Origins of the Historical Novel in Chile
1958; American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese; Volume: 41; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
10.2307/334807
ISSN2153-6414
Autores Tópico(s)Cultural and Social Studies in Latin America
ResumoThe stream of influence felt upon the development of the historical novel in Chile had its origin in the master Sir Walter Scott. The direct influence of Scott appeared to some extent in Chile, but his influence came largely indirectly through the literatures of France and Spain. The novels of Scott rapidly became known throughout Europe and had a great effect upon such French novelists as Vigny, Dumas, and Sue. In Spain there appeared a number of imitators and followers of Scott, among them Ram6n L6pez Soler, Telesforo Trueba y Cossio, and Francisco Navarro Villoslada. These writers and their works in turn became known in Chile and stimulated the development of the historical novel there. An important factor in transmitting a knowledge of Scott to Spain was the activity of many Spanish liberals in exile in England during the reign of Fernando VII. One of these was Jose Joaquin de Mora (1783-1864), a native of Caidiz, who went to England in 1823. Mora was always a partisan of Scott; in 1825 he made Spanish translations of The Talisman and Ivanhoe, which became known in Chile. Mora came to America in 1827; after a year in Argentina he went to Chile at the invitation of President Francisco Antonio Pinto. Until his expulsion by Diego Portales in 1831, Mora was very active in intellectual circles. He served on a committee studying Chilean education (1828), was co-editor of a short-lived review mercurio chileno (1828-29), and founded the Liceo de Chile. He was an advocate of general education. Mora's presence and influence in Chile very possibly served to inspire the creation of the historical novels which were to become so popular. Andr6s Bello wrote of Mora's translations of Scott: El traductor ha reproducido los dotes del autor con mucha felicidad en el castellano; y a fuerza de talento ha superado las dificultades no pequefias que ofrece la diferente indole de las dos lenguas, acercindose mucho a la excelencia del original, afin el estilo descriptivo. .. .1 The novels of Scott were to be found in the libraries of the most illustrious Chileans of the time. The catalogue of books possessed by the historian Isidoro Erraizuriz named Quintin Durward.2 Jose Victoriano Lastarria, writer, teacher, and student of Mora, records in his Lista de libros que poseo, noviembre 11 de 1838, Ivanhoe and Talisman.8 The works of the Spanish historical novelists, many of whom were imitators of Scott, were widely known in Chile. Los bandos de Castilla (1830) of Ram6n L6pez Soler was a Spanish adaptation of Ivanhoe. L6pez Soler expressed in the prologue to Los bandos de Castilla the two objectives of making Scott known, and proving that Spanish history offered scenes as beautiful and interesting as those offered by Scotland and England. Among other works known nd read in Chile were G6mez Arias (1831) of Telesforo Trueba y Cossio; Mariano Jos6 de Larra's doncel de don Enrique el Doliente (1834); Jose de Espronceda's Sancho Saldahfa (1834), an imitation of Ivanhoe; Enrique Gil y Carrasco's senior de Bembibre (1844), with a plot very similar to Scott's The Bride of Lammermoor; Dofia Blanca de Navarra (1843) of Francisco Navarro de Villoslada, one of the most faithful disciples of Scott. patriarca del valle of Patricio de la E cosura, which appeared in Spain in 1846, was reprinted in a Chilean edition
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