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Manuel Elogio Carpio Hernández (March 1, 1791 – February 11, 1860) was a Mexican poet, theologian, physician, and politician. Much of his poetry was religious or historical, with an inspiration for his poetry deriving from the
Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
. He was a
classicist Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
who often used
Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
. He wrote the earliest known literary depiction of the ghost
La Llorona ''La Llorona'' (; "The Weeping Woman" or "The Wailer") is a Hispanic-American mythical vengeful ghost who is said to roam near bodies of water mourning her children whom she drowned. Origins Early colonial times provided evidence that the lore ...
in a poem in 1849 and has received praise for his work.


Personal life

Carpio was born in Cosamaloapan de Carpio,
Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...
, Mexico, on March 1, 1791. As a child, he moved with his parents to
Puebla Puebla ( en, colony, settlement), officially Free and Sovereign State of Puebla ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its cap ...
which is where his father died and they lost their wealth. He studied
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
,
philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
, and
theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
at the Conciliar Seminary in Puebla. He enjoyed reading Greek classics, Roman classics, religious books, and books about ancient history in the library. Carpio completed his schooling in medicine at the
National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico ( es, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM) is a public research university in Mexico. It is consistently ranked as one of the best universities in Latin America, where it's also the bigges ...
in 1832. He died in
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
on February 11, 1860.


Career

Carpio translated ''Aphorisms'' and ''Prognostics'' by
Hippocrates Hippocrates of Kos (; grc-gre, Ἱπποκράτης ὁ Κῷος, Hippokrátēs ho Kôios; ), also known as Hippocrates II, was a Greek physician of the classical period who is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of ...
. He was a teacher, writer, physician, and a member of learned societies. He was a part of the Legislature of Veracruz and was a representative in the
Congress of the Union The Congress of the Union ( es, Congreso de la Unión, ), formally known as the General Congress of the United Mexican States (''Congreso General de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos''), is the legislature of the federal government of Mexico cons ...
. Carpio was briefly the
President of the Chamber of Deputies President of the Chamber of Deputies may refer to: * List of presidents of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies * List of presidents of the Chamber of Deputies of Bolivia * President of the Chamber of Deputies (Brazil) * President of the Chamber of Dep ...
. Although Carpio was known for his poetry, his first poems were not published until 1849. Carpio's inspiration for his poetry was the
Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
, with the majority of his poems being either religious or historical. He was a
classicist Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
who often used
Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
. His poems include ''Mexico'', ''El Popocatépetl'', ''Belshazzar's Feast'', ''The Witch of Endor'', ''The Annunciation'', ''The Virgin at the Foot of the Cross'', and ''Napolean in the Red Sea''. Carpio wrote the earliest known literary depiction of the ghost
La Llorona ''La Llorona'' (; "The Weeping Woman" or "The Wailer") is a Hispanic-American mythical vengeful ghost who is said to roam near bodies of water mourning her children whom she drowned. Origins Early colonial times provided evidence that the lore ...
as a poem in 1849. In Carpio's 14-line poem, a woman named Rosalia was murdered by her husband and becomes a weeping ghost that travels through streets and the riverbank, wearing a cloak.


Reception

In 1922, ''
The New International Encyclopedia ''The New International Encyclopedia'' was an American encyclopedia first published in 1902 by Dodd, Mead and Company. It descended from the ''International Cyclopaedia'' (1884) and was updated in 1906, 1914 and 1926. History ''The New Intern ...
'' referred to Carpio as the "most popular Mexican poet of the century", and named ''Belshazzar's Feast'' his most important work. ''The Encyclopedia Americana'' said that Carpio is the "first and best epic poet of his country and his lyrics have true lyrical swing." ''History of Mexican Literature'' stated that ''Napoleon in the Red Sea'' is the "most pleasing" of Carpio's historical poetry and that Carpio was "respected and beloved by all".


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carpio, Manuel Presidents of the Chamber of Deputies (Mexico) Mexican philosophers 19th-century Mexican writers Mexican male poets Mexican male writers 1791 births 1860 deaths 19th-century poets 19th-century male writers