Which Peruvian poet wrote 'Trilce'?

César Vallejo wrote Trilce, the groundbreaking poetry collection by the Peruvian poet. First published in Lima in October 1922, it became one of the defining works of Spanish-language avant-garde poetry and modernism.

Vallejo began writing the collection in 1918, composed most of it in 1919, and completed its final poems in 1922. The first edition was printed in the workshops of Lima’s penitentiary in a short run of 200 copies. Its poems use startling word choices, altered syntax, neologisms, numbers, and abrupt shifts in rhythm and meaning, giving the book an intentionally difficult and innovative style.

A frequent source of confusion is the title itself. “Trilce” is a word Vallejo invented, and its exact meaning remains uncertain. Some explanations connect it to “tres” and the cost of changing the book’s title, while others link it to “triste” and “dulce.” Vallejo himself reportedly said that the word had no fixed meaning and was chosen for its sound. The collection’s emotional world draws on grief, solitude, love, imprisonment, and alienation.