Alexandre Herculano - Lisboa, Portugal
Posted by: 
RuiJSDuarte
N 38° 43.403 W 009° 08.920
29S E 487077 N 4286090
"Alexandre Herculano de Carvalho e Araújo (March 28, 1810 – September 13, 1877), was a Portuguese novelist and historian."
Waymark Code: WMK5ZM
Location: Lisboa, Portugal
Date Posted: 02/18/2014
Views: 7
The statue is located at Avenida da Liberdade, in a small grassy area, and has written "Alexandre Herculano 1810-1877".
"Herculano introduced the historical novel into Portugal in 1844 by a book written in imitation of Walter Scott. Eurico treats of the fall of the Visigothic monarchy and the beginnings of resistance in the Asturias which gave birth to the Christian kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula. A second book, Monge de Cister, published in 1848, describes the time of King João I, when the middle class and the municipalities first asserted their power and elected a king who stood in opposition to the nobility.
From an artistic standpoint, these stories are rather laboured productions, besides being ultra-romantic in tone; but it must be remembered that they were written mainly with an educational goal, and, moreover, they deserve high praise for their style. Herculano had greater book-learning than Scott, but lacked descriptive talent and skill in dialogue. His touch is heavy, and these novels show no dramatic power, which accounts for his failure as a playwright, but their influence was as great as their followers were many, and they still find readers."
"Poetry:
The Voice of the Prophet (A Voz do Profeta) 1836
The Believer’s Harp (A Harpa do Crente) 1838
Poems (Poesias) - 1850"
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