Antonio Candido
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Antonio Candido de Mello e Souza (July 24, 1918 – May 12, 2017) was a Brazilian writer, professor, sociologist, and
literary critic Literary criticism (or literary studies) is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of literature's goals and methods. Th ...
. As a critic of
Brazilian literature Brazilian literature is the literature written in the Portuguese language by Brazilians or in Brazil, including works written prior to the country's independence in 1822. Throughout its early years, literature from Brazil followed the literary t ...
, he is regarded as having been one of the foremost
scholars A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher ...
on the subject by Brazilian universities. He was the co-winner of the
Prêmio Jabuti The Prêmio Jabuti (the "Tortoise Prize") is the most traditional literary award in Brazil, given by the Brazilian Book Chamber (CBL). It was conceived by Edgard Cavalheiro in 1959 when he presided over the CBL, with the interest of rewarding autho ...
for essays in 1965 and was awarded the
Prêmio Machado de Assis The Prêmio Machado de Assis (the Machado de Assis Prize) is a literary prize awarded by the Brazilian Academy of Letters, and possibly the most prestigious literary award in Brazil. The prize was founded in 1941, named in memory of the novelist ...
in 1993, the
Camões Prize The Camões Prize (Portuguese, ''Prémio Camões'', ), named after Luís de Camões, is the most important prize for literature in the Portuguese language. It is awarded annually by the Portuguese ''Direção-Geral do Livro, dos Arquivos e das Bib ...
in 1998, and the
Alfonso Reyes International Prize The Alfonso Reyes International Prize is a Mexican award given for meritorious lifetime contributions to literary research and criticism. It was founded in 1972 by the economist turned author/critic, Francisco Zendejas and was named in honor of Alf ...
in 2005. Candido was professor-emeritus at the
University of São Paulo The University of São Paulo ( pt, Universidade de São Paulo, USP) is a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the largest Brazilian public university and the country's most prestigious educational institution, the best ...
and
São Paulo State University São Paulo State University (UNESP, pt, Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho") is a public university run by the state government of São Paulo, Brazil. UNESP has a combined student body of over 45,000 spread among its 23 c ...
, and doctor ''honoris causa'' by the
University of Campinas The State University of Campinas ( pt, Universidade Estadual de Campinas), commonly called Unicamp, is a public research university in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Unicamp is consistently ranked among the top universities in Brazil and Latin ...
.


Biography

Son of Aristides Candido de Mello e Souza, M.D., and Clarisse Tolentino de Mello e Souza, most of his childhood was spent in the Brazilian countryside, in the states of
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 ...
and
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 GaWC a ...
. During this period, he did not attend school, being taught at home by his mother. In 1937, he and his family settled down in São Paulo, where he received formal education. In 1939, Candido began studying law at the University of São Paulo School of Law, a course he would eventually abandon in order to study philosophy at the same university. His first critical works were published in 1941, in the magazine '' Clima'', co-founded by himself, and, in the following year, he began teaching at the University of São Paulo, first in the department of sociology and later, a position he would hold, although with a brief interval from 1958 to 1960, for thirty-six years. Candido also taught Brazilian Literature at the
University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...
from 1964 to 1966, and became
visiting scholar In academia, a visiting scholar, visiting researcher, visiting fellow, visiting lecturer, or visiting professor is a scholar from an institution who visits a host university to teach, lecture, or perform research on a topic for which the visitor ...
at
Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
two years later. His major work of literary criticism was published in 1959, entitled ''Formação da Literatura Brasileira'' (literally, "Formation of Brazilian Literature), a highly polemic and influential study of the foundations of his country's literary arts. Candido was also active in politics during many periods of his life: he was a militant against
Getúlio Vargas Getúlio Dornelles Vargas (; 19 April 1882 – 24 August 1954) was a Brazilian lawyer and politician who served as the 14th and 17th president of Brazil, from 1930 to 1945 and from 1951 to 1954. Due to his long and controversial tenure as Brazi ...
's Estado Novo and helped to found the Worker's Party in 1980. Candido married Gilda de Melo e Sousa in 1943, a Brazilian essayist and fellow professor at the University of São Paulo, with whom he has three daughters. Candido was hospitalized at Albert Einstein Hospital in
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 GaWC a ...
days before his death on May 12, 2017, due to a
hiatus hernia A hiatal hernia or hiatus hernia is a type of hernia in which abdominal organs (typically the stomach) slip through the diaphragm into the middle compartment of the chest. This may result in gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) or laryngoph ...
. He was 98.


Major works

* Introdução ao Método Crítico de Sílvio Romero – 1945 * Brigada Ligeira – 1945 * Ficção e Confissão – 1956 * O Observador Literário – 1959 * Formação da Literatura Brasileira – Momentos Decisivos – 1959 * Presença da Literatura Brasileira – 1964 – com J. Aderaldo Castello * Tese e Antítese – 1964 * Os Parceiros do Rio Bonito – 1964 * Literatura e Sociedade – 1965 * Literatura e Cultura de 1900 a 1945–1970 * Vários Escritos – 1970 * Teresina Etc. – 1980 * Na Sala de Aula – 1985 * A Educação pela Noite e Outros Ensaios – 1987 * O Discurso e a Cidade – 1993 * Recortes – 1993 * O Romantismo no Brasil – 2002 * Um Funcionário da Monarquia – 2002 * O Albatroz e o Chinês – 2004 * Iniciação à Literatura Brasileira – 2004


Partial bibliography

*''Antonio Candido: On Literature and Society'' by Antonio Candido with Howard S. Becker as translator. (
Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...
Press: May 5, 1995)
Antonio Candido's entry at Enciclopédia Itaú Cultural


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Candido, Antonio 1918 births 2017 deaths Brazilian male writers Latin Americanists University of São Paulo alumni University of São Paulo faculty Camões Prize winners Brazilian literary critics Brazilian essayists Recipients of the Great Cross of the National Order of Scientific Merit (Brazil)