Borges Interviews
- At July 26, 2018
- By Great Quail
- In Borges
- 0
Nothing, nothing, my friend; what I have told you: I am not sure of anything, I know nothing…
Borges Interviews
Borges was a willing interview subject, often displaying a charming combination of sparkling wit and a “Who, me?” deference. This page collects online Borges interviews. They are arranged in chronological order by section: text, video, and audio. Please email me if you know of any others!
Text
The Art of Fiction No. 39
July 1966. Paris Review.
Interviewed by Ronald Christ.
Conducted in English with Borges in his office at the National Library.
Reality is Perplexing Enough
25 October 1968. Commonweal Magazine.
Interviewed by Patricia Marx and John Simon.
A refreshingly direct and personal interview in which Borges refers to his past embrace of ultraism as “a boyish joke.”
March 1968
Interviewed by Don Bell.
This interview was for the CBC show “Tuesday Night,” and was used as material for a Canadian documentary called “Borges and I.”
Merely a Man of Letters
14 April 1976. Philosophy and Literature.
Interviewed by Denis Dutton, Michael Palencia-Roth, and Lawrence I. Berkove.
This interview dates from Borges’ stay in East Lansing, where he was visiting professor at Michigan State University. The site also contains an MP3 of the interview, and is featured below.
Le goût de l’épopée
June 1977. Magazine Littéraire.
Interviewed by Robert Louit.
An interview with Borges from 1977. [French]
A Conversation with Jorge Luis Borges
25 April 1980. Artful Dodge.
Interviewed by Daniel Bourne and Stephen Cape.
Conducted by the College of Wooster’s literary magazine Artful Dodge, this interview is a rambling delight, and focuses on Borges’ thoughts on poetry and language. It has recently been published by Melville House in Jorge Luis Borges: The Last Interview.
Video
A Fondo Interview
1976. A Fondo.
Interviewed by Joaquín Soler Serrano
Borges is interviewed by the Spanish television program A Fondo. [English subtitles.]
RTVE Interview
1976. Encuentros con los artes y las letras
Interviewed by Paloma Chamorro, José Luis Jover and Marcos Ricardo Barnatán.
A Borges interview for Spanish RTVE, the state-run Corporación de Radio y Televisión Española. [Spanish]
Borges: South America’s Titan
1 February 1977. Firing Line.
Interviewed by William F. Buckley, Jr.
Borges is interviewed by the conservative icon William F. Buckley, Jr., whose accent is one of the great treasures of twentieth-century America. This interview is notable for its focus on politics as much as literature.
Antonio Carrizo entrevista a Jorge Luis Borges
1979.
Interview by Antonio Carrizo.
This two-hour interview includes segments with María Kodama and Roy Bartholomew. [Spanish]
La gente Interview
1980. La gente
Interviewed by Augusto Bonardo.
Borges is interviewed for the Argentine program La gente. This brief interview is largely political, beginning with a discussion of Poland and moving to the Russian Revolution. [Spanish]
Celebrando a Borges
January 1981. Y esto no es cultura
Interview by Antonio Carrizo.
This half-hour interview touches on Leopoldo Lugones, gaucho poetry, and tango. [Spanish]
Tiempos Modernos
1985. “Tiempos Modernos”
Another Borges interview for Spanish RTVE, the state-run Corporación de Radio y Televisión Española. [Spanish]
Êdoctum: Encuentro. Jorge Luis Borges
Part 1 | Part 2
A roundtable discussion on literature directed by Alvaro Galvez y Fuentes, featuring Jorge Luis Borges, Salvador Elizondo, Juan Jose Arreola, Germán Bleiberg and Adriano González Leon. [Spanish]
Audio
Merely a Man of Letters
14 April 1976. Philosophy and Literature.
Interviewed by Denis Dutton, Michael Palencia-Roth, and Lawrence I. Berkove.
This video takes the audio recording of the Philosophy and Literature interview and enhances it with a slideshow of Borges photographs.
Library of Congress Interview
23 April 1976.
Interviewed by Georgette M. Dorn.
Recorded in Studio B of the Library of Congress Recording Laboratory, this somewhat dutiful interview was recorded for the “Archive of Hispanic Literature on Tape.”
Willis Conover Interviews Borges About Lovecraft
30 April 1976.
Interviewed by Willis Conover, Jr.
Borges is interviewed in New York City by “Voice of America” broadcaster, jazz critic, and science fiction enthusiast Willis Conover. The interview focuses on H.P. Lovecraft, much to Borges’ polite, yet evident, discomfort. This interview is hosted at the University of North Texas.
Carrizo entrevista Borges
1979. La vida y canto.
Interviews by Antonio Carrizo.
From August to September of 1979, chess master and musical journalist Antonio Carrizo conducted a series of interviews with Borges to celebrate his 80th birthday. Broadcast as part of Carrizo’s program La vida y canto, the interviews were divided into 29 separate programs. Thanks to Andrés Siris’ for collecting them all in a YouTube playlist! [Spanish]
45 minutos con Borges
Interview by Robert Alifano.
This interview has been posted without date or context. Any additional information is welcome! [Spanish]
“Jorge Luis Borges,” entrevista Radial, en Buenos Aires
Borges is interviewed on Buenos Aires radio. I am not sure about the details; any additional information is welcome! [Spanish]
Borges-Related Interviews
María Kodama Interview
2013. Bayly
Interviewed by Jaime Bayly.
Borges’ widow María Kodama speaks about Borges, his life, and his work. [Spanish]
Alberto Manguel on Reading Aloud to Borges
30 March 2018. Literary Hub.
Interviewed by Paul Holdengraber.
“In this episode of A Phone Call from Paul, Paul Holdengraber talks to Argentine-Canadian translator and essayist Alberto Manguel. The two discuss writing about imaginary places, being a reader to Jorge Luis Borges, and Manguel’s most recent book, Packing My Library.”
Alberto Manguel Con Borges
Unknown Venue & Date
Author, translator, and former Borges reader Alberto Manguel discusses his memoir, Con Borges. [Spanish]
Editor: Allen Ruch
Last Modified: 6 November 2019
Borges Main Page: The Garden of Forking Paths
Contact: quail (at) shipwrecklibrary (dot) com