Soares de Passos

The poet Soares de Passos

António Augusto Soares de Passos (born November 27, 1826 in Porto , Portugal , † February 8, 1860 Porto) was a Portuguese romantic poet . He was a representative of the first literary romanticism in Portugal, along with Alexandre Herculano .

Life

Soares de Passos came from a liberal, middle-class Portuguese merchant family. As a teenager, he taught himself English and French. As an adolescent, he worked in his father's business for some time. In 1849 he began studying law at the University of Coimbra , which he graduated with an exam in 1854, and returned to his hometown the same year. There he founded the romantic magazine " Novo Trovador " with other fellow students . He then worked for some time as a lawyer at a Portuguese court and as a librarian. Tired of these activities, he decided to work as a freelance writer.

He mainly wrote for magazines like O Bardo (The Bard) or A Grinaldo . However, many of his verses later became very popular. Soares de Passos was considered a misanthrope and frequented the Portuens literary salons . In 1856 his only book appeared, the volume of poetry " Poesias ". It was also important for the so-called " ultra-romanticism " also known as " black romanticism ". In this case he was comparable in Portugal to Gomes Leal , an epigone in the work of Soares de Passos. His most famous, black romantic poem was entitled " O noivado do Sepulcro " (The engagement to the grave). Overall, his work was characterized by pessimism and strong melancholy .

The poet Alexandre Herculano called him " the first lyrical poet of Portugal of this century ".

From his youth he suffered from tuberculosis ; this was the disease from which he died on February 8, 1860 at the age of 33.

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personal data
SURNAME	Passos, Soares de
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Passos, António Augusto Soares de (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Portuguese lyric poet of romance
DATE OF BIRTH	November 27, 1826
PLACE OF BIRTH	Porto , Portugal
DATE OF DEATH	February 8, 1860