Jorge Amado ( 10 August 1912 – 6 August 2001) was a Brazilian writer of the

modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

school. He remains the best-known of modern Brazilian writers, with his work having been translated into some 49 languages and popularized in film, including '' Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands'' in 1976, and having been nominated for the

Nobel Prize in Literature The Nobel Prize in Literature, here meaning ''for'' Literature (), is a Swedish literature prize that is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words of the will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, "in ...

7 times. His work reflects the image of a

Mestiço ''Mestiço'' is a Portuguese term that referred to persons of mixed European and Indigenous non-European ancestry in the former Portuguese Empire. Mestiço community in Brazil In Colonial Brazil, it was initially used to refer to , persons b ...

Brazil and is marked by

religious syncretism Religious syncretism is the blending of religious belief systems into a new system, or the incorporation of other beliefs into an existing religious tradition. This can occur for many reasons, where religious traditions exist in proximity to each ...

. He depicted a cheerful and optimistic country that was beset, at the same time, with deep social and economic differences. He occupied the 23rd chair of the Brazilian Academy of Letters from 1961 until his death in 2001. He won the 1984 International Nonino Prize in Italy. He also was Federal Deputy for

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

as a member of the Brazilian Communist Party between 1947 and 1951.

Biography

Amado was born on Saturday, 10 August 1912, on a farm near the inland city of Itabuna, in the south of the Brazilian state of

Bahia Bahia () is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Mina ...

. He was the eldest of four sons of João Amado de Faria and D. Eulália Leal. The farm was located in the village of Ferradas, which, though today is a district of Itabuna, was at the time administered by the coastal city of

Ilhéus Ilhéus () is a major city located in the southern coastal region of Bahia, Brazil, 211 km south of Salvador, Brazil, Salvador, the state's capital. The city was founded in 1534 as Vila de São Jorge dos Ilhéus and is known as one of the mos ...

. For this reason, he considered himself a citizen of Ilhéus. From his exposure to the large cocoa plantations of the area, Amado knew the misery and the struggles of the people working the land and living in almost enslaved conditions. This was to be a theme present in several of his works, for example, '' The Violent Land'' of 1944. As a result of a smallpox epidemic, his family moved to Ilhéus when he was one year old, and he spent his childhood there. He attended high school in Salvador, the capital of the state. By the age of 14 Amado had begun to collaborate with several magazines and took part in literary life, as one of the founders of the Modernist "Rebels' Academy". He was the cousin of Brazilian lawyer, writer, journalist and politician , and of Brazilian actress and screenwriter

Véra Clouzot Véra Gibson-Amado, known professionally as Véra Clouzot, (30 December 1913 – 15 December 1960) was a Brazilian-French film actress and screenwriter. She is known for playing Linda in ''The Wages of Fear'' (1953), Christina Delassalle in ...

. Amado published his first novel, '' The Country of Carnival'', in 1931, aged 18. He married Matilde Garcia Rosa and had a daughter, Lila, in 1933. The same year he published his second novel, '' Cacau'', which increased his popularity. He studied law at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro Faculty of Law but never became a practising lawyer. His leftist activities made his life difficult under the dictatorial regime of Getúlio Vargas. In 1935 he was arrested for the first time, and two years later his books were publicly burned. His works were banned from Portugal, but in the rest of Europe, he gained great popularity with the publication of '' Jubiabá'' in France. The book received enthusiastic reviews, including that of

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; ; ) are awards administered by the Nobel Foundation and granted in accordance with the principle of "for the greatest benefit to humankind". The prizes were first awarded in 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred N ...

winner French author

Albert Camus Albert Camus ( ; ; 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, dramatist, journalist, world federalist, and political activist. He was the recipient of the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 44, the s ...

. In the early 1940s, Amado edited a literary supplement for the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

-funded political newspaper "Meio-Dia". Being a communist militant, from 1941 to 1942 Amado was compelled to go into exile to

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

and

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

. When he returned to Brazil he separated from Matilde Garcia Rosa. In 1945 he was elected to the National Constituent Assembly, as a representative of the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB) (he received more votes than any other candidate in the state of

). He signed a law granting freedom of religious faith. He remarried in 1945, to the writer Zélia Gattai. In 1947 they had a son, João Jorge. The same year his party was declared illegal, and its members arrested and persecuted. Amado chose exile once again, this time in France, where he remained until he was expelled in 1950. His daughter from his first marriage, Lila, died in 1949. From 1950 to 1952 Amado and Gattai lived in

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

, where another daughter, Paloma, was born. He also travelled to the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, winning the Stalin Peace Prize in 1951. Documents released to the public in 2016 show that in this period he was investigated by the CIA. On his return to Brazil in 1954, Amado abandoned active political life, leaving the Communist Party one year later. From that period on he dedicated himself solely to literature. His second creative phase began in 1958 with '' Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon'', which was described by

Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary criticism, literary critic, considered a leading figure in 20th ...

as "the best example of a folk novel". Amado abandoned, in part, the realism and the social themes of his early works, producing a series of novels focusing mainly on feminine characters, devoted to a kind of smiling celebration of the traditions and the beauties of Bahia. In addition to ''Gabriela'' these novels included ''Tereza Batista: Home from the Wars'' and ''Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands''. His depiction of the sexual customs of his land was scandalous to much of 1950s Brazilian society and for several years Amado could not even enter

, where ''Gabriela'' was set, due to threats received for the alleged offence to the morality of the city's women. The Soviet Union kept publishing Amado's works shortly after their release in Portuguese. On 6 April 1961, he was elected to the Brazilian Academy of Letters. On his death, his wife was elected to replace him. Amado made the Academy the setting for one of his novels, '' Pen, Sword, Camisole''. He received the title of Doctor ''honoris causa'' from several universities in Brazil, Portugal, Italy,

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and France, as well as other honours in almost every South American country, including ''Obá de Xangô'' (santoon) of the

Candomblé Candomblé () is an African diaspora religions, African diasporic religion that developed in Brazil during the 19th century. It arose through a process of syncretism between several of the traditional religions of West and Central Africa, especi ...

, the traditional Afro-Brazilian religion of Bahia. He was finally removed from the French Government blacklist in 1965 following the intervention of the then Minister of Culture,

André Malraux Georges André Malraux ( ; ; 3 November 1901 – 23 November 1976) was a French novelist, art theorist, and minister of cultural affairs. Malraux's novel ''La Condition Humaine'' (''Man's Fate'') (1933) won the Prix Goncourt. He was appointed ...

. In 1984 he was awarded the French Légion d’Honneur by President

François Mitterrand François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was a French politician and statesman who served as President of France from 1981 to 1995, the longest holder of that position in the history of France. As a former First ...

His books have been translated into 49 languages in 55 countries, and adapted into films, theatrical works and TV programmes. They even inspired some

samba Samba () is a broad term for many of the rhythms that compose the better known Brazilian music genres that originated in the Afro-Brazilians, Afro Brazilian communities of Bahia in the late 19th century and early 20th century, It is a name or ...

schools of the

Brazilian Carnival The Carnival of Brazil (, ) is an annual festival held the Friday afternoon before Ash Wednesday at noon, which marks the beginning of Lent, the forty-day period before Easter. During Lent, Roman Catholics and some other Christians traditionally ...

. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature seven times: in 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, and 1973. In 1987, the ''House of Jorge Amado Foundation'' was created in Salvador. It promotes the protection of Amado's estate and the development of culture in

. The recently renovated building on the Pelourinho in Salvador contains a small museum and wall panels with the covers of international editions of Amado's books.

Final years and death

In his final years, Amado suffered from diabetes. On 5 August 2001, he was admitted to Hospital Aliança in Salvador (Bahia), where he died at the 19:30 BRT of the next day of heart and lung failure, four days before his 89th birthday. His ashes were spread in the garden of his house four days later.

Legacy

On 4 December 2014, he received (posthumously) from the

Legislative Assembly of Bahia The Legislative Assembly of Bahia (, ALBA) is the unicameral legislature of the Brazilian state of Bahia. It is currently based in the Luís Eduardo Magalhães building in the administrative centre of Bahia (:pt:Centro Administrativo da Bahia, Ce ...

appointment as Commander of

Meritorious Citizen of the Freedom and Social Justice João Mangabeira (CBJM) The Meritorious Citizen of the Freedom and Social Justice João Mangabeira decoration (, CBJM) is the highest award granted by Legislative Assembly of Bahia. The title honors João Mangabeira, an outstanding in defense of democratic rule of law, gr ...

, the State's highest honour, due to his work in defence of social rights. On 20 October 2017, a newly-discovered species of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order (biology), order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek , literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough ski ...

from

, '' Phyllodytes amadoi'', was named in his honor. The discoverers of this species noted that in addition to living in the same area as the species' type locality, Amado was a lifelong frog enthusiast - over the course of his life, he had acquired a large collection of frog-themed

souvenir A souvenir ( French for 'a remembrance or memory'), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and trans ...

s from around the world, some of which remain on display at his home in Salvador to this day.

Works

Selected works include: * '' The Country of Carnival'' (''O País do Carnaval'', 1931) * '' Cacau'' (1933) * ''

Sweat Perspiration, also known as sweat, is the fluid secreted by sweat glands in the skin of mammals. Two types of sweat glands can be found in humans: eccrine glands and Apocrine sweat gland, apocrine glands. The eccrine sweat glands are distribu ...

'' (''Suor'', 1934) * '' Jubiabá'' (1935) * '' Sea of Death'' (''Mar Morto'', 1936) * '' Captains of the Sands'' (''Capitães da Areia'', 1937) * '' The ABC of Castro Alves'' (''ABC de Castro Alves'', 1941) * '' The Knight of Hope'' (''Vida de Luis Carlos Prestes'' or ''O Cavaleiro da Esperança'', 1942) * '' The Violent Land'' (''Terras do Sem Fim'', 1943) * '' The Golden Harvest'' (''São Jorge dos Ilhéus'', 1944) * '' Bahia de Todos-os-santos'' (1945) * '' Red Field'' (''Seara Vermelha'', 1946) * '' The Bowels of Liberty'' trilogy (''Os Subterrâneos da Liberdade'', 1954) * '' Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon'' (''Gabriela, Cravo e Canela'', 1958) * '' The Double Death of Quincas Water-Bray'' (''A Morte e a Morte de Quincas Berro D'agua'', 1959) * '' Home Is the Sailor'' (''Os Velhos Marinheiros ou o Capitão de Longo Curso'', 1961) * ''Ogum's Compadre'' (''O compadre de Ogum'', 1964) * '' Shepherds of the Night'' (''Os Pastores da Noite'', 1964) * '' Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands'' (''Dona Flor e Seus Dois Maridos'', 1966) * '' Tent of Miracles'' (''Tenda dos Milagres'', 1969) * '' Tereza Batista: Home from the Wars'' (''Teresa Batista Cansada da Guerra'', 1972) * ''The Swallow and the Tomcat: A Love Story'' (''O Gato Malhado e a Andorinha Sinhá: uma história de amor'', 1976) * '' Tieta'' (''Tieta do Agreste'', 1977) * '' Pen, Sword, Camisole (''Farda Fardão Camisola de Dormir'', 1979) * '' Showdown'' (''Tocaia Grande'', 1984) * '' The War of the Saints'' (''O Sumiço da Santa'', 1988) * '' Coasting'' (''Navegação de Cabotagem'', 1992) * '' The Discovery of America by the Turks'' (''A Descoberta da América pelos Turcos'', 1994)

References

External links

Jorge Amado's Biography

Jorge Amado's Ilhéus

Extensive Info and New Editions
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Jorge Amado
recorded at the Library of Congress for the Hispanic Division's audio literary archive on 8 August 1977. {{DEFAULTSORT:Amado, Jorge 1912 births 2001 deaths Brazilian socialists Brazilian communists 20th-century Brazilian dramatists and playwrights Brazilian male dramatists and playwrights Brazilian people of Portuguese descent Members of the Brazilian Academy of Letters People from Ilhéus Stalin Peace Prize recipients Brazilian communist writers Modernist writers 20th-century Brazilian novelists Brazilian male novelists Brazilian science fiction writers Camões Prize winners Brazilian expatriates in Czechoslovakia 20th-century Brazilian male writers Brazilian memoirists Brazilian Communist Party politicians Members of the Chamber of Deputies (Brazil) from São Paulo 20th-century memoirists People from Itabuna Proletarian literature Federal University of Rio de Janeiro alumni