Francisco Umbral: Difference between revisions

Although he was born in [[Madrid]], a city that has inspired most of his work, his early years were spent in [[Valladolid]]. His mother travelled to Madrid for his birth, because he was an illegitimate child. His mother's indifference and distance from him markedleft him with an enduring sadness, as did the infant death of his only son, fromat the age of six, which eventcaused washim bornto write his saddest and most personal book, ''Mortal y rosa'', (''A Mortal Spring''). This createdfostered ina thecharacteristic authorbitter aand characteristicstiff haughtyoutlook mannerin the author, devoid of hopefulness, absolutely submerged in literature, which has provoked many polemicscontroversies and enmitieshostilities.

In Valladolid, he began his journalistic career at ''[[El Norte de Castilla]]'', under the tutorship of [[Miguel Delibes]]. In 1961, he went to Madrid as a correspondent for said newspaper and quickly became a prestigious reporter and columnist in magazines such as ''[[La Estafeta Literaria]]'', ''[[Mundo Hispánico]]'' and ''[[Interviú]]'', and in influential newspapers such as ''[[Ya (newspaper)|Ya]]'' and ''[[ABC (Spain)|ABC]]'', although he is best known for his writings for the daily newspapers ''[[El País]]'' (founded in 1976 just after the death of the Spanish [[dictator]] [[Francisco Franco]] and [[Spanish transition to democracy|the restoration of constitutionalism and democracy]]) and ''[[El Mundo (Spain)|El Mundo]]'' (founded 1990).
At ''El País'', he was one of the reporters who best was best able to describe the countercultural movement known as ''La [[Movida]]'', but his literary quality undoubtedly came from his creative fecundity, his linguistic sensibility and the extreme originality of his style,: very careful and complex, creative in its syntax, very metaphorically developed and flexible, abundant in [[neologism]]s and intertextual allusions; in sum, of a demanding lyric and aesthetic quality. He practicesexercised a speciestype of anti-[[bourgeois]] criticism of customs and manners, without renouncing athe most intensely romantic ego, and, in the words of [[Novalis]], hashaving the intent of giving the dignity of the unknown to theeveryday everydaylife, impregnating it with a desolate tenderness. As a political reporter, Umbral iswas a highly trenchant writer. Having become a successful journalist and writer, he worked with Spain's most varied and influential magazines and newspapers. Among the many published volumes of his articles, the following stand out:

Among non-readers, he is remembered by an appearance in [[Mercedes Milá]]'s TV program ''Queremos saber'' in [[Antena 3 TV]] (1993). After some chatterconversation, Umbral breaksinterrupted the conversation claiming that he hashad come to talk about his then latest book, ''La década roja'', not to entertain her[[Mercedes Milá|the presenter]].<ref name="Mi libro">[http://www.elmundo.es/papel/2007/08/29/cultura/2188269.html «¡Yo he venido aquí a hablar de mi libro!»], Darío Prieto, ''El Mundo'', 29 August 2007.</ref>

*''El Giocondo'' (1970) about the homosexual milieu of Madrid (the title is a play on the [[Italian language|Italian]] ''"la Gioconda"'', the name of the painting known in English as the [[Mona Lisa]])

* Carlos Arniches de la [[Sociedad General de Autores y Editores|SGAE]] (1975)

*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110524005024/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article2523996.ece Obituary in ''The Times'']

*{{Wayback |date=20061227223515webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061227223515/http://es.geocities.com/alvarezamo/mortalyrosa.html |date=December 27, 2006 |title="Some words about ''Mortal y rosa''" }} (in Spanish)

*[httphttps://www.guardiantheguardian.co.ukcom/obituaries/story/0,,2173766,00.html The Guardian: Francisco Umbral, Celebrated and controversial Spanish writer whose columns attacked the famous]