Stepping out of bounds: the tragedy of the milonguita in the tango-song

Abstract

Click to increase image sizeClick to decrease image size Notes 1 In her study on the popularity of serial novels in the period of 1917–1927, Beatriz Sarlo quotes as evidence of the feminine environment and its artistic penchants the portrait of the pianist that Bernardo González Arrilli makes in his testimonial work Buenos Aires 1900 (Sarlo, 2000 Sarlo, Beatriz. 2000. El imperio de los sentimientos: narraciones de circulación periódica en la Argentina (1917–1927), Buenos Aires: Norma. [Google Scholar]). 2 Enrique Cadícamo composed in 1929 tango lyrics inspired by this poem of Carriego's. The tango is titled ‘De todo te olvidas (Cabeza de novia)’. In this tango the woman stops playing the piano owing to sorrow from love. 3 At the other extreme of the political spectrum, the tango ‘Pero yo sé’ (1928) is noteworthy as it is one of the few tangos to be composed by a woman. The author is Azucena Maizani (1902–1970) and in it the woman is the one who knows what the man does not. 4 Hernando states that ‘[t]he percale, a cheap fabric from cotton, in the tango acquires a metonymic value symbolic of poverty, but honest poverty…. Abandoning the percale clothing implies de-classing oneself, betraying one's class of origin, allowing one's self to be deceived by the illusion of money and luxury’ (Hernando, 2002 Hernando, Abelardo. 2002. La suerte que es grela: tango, sexo y sociedad. Revista Iberoamericana, : 1025–40. 68.201 [Google Scholar]: 1027). 5 One exception is ‘Se va la vida’ (1929) that, suggestively, was composed by a woman. The author is María Luisa Carnelli and this tango does advocate for carpe diem: ‘[l]ife is leaving…/it is going and it won't return,/listen to this advice;/if a rich man promises to take care of you,/go for it. /Days pass by,/years pass by,/happiness is fleeting,/don't think of pain or of virtue,/live your youth’. María Luisa Carnelli, ‘Se va la vida’. Available at: todotango.com (http://www.todotango.com/spanish/biblioteca/letras/letra.asp?idletra = 1983, accessed 29 May 2004). 6 The magazine El Hogar is not paginated. As a result, there is no numerical information at the end of quotes from this magazine. 7 I would like to thank Ms Katie Ford for devoting her scarce free time to translate the entire original article into English. Without her invaluable help this publication would not have been possible.