Antônio Pereira de Sousa Caldas (November 24, 1762 – March 2, 1814) was a
Colonial Brazilian poet, priest and orator, patron of the 34th 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 ...
.
About
Sousa Caldas was born in 1762, to
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
merchant Luís Pereira de Sousa and Ana Maria de Sousa. Since he was a small boy, he had a vocation for literature, and, at only 8 years old, he was sent to
Lisbon, to live under the care of an uncle. With 16 years old, he entered the
University of Coimbra
The University of Coimbra (UC; pt, Universidade de Coimbra, ) is a public research university in Coimbra, Portugal. First established in Lisbon in 1290, it went through a number of relocations until moving permanently to Coimbra in 1537. The u ...
, where he learnt mathematics and
canon law
Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...
.
In 1781, he was arrested by the
Inquisition
The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...
because of his ideals, influenced by the
Enlightenment. Transferred to the convent of
Rilhafoles, he was catechized for six months. After the
catechism, he became a fully different person, discovering his sacerdotal vocation. However, he did not abandoned his philosophical and satirical poetry, writing the poem ''Ode ao Homem Natural'' in 1784. It is attributed to him the satire ''O Reino da Estupidez''. He also published the poem ''Ode ao Homem Selvagem.''
After graduating in the canon law course in 1789, he travelled to France and
Genoa
Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...
. In Genoa, he wrote the
ode
An ode (from grc, ᾠδή, ōdḗ) is a type of lyric poetry. Odes are elaborately structured poems praising or glorifying an event or individual, describing nature intellectually as well as emotionally. A classic ode is structured in three majo ...
''A Criação'' and abandoned the satirical poetry.
In 1801, he returns to
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a ...
to visit his mother, settling permanently in the town. During his final years in Rio, he wrote many letters for his friends, but only five of them exist today.
He died in 1814.
Works
* ''Ode ao Homem Natural'' (1784)
* ''A Criação'' (1790)
* ''Poesias Sacras e Profanas'' (anthology of poems compiled by
Francisco de Borja Garção Stockler and published posthumously in 1820)
References
External links
Poems by Sousa Caldas at the official site of the Brazilian Academy of Letters
*
ttp://www.casadobruxo.com.br/poesia/s/sousa.htm Poems by Sousa Caldas
1762 births
1814 deaths
Patrons of the Brazilian Academy of Letters
18th-century Brazilian poets
18th-century Brazilian Roman Catholic priests
19th-century Brazilian Roman Catholic priests
Brazilian people of Portuguese descent
University of Coimbra alumni
Brazilian male poets
Writers from Rio de Janeiro (city)
18th-century male writers
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