3
P
rince
of
A
sturias
A
wards
1981-2014. S
peeches
Laureates. Excerpts
I said at the beginning of my speech that I would try to be objective, since I am simply the spokesman
of those favoured with this truly important distinction. Man proposes and the demon of subjectivism
disposes. My speech has become a sort of Russian doll. Inside, the Jury. Containing the Jury, the Prince
of Asturias Foundation. And, embracing the Foundation, the land, the landscape and its people. And
its culture. Or, if you will permit me another example: first the string, then the sound box, and, finally,
the premises, the concert hall. Although the sound made by those who write, make music or carry
out research could not be transmitted without air. So, after thanking the Jury, the Foundation and the
people of a land that make a beautiful cultural adventure possible, it is necessary to thank the air. The
air, distancing ourselves now from the slippery terrain of metaphor and allegory, is called freedom,
the beautiful freedom of our classic: the air that those of us who believe have to breathe. And in this
ceremony lies a sign that the air has recently begun to reach our lungs.
José Hierro Real
—
Prince of Asturias
Award for Literature
1981
Excerpt from the speech given on
the occasion of receiving the Prince
of Asturias Award for Literature on
3/10/1981.
