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Angel GanivetSpanish writer
Date of Birth: 13.12.1865
Country:  Latvia |
Content:
Biography of Ángel Ganivet
Ángel Ganivet was a Spanish writer and diplomat who belonged to the "Generation of '98". He was born into a craftsman's family and graduated from the University of Granada. Throughout his career, he held diplomatic posts in Antwerp, Helsinki, and Riga. Unfortunately, Ganivet ended his life by committing suicide.
Ideas and Works
Ganivet was an ideologist of the radical and patriotic intelligentsia of Spain, a country that had suffered numerous defeats in its struggle against strong competitors. In his work "Idearium español" (Spanish Idearium, 1897), he called for radical reforms in order to save and revive the nation. However, Ganivet himself did not believe in this rebirth. Spain could not compete with the powerful capitalist nations and their overwhelming technology and organization. This led to a pessimism that engulfed a wide circle of Spanish intelligentsia, especially after the devastating war with the United States (1898-1899) that confirmed the darkest fears of the patriots.
Ganivet's pessimism was accompanied by a concept that shared similarities with Spengler's juxtaposition of culture and civilization. He believed in the inevitable downfall of Spain, a country with an old feudal-Catholic culture, in its unequal struggle against the triumphant civilization with its mechanization. These ideas and sentiments were expressed in his novel "Pío Cid", which was infused with a characteristic romantic longing for the primitive. The first part of the novel tells the story of a Spanish adventurer who becomes the king of a small African tribe, while the second part depicts the protagonist's fate upon his return to his homeland, where he leads the life of a gloomy eccentric striving to benefit humanity. "Pío Cid" had a strong influence on the development of modern Spanish literary prose.
Other notable works by Ganivet include "Granada la bella" (Beautiful Granada, 1896), the play "El escultor de su alma" (The Sculptor of His Soul, 1898), and "Hombres del Norte" (Men of the North), which consists of literary portraits of Ibsen, Bjørnson, and others.
