Cesário Verde
Cesário Verde was a notable Portuguese poet from the 19th century, born in Lisbon on February 25, 1855. Coming from a wealthy family, he experienced a significant shift in his early life when his family relocated to a farm due to a plague in Lisbon, where he spent much of his childhood. Verde began working in his father's hardware store at the age of ten and pursued studies at the University of Coimbra, though he did not complete his education. The death of his sister Julia from tuberculosis in 1872 deeply impacted him and influenced his poetry, which often features themes of beauty intertwined with illness.
Throughout his life, Verde's health deteriorated as he developed tuberculosis, the same illness that claimed the lives of his siblings. Despite having connections with prominent literary figures in Portugal, he did not achieve widespread recognition during his lifetime. However, he is now regarded as a precursor to modernism in Portuguese literature, with later poets like Mário de Sá-Carneiro and Fernando Pessoa acknowledging his influence. Verde's poetry is marked by its personal style and reflects on social stratification, the contrast between urban and rural life, and the emotional complexities of human relationships. His poignant works, including the unfinished poem "Provincianas," capture his evolution as a poet and his deep emotional explorations.
On this Page
Subject Terms
Cesário Verde
Poet
- Born: February 25, 1855
- Birthplace: Lisbon, Portugal
- Died: July 19, 1886
- Place of death: Paços do Lumiar, a suburb of Lisbon, Portugal
Biography
Jose Joaquin Cesário Verde was an innovative nineteenth century Portuguese poet. He was born in Lisbon, Portugal, on February 25, 1855. His family was quite wealthy; his father not only owned a farm on the outskirts of the city, but he also had a hardware store in Lisbon. In 1857, in response to a plague in Lisbon, Verde’s family permanently moved to the farm where they lived until 1865. At the age of ten, Verde began working in the hardware store, and throughout the remainder of his life, he continued to work both in the fields of agriculture and commerce. In 1872, Verde’s sister Julia died of tuberculosis. This event greatly affected Verde, and many of his poems include beautiful but sickly women.
Verde attended the University of Coimbra in 1873 for a time to study languages, but he did not complete his studies. However, he became acquainted with Silva Pinto, who would become a lifelong friend, and who published much of Verde’s work after his death. Verde published his first poetry around this time in two local newspapers, Diário De Notícias and Diário da Tarde.
In 1877, Verde began to exhibit the first symptoms of tuberculosis, the illness that claimed his sister, and later, his brother Joaquim Tomás. During the later years of his short life, Verde’s health continued to decline, as did his interest in writing. On July 19, 1886, Verde succumbed to tuberculosis.
Although he never received much attention for his writing during his lifetime, Verde was acquainted with many of Portugal’s literary figures, some of whom admired his work. In several poems, Verde contemplated the lack of critical review for some of his work, and he wondered about the negative criticisms that other works received. Some scholars have postulated that Verde did not enjoy much literary fame during his lifetime because his poetic motifs were not considered as worthy of poetry. However, later Portuguese writers such as Mário de Sá-Carneiro and Fernando Pessoa saw the beginnings of Portuguese modernism in his work.
Verde’s poetry is characterized by an intensely personal style. He found inspiration in ordinary events, and he wrote human portraits in which he described the inherent conflicts in a socially stratified urban environment. He also wrote about the benefits of living in rural communities, which he considered as healthy and practical. Perhaps one of Verde’s most passionate poems was “Nós” (we), written in honor of his deceased sister and brother. Verde’s last poem, “Provincianas,” was unfinished but it portrayed the evolution of Verde as a poet.