Gabriela Mistral !exclusive! -

Raised by her mother, Petronila Alcayaga, and her older sister, Emelina, young Lucila found solace in the Bible and the great European romantics. Despite having no formal university education—she was largely self-taught—she began writing poetry and working as a teacher’s aide at the age of 15.

First, she is a symbol of resilience. She was a queer woman in the early 1900s (scholars debate her romantic relationships with women, including the writer Doris Dana); she was a single mother; she was a rural provincial who conquered the world through sheer will. gabriela mistral

In 2007, her private archive was opened, revealing letters to her companion Doris Dana that sparked new scholarly discussions about her sexuality and private life. Raised by her mother, Petronila Alcayaga, and her

Her political stances were radical for her time: She was a queer woman in the early

While teaching in Temuco, she met and mentored a teenage Pablo Neruda , who would also go on to win the Nobel Prize.