Antonio Buero Vallejo (September 29, 1916 – April 29, 2000) was a Spanish playwright associated with the
Generation of '36
The Generation of '36 ( es, Generación del 36) is the name given to a group of Spanish artists, poets and playwrights who were working about the time of the Spanish Civil War (1936 - 1939).
The Generation of '36 was a literary movement that suff ...
movement and considered the most important Spanish dramatist of the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
.
Biography
During his career he won three
National Theatre Prizes (in 1957, 1958 and 1959), a National Theatre Prize for all his career in 1980, the
National Literature Prize in 1996, and the
Miguel de Cervantes Prize
The Miguel de Cervantes Prize ( es, Premio de Literatura en Lengua Castellana Miguel de Cervantes) is awarded annually to honour the lifetime achievement of an outstanding writer in the Spanish language.
History
The prize was established in 1975 ...
, Spain's highest literary honour, in 1986. From 1971 until his death he was a member of the
Real Academia Española
The Royal Spanish Academy ( es, Real Academia Española, generally abbreviated as RAE) is Spain's official royal institution with a mission to ensure the stability of the Spanish language. It is based in Madrid, Spain, and is affiliated with ...
.
From 1934 to 1936 Vallejo studied art and painting at San Fernando Escuela de Arte, in Madrid. During the civil war he joined the
Communist Party of Spain
The Communist Party of Spain ( es, Partido Comunista de España; PCE) is a Marxist-Leninist party that, since 1986, has been part of the United Left coalition, which is part of Unidas Podemos. It currently has two of its politicians serving as ...
and served as a medical aid in the
Republican Army.
After the war he was imprisoned for six years. After being released he wrote ''Story of a Stairway'' in 1949. This work presented a graphic picture of Spain after the Civil War and won the Lope de Vega Prize, establishing Vallejo as one of the foremost authors in Spain. While other authors left Spain to escape
Franco's censorship, Vallejo stayed in Spain and used
symbolism
Symbolism or symbolist may refer to:
Arts
* Symbolism (arts), a 19th-century movement rejecting Realism
** Symbolist movement in Romania, symbolist literature and visual arts in Romania during the late 19th and early 20th centuries
** Russian sy ...
to criticise the government. In 1971, he was elected to the
Royal Spanish Academy
The Royal Spanish Academy ( es, Real Academia Española, generally abbreviated as RAE) is Spain's official royal institution with a mission to ensure the stability of the Spanish language. It is based in Madrid, Spain, and is affiliated with ...
. In 1994 he was awarded the Gold Medal of Merit in Fine Arts and the Gold Medal of the Society of Authors of Spain.
He died due to a stroke on April 29, 2000, aged 83.
A common theme in his work is Spain's problems during and after Franco. In the tragedies there is always a sense of hope for the future. His works make frequent use of the symbolism of the senses—for example, using the "fiery darkness," in which the protagonist cannot see, as a symbol of Spain's dark situation.
Awards
*
Miguel de Cervantes Prize
The Miguel de Cervantes Prize ( es, Premio de Literatura en Lengua Castellana Miguel de Cervantes) is awarded annually to honour the lifetime achievement of an outstanding writer in the Spanish language.
History
The prize was established in 1975 ...
1986
*
National Theatre Prize 1957, 1958, 1959, & 1996
Works
* ''Historia de una escalera'' ("Story of a Stairway")(1949)
* ''
En la ardiente oscuridad'' ("In The Burning Darkness") (1950)
* ''La tejedora de sueños'' (1952)
* ''La señal que se espera'' (1952)
* ''Casi un cuento de hadas'' (1953)
* ''Madrugada'' (1953)
* ''Irene o el tesoro'' (1954)
* ''Las cartas boca abajo'' (1957)
* ''Hoy es fiesta'' (1955)
* ''Un soñador para un pueblo'' (1958)
* ''Las Meninas'' (1960)
* ''El concierto de San Ovidio'' ("The concert at Saint-Ovide Fair") (1962)
* ''Aventura en lo gris'' (1963)
* ''El tragaluz'' ("The basement window") (1967)
* ''La doble historia del doctor Valmy'' ("The double-case history of Doctor Valmy")(1968)
* ''El sueño de la razón'' ("The Sleep of Reason") (1970)
* ''La detonación'' ("The Shot")(1977)
* ''Llegada de los dioses'' (1971)
* ''La Fundación'' ("The Foundation") (1974)
* ''Jueces en la noche'' ("Judges in the Night") (1979)
* ''Caimán'' (1981)
* ''Diálogo secreto'' (1984)
* ''Lázaro en el laberinto'' (1986)
* ''Música cercana'' ("The music window")(1989)
* ''Las trampas del azar'' (1994)
* ''Misión al pueblo desierto'' (1999)
See also
*
Café Gijón (Madrid)
Footnotes
External links
Antonio Buero Vallejoat Miguel de Cervantes Virtual Library (cervantesvirtual.com)
at Castilla-La Mancha Library site (sacm.jccm.es)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buero Vallejo, Antonio
1916 births
2000 deaths
Spanish male dramatists and playwrights
Members of the Royal Spanish Academy
Premio Cervantes winners
20th-century Spanish dramatists and playwrights
20th-century Spanish male writers
People from Guadalajara, Spain