27 de octubre

27 de octubre serves as both a personal anniversary and a publication date in the book: it is identified as the birthday of Sylvia Plath and the narrator, and as the date on which an interview about the criminal justice system and mental illness appeared. The author’s biography independently records 27 October 1981 as Katixa Agirre Miguélez’s birth date.

A shared birthday

In the interview introduction, the narrator notes that its publication date coincides with Sylvia Plath’s birthday and the narrator’s own. The date therefore connects the book’s discussion of motherhood, mental illness, and literary creation to two birthdays, while keeping the narrator’s personal stake visible within a public debate.

Publication and public debate

The interview, conducted by Jakes Ruiz de Infante with defense lawyer Carmela Basaguren, was published on 27 de octubre. Basaguren describes the case as a possible turning point in debate about mental illness and criminal punishment. She points to the criminal system’s lack of sensitivity and foresight, and to the provisional responses that result when judges and psychiatrists pass responsibility between them. The date thus marks the appearance of an argument for more considered treatment of people with mental illnesses who commit crimes.

The author’s biographical date

The biographical note identifies Katixa Agirre Miguélez as born in Vitoria-Gasteiz on 27 October 1981. It also describes her as a Basque writer, an audiovisual-communications scholar, and a professor at the Universidad del País Vasco. This confirms that the date’s personal resonance in the narrative has a corresponding biographical reference in the book.