José Eustasio Rivera
Encyclopedia
José Eustasio Rivera Salas (February 19, 1888 - December 1, 1928) was a Colombian
lawyer and poet primarily known for his national epic
The Vortex.
of the city of Neiva
, later that year the hamlet was incorporated into the newly created municipality
of San Mateo, which was later renamed Rivera
in honour of José Eustasio. His parents were Eustasio Rivera Escobar and Catalina Salas, and he was the first boy and fifth child out of eleven children, out of which eight made into adulthood, José Eustasio, Luis Enrique, Margarita, Virginia, Laura, Susana, Julia and Ernestina.
In spite of his family's economic situation, he received a catholic education thanks to the help of other relatives and his own efforts. He attended Santa Librada school in Neiva and San Luis Gonzaga in Elías
. In 1906 he received a scholarship to study at the normal school
in Bogotá. In 1909, after graduating, he moved to Ibagué
where he worked as a school inspector. In 1912 he enrolled at the Faculty of Law and Political Sciences of National University
, graduating as a lawyer in 1917.
. In this venture he became familiar with life in the Colombian plains and with problems related to the extraction of rubber in the Amazon jungle, a matter that would be central in his major work, La vorágine
(1924) (translated as The Vortex), now considered one of the most important novels in Latin American literary history. To write this novel he read extensively about the situation of rubber workers in the Amazon basin.
After the success of his novel, he was elected, in 1925, as a member for the Investigative Commission for Exterior Relations and Colonization. He also published several articles in newspapers in Colombia. In this pieces, he criticized irregularities in government contracts, and denounced the abandonment of the rubber areas of Colombia and the mistreatment of workers. He also publicly defended his novel, which had been criticized by some Colombian literary critics as being too poetic. This criticism would be largely silenced by the wide praise the novel was receiving everywhere else.
where he remained for four days in a comatose state until his death on December 1, 1928.
After his death, his body was transported by ship from New York to Barranquilla
on the United Fruit Company
's ship the Sixaola. At his arrival on port, his body was transported in procession to the Pro-Cathedral
of Saint Nicholas of Tolentino where a requiem mass was given and the body laid in chapelle ardente
. The casket then made its way down the Magdalena
onto Bogotá on the mail steamship Carbonell González, arriving in Girardot
and finishing by train to arrive in Bogotá on January 7, 1929 and was taken directly to the Capitolio Nacional
where it was placed lying in state
for public viewing. His body was finally laid to rest in the Central Cemetery of Bogotá
on January 19.
Colombian people
Colombian people are from a multiethnic Spanish speaking nation in South America called Colombia. Colombians are predominantly Roman Catholic and are a mixture of Europeans, Africans, and Amerindians.-Demography:...
lawyer and poet primarily known for his national epic
National epic
A national epic is an epic poem or a literary work of epic scope which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular nation; not necessarily a nation-state, but at least an ethnic or linguistic group with aspirations to independence or autonomy...
The Vortex.
Early life
José Eustasio Rivera was born on February 19, 1888 in Aguas Calientes, a hamletHamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
of the city of Neiva
Neiva
Neiva is the Capital of the Department of Huila. It is located in the valley of the Magdalena River in south central Colombia with a population of about 378,857 inhabitants...
, later that year the hamlet was incorporated into the newly created municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
of San Mateo, which was later renamed Rivera
Rivera, Huila
Rivera is a town and municipality in the Huila Department, Colombia....
in honour of José Eustasio. His parents were Eustasio Rivera Escobar and Catalina Salas, and he was the first boy and fifth child out of eleven children, out of which eight made into adulthood, José Eustasio, Luis Enrique, Margarita, Virginia, Laura, Susana, Julia and Ernestina.
In spite of his family's economic situation, he received a catholic education thanks to the help of other relatives and his own efforts. He attended Santa Librada school in Neiva and San Luis Gonzaga in Elías
Elias, Huila
Elias, Huila is a small town located in the southern part of the Departamento del Huila....
. In 1906 he received a scholarship to study at the normal school
Normal school
A normal school is a school created to train high school graduates to be teachers. Its purpose is to establish teaching standards or norms, hence its name...
in Bogotá. In 1909, after graduating, he moved to Ibagué
Ibagué
Ibagué is the capital of the department of Tolima in Colombia. It is situated 1,285 m above sea level, on the eastern slopes of the Cordillera Central between the Chipalo and Combeima rivers, tributaries of the Coello River...
where he worked as a school inspector. In 1912 he enrolled at the Faculty of Law and Political Sciences of National University
National University of Colombia
The Universidad Nacional de Colombia , also called UNAL or just UN, is a public, national, coeducational, research university, located primarily in Bogotá, Medellín, Manizales and Palmira, Colombia...
, graduating as a lawyer in 1917.
Career
After a failed attempt to be elected for the senate, he was appointed Legal Secretary of the Colombo-Venezuelan Border Commission to determine the limits with Venezuela, there he had the opportunity to travel through the Colombian jungles, rivers, and mountains, giving him a first hand experience of the subjects he would later write. Disappointed with the lack of resources offered by his government for his trip, he abandoned the commission and continued travelling on his own. He later rejoined the commission, but before that he went to Brazil, where he became acquainted with the work of important Brazilian writers of his time, particularly Euclides da CunhaEuclides da Cunha
Euclides da Cunha was a Brazilian writer, sociologist and engineer. His most important work is Os Sertões , a non-fictional account of the military expeditions promoted by the Brazilian government against the rebellious village of Canudos, known as the War of Canudos...
. In this venture he became familiar with life in the Colombian plains and with problems related to the extraction of rubber in the Amazon jungle, a matter that would be central in his major work, La vorágine
La Vorágine
The Vortex is a novel written in 1924 by the Colombian author José Eustasio Rivera. It is set in the jungles of Colombia during the Rubber boom....
(1924) (translated as The Vortex), now considered one of the most important novels in Latin American literary history. To write this novel he read extensively about the situation of rubber workers in the Amazon basin.
After the success of his novel, he was elected, in 1925, as a member for the Investigative Commission for Exterior Relations and Colonization. He also published several articles in newspapers in Colombia. In this pieces, he criticized irregularities in government contracts, and denounced the abandonment of the rubber areas of Colombia and the mistreatment of workers. He also publicly defended his novel, which had been criticized by some Colombian literary critics as being too poetic. This criticism would be largely silenced by the wide praise the novel was receiving everywhere else.
Death
Rivera had arrived in New York the last week of April, 1928 in the hopes of translating his novel into English, publishing it in the United States, and turning it into a motion picture film with the goal of exporting Colombian culture abroad. His venture, albeit riffled with difficulties, was moving along when on November 27 he suffered an attack of seizures and was taken to the Stuyvesant Polyclinic HospitalOttendorfer Public Library and Stuyvesant Polyclinic Hospital
Ottendorfer Public Library and Stuyvesant Polyclinic Hospital are two adjoining historic buildings located at 135 and 137 2nd Avenue in the East Village, New York, NY. The buildings were designed by architect William Schickel, and construction began in 1883...
where he remained for four days in a comatose state until his death on December 1, 1928.
After his death, his body was transported by ship from New York to Barranquilla
Barranquilla
Barranquilla is an industrial port city and municipality located in northern Colombia, near the Caribbean Sea. The capital of the Atlántico Department, it is the largest industrial city and port in the Colombian Caribbean region with a population of 1,148,506 as of 2005, which makes it Colombia's...
on the United Fruit Company
United Fruit Company
It had a deep and long-lasting impact on the economic and political development of several Latin American countries. Critics often accused it of exploitative neocolonialism and described it as the archetypal example of the influence of a multinational corporation on the internal politics of the...
's ship the Sixaola. At his arrival on port, his body was transported in procession to the Pro-Cathedral
Pro-cathedral
A pro-cathedral is a parish church that is temporarily serving as the cathedral or co-cathedral of a diocese.-Usage:In Ireland, the term is used to specifically refer to St Mary's Pro-Cathedral in Dublin, the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Dublin since the Reformation, when Christ Church...
of Saint Nicholas of Tolentino where a requiem mass was given and the body laid in chapelle ardente
Chapelle Ardente
Chapelle Ardente is the chapel or room in which the corpse of a sovereign or other exalted personage lies in state pending the funeral service. The name is in allusion to the many candles which are lighted round the catafalque. This custom is first chronicled as occurring at the obsequies of...
. The casket then made its way down the Magdalena
Magdalena River
The Magdalena River is the principal river of Colombia, flowing northward about through the western half of the country. It takes its name from the biblical figure Mary Magdalene. It is navigable through much of its lower reaches, in spite of the shifting sand bars at the mouth of its delta, as...
onto Bogotá on the mail steamship Carbonell González, arriving in Girardot
Girardot
Girardot may refer to:*Girardot, Cundinamarca, a municipality in Cundinamarca, Colombia*Girardot Municipality, Aragua, Venezuela*Girardot Municipality, Cojedes, Venezuela*Girardot Argezas, a character from Namco's Soul series-People with the surname:...
and finishing by train to arrive in Bogotá on January 7, 1929 and was taken directly to the Capitolio Nacional
Capitolio Nacional
Capitolio Nacional is a building on Bolivar Square in central Bogotá, the construction of which began in 1876, by order of president Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera, and was not concluded until 1926. It houses both houses of the Congress of Colombia...
where it was placed lying in state
Lying in state
Lying in state is a term used to describe the tradition in which a coffin is placed on view to allow the public at large to pay their respects to the deceased. It traditionally takes place in the principal government building of a country or city...
for public viewing. His body was finally laid to rest in the Central Cemetery of Bogotá
Central Cemetery of Bogotá
Central Cemetery of Bogotá is one of the main and most famous cemeteries in Colombia located in Bogotá. Houses several national heroes, poets and former Colombian presidents. It was opened in 1836 and was declared National Monument in 1984...
on January 19.