Aureliano José Lessa (1828–1861) was a Brazilian poet, adept of the "

Ultra-Romanticism Ultra-Romanticism ( pt, Ultrarromantismo) was a Portuguese and Brazilian literary movement that took place during the second half of the 19th. Aesthetically similar to (but not exactly the same as) the German- and British-originated Dark Romanticis ...

" movement. Born in

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...

in 1828, he moved to

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...

in 1847 to study Law, but received his bacharel degree at the Faculdade de Direito de Olinda, in

Pernambuco Pernambuco () is a States of Brazil, state of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast region of the country. With an estimated population of 9.6 million people as of 2020, making it List of Brazilian states by population, sev ...

, in 1851. He worked as attorney general in the city of

Ouro Preto Ouro Preto (, ''Black Gold''), formerly Vila Rica (, ''Rich Village''), is a city in and former capital of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, a former colonial mining town located in the Serra do Espinhaço mountains and designated a World Herit ...

, and also as a lawyer in the cities of

Diamantina Diamantina may refer to: Geography Australia * Diamantina Bowen (1833-1893), ''grande dame'' of Queensland and the wife of Sir George Bowen, the first Governor of Queensland. * ''Diamantina Cocktail'', 1976 album by Little River Band * Diam ...

and

Serro Serro is a Brazilian municipality located in the state of Minas Gerais. The city belongs to the metropolitan area of Belo Horizonte and to the microregion of Conceição do Mato Dentro. As of 2020, the estimated population was 20,940. In col ...

. During his stay at São Paulo he met the authors

Álvares de Azevedo Manuel Antônio Álvares de Azevedo (September 12, 1831 – April 25, 1852), affectionately called "Maneco" by his close friends, relatives and admirers, was a Brazilian Romantic poet, short story writer, playwright and essayist, considered to b ...

and

Bernardo Guimarães Bernardo Joaquim da Silva Guimarães (; August 15, 1825 – March 10, 1884) was a Brazilian poet and novelist. He is the author of the famous romances '' A Escrava Isaura'' and '' O Seminarista''. He also introduced to Brazilian poetry the ''verso ...

. With them, he planned a volume of poetry called ''As Três Liras'' (in en, The Three Lyres), that ended unsuccessful. Along with those and others, he was a member of a club named "Sociedade Epicureia" ("

Epicurean Epicureanism is a system of philosophy founded around 307 BC based upon the teachings of the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus. Epicureanism was originally a challenge to Platonism. Later its main opponent became Stoicism. Few writings by Ep ...

Society"). Aureliano only wrote some texts to newspapers of

and

during his lifetime. His poems were compiled and published posthumously in

1873 Events January–March * January 1 ** Japan adopts the Gregorian calendar. ** The California Penal Code goes into effect. * January 17 – American Indian Wars: Modoc War: First Battle of the Stronghold – Modoc Indians defe ...

by his brother, Francisco José Pedro Lessa, under the name of ''Poesias Póstumas'' (in en, Posthumous Poetry). A heavy drinker, Lessa died on February 21, 1861, because of a

lesion A lesion is any damage or abnormal change in the tissue of an organism, usually caused by disease or trauma. ''Lesion'' is derived from the Latin "injury". Lesions may occur in plants as well as animals. Types There is no designated classif ...

in his heart, caused by his alcoholism. Aureliano was the uncle of

Pedro Augusto Carneiro Lessa Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for ''Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter. The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meaning " ...

External links

A poem by Aureliano Lessa

Aureliano Lessa's profile at the official site of Cravo Albin Dictionary

Poems by Lessa
1828 births 1861 deaths Brazilian journalists People from Minas Gerais Romantic poets 19th-century Brazilian writers 19th-century journalists Male journalists 19th-century Brazilian poets Brazilian male poets 19th-century Brazilian male writers {{Brazil-writer-stub