Larra, Mariano José de

Larra, Mariano José de (märyä`nō hōsā` thā lä`rä), 1809–37, Spanish satirist, b. Madrid. Using several pseudonyms, Larra wrote a series of satirical articles on Spanish politics and customs. These were published in his own periodical, Pobrecito hablador (1832–33). His best-known works are the novel El doncel de don Enrique el doliente [the page of Don Enrique the sorrowful] (1834), the drama Macías (1834), and No más mostrador [good-bye to the shop counter] (1831), an adaptation of a play by Scribe. Unhappy in love and an incurable melancholic, Larra committed suicide.

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Larra, Mariano José de 

(full name, M. J. de Larra y Sánchez de Castro). Born Mar. 24, 1809, in Madrid; died there Feb. 13, 61837. Spanish writer, critic, and publicist.

Larra devoted a play, Macías (1834), and a historical novel, The Page of King Enrique the Feeble (1834), to the legendary Galician troubadour; both works played a major role in the creation of romantic literature in Spain. Following the traditions of costumbrismo, Larra wrote satirical essays (1828–33) criticizing contemporary social mores from the standpoint of the Enlightenment. He turned to sociopolitical lampoons in 1834–35. Larra’s writing fostered the development of critical realism in Spanish literature.

WORKS

Obras, [vols.] 1–4. Madrid, 1960.
Ensayos satíricos. Moscow, 1967.
In Russian translation:
Satiricheskie ocherki. Introduction by K. N. Derzhavin and Z. I. Plavskin. Moscow, 1956.

REFERENCES

Gómez Santos, M. “Figaro” o la vida de prisa. Madrid, 1956.
Atocha, S. de. Larra. Madrid, 1964.
Bellini, G. Larra e il suo tempo. Milan [1967].
Ullman, P. L. Mariano de Larra and Spanish Political Rhetoric. Madison, Wisc. [1971]. (Bibliography, pp. 403–13.)

Z. I. PLAVSKIN