Rómulo Gallegos: Giant of Hispanic letters, master of prose and verb (+Christmas)

Published at: 02/08/2025 08:15 AM

On August 2, 1884, the novelist Rómulo Gallegos, a giant of Hispanic letters and master of prose and verb, was born in Caracas, who with his pen was able to portray the strength and magic of this land and its untamed people who, between battles, couplets, joys and cries, have cemented their glorious history of struggle for freedom and sovereignty.

This important Venezuelan writer and politician stood out for his virtuosity with the pen, which helped him to create works such as Doña Bárbara, Cantacaro, La Trepadora, Canaima, Pobre Negro, as well as countless stories and theatrical scripts, creations that made him an essential reference for the study of Spanish-American and universal literature.

A forerunner of magical realism, Gallegos drew in every inch of his great works, the image of the immensity of the plain and the reality of a story that, between black maroons, fierce centaurs and gallant women, is a beacon for the peoples of our America.

In addition to this legacy that makes him a giant of universal literature, this man from Caracas by birth became the first directly, secretly and universally elected president in Venezuela, a position he held from February 17, 1948 to November 24 of that same year, because he was overthrown by a coup d'etat, sponsored by foreign oil companies that rejected the new Hydrocarbons Law that increased taxes on oil companies in the country, and that he was executed by a group of soldiers with a right-wing tendency and the adeco Romulo Betancourt, who was already beginning to show his pro-imperialist vision.

As a result of this action, which expelled him from power, Gallegos had to go into exile in Cuba and later in Mexico, returning in 1958 after the fall of the dictatorship of General Marcos Pérez Jiménez.

Mazo News Team