Adelino Fontoura
Encyclopedia
Adelino Fontoura Chaves (March 30, 1859 — May 2, 1884) was a Brazil
ian poet, actor and journalist. He is the patron of the 1st chair of the Brazilian Academy of Letters
.
, in Maranhão
, to Antônio Fontoura Chaves and Francisca Dias Fontoura.
Since as a child, he would have a very strong friendship with future author Artur Azevedo
.
Moving to Recife
, he would work at the satirical journal Os Xênios. Returning to Maranhão, he initiated his artistical career, performing in a play that would make him arrested. After this incident, he moved to Rio de Janeiro
.
He tried the artistic and the journalistic career, failing in the first one. He wrote for journals Folha Nova, O Combate and A Gazetinha, where he published some poems and works in prose — and, in this last one, he would collaborate once more with Azevedo, who was its founder. Alongside Ferreira de Menezes, Augusto Ribeiro, Hugo Leal and João de Almeida, he would work for journal A Gazeta da Tarde, that was, according to Múcio Leão, "one of the most ill-fated journals ever founded", because its founders would die in the next three years after the journal's existence.
After the Gazeta da Tarde was bought by José do Patrocínio
, Adelino becomes its correspondent in Paris
. Already very sick, his situation got worse due to the French winter, what made him move to Lisbon
in an unsuccessful attempt to get better.
He died with only 25 years, without publishing any book.
and 1950s
by Múcio Leão.
His most well-known poem is the sonnet
"Celeste".
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian poet, actor and journalist. He is the patron of the 1st chair of the Brazilian Academy of Letters
Academia Brasileira de Letras
Academia Brasileira de Letras is a Brazilian literary non-profit society established at the end of the 19th century by a group of 40 writers and poets inspired by the Académie Française. The first president, Machado de Assis, declared its foundation on December 15, 1896, with the statutes being...
.
Life
Adelino Fontoura was born in the city of AxixáAxixá
Axixá is a town and municipality in the state of Maranhão in the Northeast region of Brazil.-References:...
, in Maranhão
Maranhão
Maranhão is a northeastern state of Brazil. To the north lies the Atlantic Ocean. Maranhão is neighbored by the states of Piauí, Tocantins and Pará. The people of Maranhão have a distinctive accent...
, to Antônio Fontoura Chaves and Francisca Dias Fontoura.
Since as a child, he would have a very strong friendship with future author Artur Azevedo
Artur Azevedo
Artur Nabantino Gonçalves de Azevedo was a Brazilian playwright, short story writer, chronicler, journalist and Parnassian poet...
.
Moving to Recife
Recife
Recife is the fifth-largest metropolitan area in Brazil with 4,136,506 inhabitants, the largest metropolitan area of the North/Northeast Regions, the 5th-largest metropolitan influence area in Brazil, and the capital and largest city of the state of Pernambuco. The population of the city proper...
, he would work at the satirical journal Os Xênios. Returning to Maranhão, he initiated his artistical career, performing in a play that would make him arrested. After this incident, he moved to Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
.
He tried the artistic and the journalistic career, failing in the first one. He wrote for journals Folha Nova, O Combate and A Gazetinha, where he published some poems and works in prose — and, in this last one, he would collaborate once more with Azevedo, who was its founder. Alongside Ferreira de Menezes, Augusto Ribeiro, Hugo Leal and João de Almeida, he would work for journal A Gazeta da Tarde, that was, according to Múcio Leão, "one of the most ill-fated journals ever founded", because its founders would die in the next three years after the journal's existence.
After the Gazeta da Tarde was bought by José do Patrocínio
José do Patrocínio
José Carlos do Patrocínio was a Brazilian writer, journalist, activist, orator and pharmacist. He founded and occupied the 21st chair of the Brazilian Academy of Letters from 1897 until his death in 1905.-Life:...
, Adelino becomes its correspondent in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Already very sick, his situation got worse due to the French winter, what made him move to Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
in an unsuccessful attempt to get better.
He died with only 25 years, without publishing any book.
Work
As mentioned above, Fontoura's work is very sparse, as he did not published anything during his lifetime. Attempts of compiling his poetry were made during the 1940s1940s
File:1940s decade montage.png|Above title bar: events which happened during World War II : From left to right: Troops in an LCVP landing craft approaching "Omaha" Beach on "D-Day"; Adolf Hitler visits Paris, soon after the Battle of France; The Holocaust occurred during the war as Nazi Germany...
and 1950s
1950s
The 1950s or The Fifties was the decade that began on January 1, 1950 and ended on December 31, 1959. The decade was the sixth decade of the 20th century...
by Múcio Leão.
His most well-known poem is the sonnet
Sonnet
A sonnet is one of several forms of poetry that originate in Europe, mainly Provence and Italy. A sonnet commonly has 14 lines. The term "sonnet" derives from the Occitan word sonet and the Italian word sonetto, both meaning "little song" or "little sound"...
"Celeste".
| Portuguese language Brazilian Portuguese Brazilian Portuguese is a group of Portuguese dialects written and spoken by most of the 190 million inhabitants of Brazil and by a few million Brazilian emigrants, mainly in the United States, United Kingdom, Portugal, Canada, Japan and Paraguay.... |
English |
|---|---|
É tão divina a angélica aparência E a graça que ilumina o rosto dela Que eu concebera o tipo de inocência Nessa criança imaculada e bela. Peregrina do céu, pálida estrela, Exilada na etérea transparência, Sua origem não pode ser aquela Da nossa triste e mísera existência. Tem a celeste e ingênua formosura E a luminosa auréola sacrossanta De uma visão do céu, cândida e pura. E quando os olhos para o céu levanta, Inundados de mística doçura, Nem parece mulher — parece santa. |
It is so divine her angelic appearance And the grace that enlightens her face That I conceived the kind of innocence On this pure and immaculate child. Pilgrim of the skies, O pale star, Exiled in ethereal transparency, Your origin can't be the same Of our sad and miserable existence. She has the celestial and naïve beauty And the bright sacrosanct halo Of a ingenuous and pure celestial vision. And when she raises her eyes to the sky, Filled of mystic sweetness, She doesn't looks like a woman — she looks like a saint Saint A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth... . |