Benito Pérez Galdós (1843–1920)

Cuando leía las opiniones de algunos hispanistas que decían de Galdós que era el mejor escritor español después de Cervantes, yo tuve mis reservas. Aún las tengo, pero después de leer Miau no puedo negar que este autor es uno de los mejores que tocó nuestra preciada lengua. La psicología de sus personajes está magistralmente desplegada, su prosa es luminosa y una delicia de leer. Aunque los hablantes del español a veces tengamos una rara especie de complejo de inferioridad ante show more otras literaturas, con Galdós como caballo de batalla decimonónico sí podemos competir contra cualquier Dickens y contra cualquier Dostoievski. show less

Trafalgar might have the ambition to be a so-called 'literary novel' (and it surely is acknowledged as such by Galdós aficionados, which I am not) but to me it's just one of these epic and tumultuous read one go through with the enthusiasm of a little boy dreaming of far-away adventure and heroics. In other words, I found it all so simple (shallow, at times) that it reads like a YA adventure book. It's not a bad thing (there's absolutely nothing wrong with YA adventure books!) but that show more wasn't its intentions... Ouch!

Gabriel, bored teenager tired of his dull childhood spent in Cadiz, decides to go and satisfy his thirst for glory and adventure by enrolling into the Spanish navy (I warned you it would be kid-friendly!). We are in 1805, and, so, of course, he will ultimately be led to participate in one of the most famous and important naval battle ever: Trafalgar. Wild and enthusiastic, the boy will then quickly turned into a grown-up man, not only through the dangers of the seas, but, also, the horrors of war.

The plot is like the characters -simple and predictable. Galdós even allows himself a dash of romance! Yet, the adventurous spirit is a delight, and the references to Napoleon, the weak Spanish government back then, and, the relationship with Britain are all quite entertaining, while rendering quite well the spirit of the time. If you love history...

To me personally this was nothing more than an historical novel with a childish soul, but, since I love history... show less

The impoverished, widowed Rosario, Duchess of Trastámara, goes to stay with her wealthy relatives in 1890s Spain. There she meets an illegitimate relative of the family, who is likewise broke, but is also hot and a committed socialist. Things unfold from there basically as you might expect. This was apparently a big hit when it was first performed, but I think that probably had more to do with the novelty/popularity of the pairing at the time than because there's anything particularly show more skillful or timeless about the drama itself. show less

“Young, pretty, and slender, and her skin was the almost implausible white of pure alabaster; she had the palest of cheeks and dark eyes more notable for their vivacity and brightness than for their size; her remarkable eyebrows looked as if they had been drawn with the tip of the very finest of brushes; her delicate mouth, with its rather plump, round lips, was so red it seemed to contain all the blood that her face lacked; her small teeth were like pieces of concentrated crystal; her show more hair, caught up in a graceful tangle on the top of her head, was brown and very fine, and had the sheen of plaited silk. This singular creature’s most marked characteristic, however, was her ermine-white purity and cleanliness.”

From the above quote, you would think Spanish novelist Benito Pérez Galdós was describing Parmigianino's 1525 painting Portrait of a Young Woman; but, alas, he is not writing about a wealthy sixteenth century aristocrat but a poor nineteenth century orphan by the name of Tristana, who, at age nineteen, is placed in the care (and clutches) of one Don Lope Garrido.

Make no mistake, this is a tale of fire and passion –I can vividly picture all the señoritas in the author's day relishing every page of Tristina, a romantic Spanish female heart on fire, yearning for love, for artistic expression and, above all else, yearning for freedom. True, at age nineteen Tristana comes to live with Don Lope Garrido, a seasoned Don Juan who uses all his stock repertoire of sweet words and caresses to seduce his young charge but then at age twenty-one it happens - Tristana awakens to how her womanhood has been violated and thus her rebellion against what she now regards as an evil, lecherous tyrant.

But this novel is much more than unadorned melodrama, for Benito Pérez Galdós is a true literary master, creating complex, rounded characters, as when he writes of Don Lope being a generous, noble gentleman, a throwback to the courageous knights of yore, an expert in all affairs of honor, ready to make every sacrifice in the name of duty and friendship, as when he rescued his dear friend, Don Antinio Reluz, Tristana’s father, from financial ruin, and later after Reluz’s death, making sacrifice after sacrifice, even selling his treasured weapons collection, to fund Tristana’s mother in her continuous insane moving from lodging to lodging right up until the day of her death. Is Don Lope a good, even saintly man, or is he a bad, evil man? Given the author's ample information and many examples, a sound case could be made for either or both together.

No sooner does Tristana leave the rapidly aging fifty-six-year-old Don Lope at home to join maid Saturna on afternoon walks out in the countryside and around town, then the plot thickens: Tristana meets and falls in love with Horacio, a handsome young painter. Of course, finding her beauty irresistible, Horacio, in his turn, falls in love with Tristana. The two lovers take their romantic afternoon walks together; they share both their tragic backgrounds and romantic dreams of life and art. However, there is one thing they will never share - Tristana boldly proclaims to Horacio that under not circumstance will she ever surrender her freedom and be bound to a man as his wife.

This New York Review Books (NYRB) edition features the author’s fluid prose rendered into clear, elegant English by translator Margaret Jull Costa. A real joy to read. And I must say, this novel brings to the fore two sets of pressing philosophical questions. Firstly, since Tristan’s life and dreams are so entwined with art, music and literature (as the story progresses, we discover she is exceptionally gifted in both language and music) how far can the arts go in transforming a woman in Trastana's position? Drawing, foreign languages and letter writing each serve Tristana as a catalyst in propelling and expanding her sense of freedom but, ultimately, other forces are in play.

Secondly, we have the issue of feminism. Saturna tells Tristana that in this society of ours women have but three alternatives – to be wives, to be actresses or to be something too low to be mentioned in polite society. Tristana will have none of it - by turns she envisions herself as a painter, an author, an actress, even a political leader; not to mention she argues with Horacio in a decidedly modern way how, if she has a child and lives as a single mother, she has more rights to her child than the father. One can easily imagine men - journalists, politicians, heads of households - who looked askance at Benito Pérez Galdós putting such scandalous ideas into the heads of women.

These philosophical questions move into yet again another dimension. In speaking of Don Lope’s sense of morality, Benito Pérez Galdó writes: “Despite being very much his own, was also quite widespread, the abundant fruit of the times we live in; a morality which, although it seemed to have sprung solely from him, was, in fact, an amalgamation in his mind of the ideas floating around in the metaphysical atmosphere of the age, like the invisible bacteria that inhabit the physical atmosphere.” With these words we hear echoes of the fatalism and social and cultural pressures molding men and women articulated by such as Émile Zola and his literary school of naturalism. So, it’s Tristana versus her society, culture and fate. What a riveting story. Highly recommended. show less