born on Jan. 17, 1908 in Boac, Marinduque. She was the oldest among the ten children of Magda Manguera and Ricardo Latorena
She finished basic schooling at St. Scholastica’s College in Manila and the Manila South High School (as the Araullo High School). In 1926, she took up Education at the University of the Philippines (UP) in Manila where she also attended a short story writing class under Paz Márquez-Benítez.
In 1927, Latorena received an invitation from Benitez to write a column for the Philippines Herald Magazine, of which Benitez was the literary editor. That same year, Latorena, along with other campus writers, founded the UP Writers’ Club. The Literary Apprentice, the UP Writers’ Club’s publication, then ran a short story by Latorena titled “A Christmas Tale.”
Latorena also wrote poetry under the pseudonym, Mina Lys, which, according to Tanlayco, had a “romantic significance,” for the then young writer.
Before the year ended, she won the third prize in Jose Garcia Villa’s Roll of Honor for the Best Stories of 1927 for her story, “The Small Key.”
For her final year of college, in 1927, Latorena transferred to UST to finish her Education degree. She became the literary editor of the Varsitarian and published her poems, “Insight” and “My Last Song,” under her nom de plume, Mina Lys.
She shortly earned her master’s and doctorate degree while teaching literature courses in UST. In 1934, her doctoral dissertation, “Philippine Literature in English: Old Voices and New,” received the highest rating of sobresaliente.
Latorena’s former students include F. Sionil Jose, Nita Umali, Genoveva Edroza Matute, Zeneida Amador, Ophelia Dimalanta and Alice Colet-Villadolid, to name a few.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ "UST pays homage to Paz Latorena, lady of letters and beloved mentor". The Varsitarian. 2009-03-09. Retrieved 2012-09-16.
- 1908 births
- 1953 deaths
- People from Marinduque
- Filipino women poets
- Filipino women short story writers
- Filipino short story writers
- 20th-century Filipino poets
- University of the Philippines Manila alumni
- University of Santo Tomas alumni
- Filipino educators
- 20th-century short story writers
- 20th-century Filipino women writers
- 21st-century Filipino educators