Aluísio Tancredo Gonçalves de Azevedo (; 14 April 1857 – 21 January 1913) was a Brazilian novelist, caricaturist, diplomat, playwright and short story writer. Initially a
Romantic writer, he would later adhere to the
Naturalist movement. He introduced the Naturalist movement in Brazil with the novel ''
O Mulato'', in 1881.
He founded and occupied the 4th chair of the
Brazilian Academy of Letters
The Academia Brasileira de Letras (ABL) ( English: ''Brazilian Academy of Letters'') is a Brazilian literary non-profit society established at the end of the 19th century. The first president, Machado de Assis, declared its foundation on Tue ...
from 1897 until his death in 1913.
Biography
Azevedo was born in
São Luís, to David Gonçalves de Azevedo (the Portuguese
vice-consul
A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...
in Brazil) and Emília Amália Pinto de Magalhães. He was the younger brother of the famous playwright
Artur Azevedo
Artur Nabantino Gonçalves de Azevedo (7 July 1855 – 22 October 1908) was a Brazilian playwright, short story writer, chronicler, journalist and Parnassian poet. He is famous for consolidating in Brazil the "comedy of manners" genre, initiated ...
.
As a child, Aluísio would work as a
traveling salesman. Since then, he loved painting and drawing, and would move to
Rio de Janeiro in 1876 (where his brother Artur was living already), to study at the
Escola Nacional de Belas Artes
Escola de Belas Artes (School of Fine Arts) is one of the centers of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and dates back to colonial times.
A royal letter of Nov 20 1800 by John VI of Portugal established the ''Aula Prática de Desenho e Figu ...
. After graduating, he drew
caricature
A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...
s for
journals such as ''O Fígaro'', ''O Mequetrefe'', ''Zig-Zag'' and ''A Semana Ilustrada''.
His father's death, in 1878, made him return to São Luís, in order to take care of his family. He then initiated his writer career, publishing in 1880 a typical
Romantic novel, ''Uma Lágrima de Mulher''. He helps on the creation of an
anticlerical
Anti-clericalism is opposition to religious authority, typically in social or political matters. Historical anti-clericalism has mainly been opposed to the influence of Roman Catholicism. Anti-clericalism is related to secularism, which seeks to ...
journal named ''O Pensador'', where he wrote
Abolitionist
Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people.
The British ...
articles. In 1881 he publishes the first Brazilian
Naturalist novel ever: ''
O Mulato'', that deals with the themes of racism. Consolidating his career as a writer, he could return to Rio.
He would write endlessly during the period of 1882-1895. Also dating from this period are his famous novels ''
Casa de Pensão'' (1884) and ''
O Cortiço'' (1890), as well as many other works written in partnership with his brother or with Émile Rouède.
In 1895 he became a diplomat. He served as a
minister in Spain, Japan, England, Italy and
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, where he died.
Works
Novels
* ''Uma Lágrima de Mulher (A Woman's Tear)'' (1880)
* ''
O Mulato (The Mulatto)'' (1881)
* ''Mistérios da Tijuca, ou Girândola de Amores (Tijuca's Mystery, or the Girony of Lovers)'' (1882)
* ''Memórias de um Condenado, ou A Condessa Vésper (Memoirs of a Fatedmen, or the Vesper Countess)'' (1882)
* ''
Casa de Pensão (Pension House)'' (1884)
* ''Filomena Borges'' (1884)
* ''O Homem (The Man)'' (1887)
* ''
O Cortiço (The Slum)'' (1890)
* ''O Coruja (The Owl)'' (1890)
* ''A Mortalha de Alzira (The Shroud of Alzira)'' (1894)
* ''O Livro de uma Sogra (A Mother-in-law Book)'' (1895)
Theatre plays
* ''Os Doidos (The Madmen)'' (1879)
* ''Flor-de-lis (Fleur-de-lis)'' (1882)
* ''Casa de Orates (Prayers House)'' (1882)
* ''O Caboclo (The Caboclo)'' (1886)
* ''Fritzmack'' (1889 — in partnership with
Artur Azevedo
Artur Nabantino Gonçalves de Azevedo (7 July 1855 – 22 October 1908) was a Brazilian playwright, short story writer, chronicler, journalist and Parnassian poet. He is famous for consolidating in Brazil the "comedy of manners" genre, initiated ...
)
* ''A República (The Republic)'' (1890)
* ''O Adultério (The Adultery)'' (1891)
* ''Em Flagrante (In Flagrant)'' (1891)
Miscellaneous
* ''O Japão (Japan)'' (chronicles — 1894)
* ''Demônios (Devils)'' (short stories — 1895)
External links
Aluísio Azevedo's biography at the official site of the Brazilian Academy of Letters
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Azevedo, Aluisio
1857 births
1913 deaths
Brazilian caricaturists
Brazilian abolitionists
Brazilian diplomats
19th-century Brazilian dramatists and playwrights
Brazilian male dramatists and playwrights
Brazilian people of Portuguese descent
People from São Luís, Maranhão
Members of the Brazilian Academy of Letters
19th-century Brazilian novelists
19th-century Brazilian male writers
Brazilian male novelists