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Mateo Alemán
Spanish Golden Age novelist.
The fame of the Spanish Golden Age writer Mateo Alemán lies almost entirely with his Guzmán de Alfarache, typically regarded as the greatest and most influential picaresque novel. Published in two parts between 1599 and 1604, Alemán's fictional autobiography of an unscrupulous “pícaro,” or rogue—who cheats and deceives his way through life until his final religious conversion—was the most commercially successful piece of Spanish literature of its day, achieving greater critical acclaim and popular sales than even Cervantes' Don Quixote. Although Alemán's masterpiece is seldom read today, scholars continue to debate the authenticity of protagonist's conversion. Critics agree, however, that the psychological complexity, engaging plot, and literary realism of Guzmán de Alfarache rank it with Don Quixote as one of the two greatest novels of the Spanish Golden Age.
Biographical Information
The exact date of Alemán's birth in Seville is unknown, although it was presumably within weeks of his baptism on September 28, 1547. His father was a medical doctor who, like his son, often struggled with financial difficulties. Despite being professing Christians, the Alemán family was suspected of being of Jewish origin, making its members ineligible for Spanish nobility or immigration to the New World. In 1564 Alemán received a Bachelor's degree in Arts and Philosophy from the University of Maese Rodrigo. For the following three years he studied medicine at the universities of Maese Rodrigo, Salamanca, and Alcalá, leaving school temporarily after his father's death in 1567. In 1568 Alemán ended his medical studies permanently and took several large loans in order to become a businessman. His businesses failed, and unable to repay his debts, Alemán agreed to marry the daughter of one his creditors rather than be thrown into debtor's prison. For the following decade Alemán failed at a series of business ventures before returning to the
Spanish Golden Age novelist.
The fame of the Spanish Golden Age writer Mateo Alemán lies almost entirely with his Guzmán de Alfarache, typically regarded as the greatest and most influential picaresque novel. Published in two parts between 1599 and 1604, Alemán's fictional autobiography of an unscrupulous “pícaro,” or rogue—who cheats and deceives his way through life until his final religious conversion—was the most commercially successful piece of Spanish literature of its day, achieving greater critical acclaim and popular sales than even Cervantes' Don Quixote. Although Alemán's masterpiece is seldom read today, scholars continue to debate the authenticity of protagonist's conversion. Critics agree, however, that the psychological complexity, engaging plot, and literary realism of Guzmán de Alfarache rank it with Don Quixote as one of the two greatest novels of the Spanish Golden Age.
Biographical Information
The exact date of Alemán's birth in Seville is unknown, although it was presumably within weeks of his baptism on September 28, 1547. His father was a medical doctor who, like his son, often struggled with financial difficulties. Despite being professing Christians, the Alemán family was suspected of being of Jewish origin, making its members ineligible for Spanish nobility or immigration to the New World. In 1564 Alemán received a Bachelor's degree in Arts and Philosophy from the University of Maese Rodrigo. For the following three years he studied medicine at the universities of Maese Rodrigo, Salamanca, and Alcalá, leaving school temporarily after his father's death in 1567. In 1568 Alemán ended his medical studies permanently and took several large loans in order to become a businessman. His businesses failed, and unable to repay his debts, Alemán agreed to marry the daughter of one his creditors rather than be thrown into debtor's prison. For the following decade Alemán failed at a series of business ventures before returning to the