Guzmán de Alfarache
Encyclopedia
Guzmán de Alfarache is a picaresque novel
written by Mateo Alemán
and published in two parts: the first in Madrid in 1599 with the title Primera parte de Guzmán de Alfarache, and the second in 1604, titled Segunda parte de la vida de Guzmán de Alfarache, atalaya de la vida humana.
The works tells the first person adventures of a picaro, a young street urchin, as he matures into adulthood. It thus ultimately both recounts adventures and moralizes on those childish excesses. Guzmán de Alfarache, by this means, is conceived as an extensive doctrinal sermon about the sins of society, and was so received by the author's contemporaries, despite the hybrid qualities between an engaging novel and a moralizing discourse.
The novel was highly popular in its time. Many editions were published, not only in Spanish, but in French, German, English, Italian, and Latin. The English translation, by James Mabbe
, was published in 1622, under alternative titles The Rogue and The Life of Guzman de Alfarache.
Apocryphal sequels and imitations were also soon produced, being that of 1602, written, probably, by the lawyer and poet Juan Martí, under the pseudonym of Mateo Luján de Sayavedra, and published in Valencia, the most important and successful, due to its influence on the second part of Alemán.
. The main character is an antihero, born in infamy, and emerging into a lower-class world of delinquency and roguish misadventures. He ends up condemned as a prisoner to be a galley-slave, seeking absolution for his past life.
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Picaresque novel
The picaresque novel is a popular sub-genre of prose fiction which is usually satirical and depicts, in realistic and often humorous detail, the adventures of a roguish hero of low social class who lives by his wits in a corrupt society...
written by Mateo Alemán
Mateo Alemán
Mateo Alemán y de Enero was a Spanish novelist and writer.He graduated at Seville University in 1564, studied later at Salamanca and Alcalá, and from 1571 to 1588 held a post in the treasury; in 1594 he was arrested on suspicion of malversation, but was speedily released...
and published in two parts: the first in Madrid in 1599 with the title Primera parte de Guzmán de Alfarache, and the second in 1604, titled Segunda parte de la vida de Guzmán de Alfarache, atalaya de la vida humana.
The works tells the first person adventures of a picaro, a young street urchin, as he matures into adulthood. It thus ultimately both recounts adventures and moralizes on those childish excesses. Guzmán de Alfarache, by this means, is conceived as an extensive doctrinal sermon about the sins of society, and was so received by the author's contemporaries, despite the hybrid qualities between an engaging novel and a moralizing discourse.
The novel was highly popular in its time. Many editions were published, not only in Spanish, but in French, German, English, Italian, and Latin. The English translation, by James Mabbe
James Mabbe
James Mabbe or Mab was an English scholar and poet, and a Fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford. He was involved in translations from Spanish, in particular of some of the work of Cervantes...
, was published in 1622, under alternative titles The Rogue and The Life of Guzman de Alfarache.
Apocryphal sequels and imitations were also soon produced, being that of 1602, written, probably, by the lawyer and poet Juan Martí, under the pseudonym of Mateo Luján de Sayavedra, and published in Valencia, the most important and successful, due to its influence on the second part of Alemán.
Genre
This novel has many similarities to other picaresque novels such as Lazarillo de TormesLazarillo de Tormes
The Life of Lazarillo de Tormes and of His Fortunes and Adversities is a Spanish novella, published anonymously because of its heretical content...
. The main character is an antihero, born in infamy, and emerging into a lower-class world of delinquency and roguish misadventures. He ends up condemned as a prisoner to be a galley-slave, seeking absolution for his past life.
Modern editions
Among the most prominent modern editions are those by:- Francisco Rico, Barcelona, Planeta, 1987. ISBN 978-84-320-3886-0
- José María Micó, Madrid, Cátedra, 1987. ISBN 978-84-376-0708-5
External links
- Miguel Pérez Rosado «La prosa narrativa de ficción en tiempos de Felipe III», in Historia de la Literatura hispánica, webpage of SpanishArts.com.
Digital versions
- Primera parte de Guzmán de Alfarache, edición en pdf a partir de la de Rosa Navarro Durán, Novela picaresca, Tomo I, Madrid, Fundación José Antonio de Castro (Biblioteca Castro), 2004, págs. 55-346. Link to PDF of the First part. (226 Kb).
- Segunda Parte de Guzmán de Alfarache, ed. en pdf a partir de la ed. cit. supra, págs. 347-717. Link to PDF of the Second part. (193 Kb).
- Vida y hechos del pícaro Guzmán de Alfarache: atalaya de la vida humana, Amberes, Jerónimo Verdussen, 1681. Joint edition of both parts with engravings by Gaspar Bouttats. Digital reproduction by the Biblioteca Virtual de Andalucía. .