Florbela Espanca
Encyclopedia
Florbela Espanca Portuguese
poet (Vila Viçosa
, December 8, 1894 — Matosinhos
, December 8, 1930). Precursor of the feminist
movement in Portugal, she had a tumultuous and eventful life that shaped her erotic and feminine writings.
Florbela's earliest known poem, A Vida e a Morte (Life and Death), was written in 1903. Her first marriage, to Alberto Moutinho, was celebrated on her 19th birthday, December 8, 1913. After graduating with a literature degree in 1917, she became the first woman to enroll at the law school of the University of Lisbon. In the year of 1915-1917 she collected all her poems and wrote "O livro D'ele" (His book) that she dedicated to his brother.
She had a miscarriage in 1919, the same year that Livro de Mágoas (The Book of Sorrows) was published. Around this time, Florbela began to show the first serious symptoms of emotional illness. In 1921 she divorced her first husband, which exposed her to significant social prejudice. She married António Guimarães in 1922.
The work Livro de Soror Saudade (Sister Saudade's Book) was published in 1923. Florbela had a second miscarriage, after which her husband divorced her (according to Rui Guedes, a very remarkable person on her studies, António Guimarães hit her). In 1925 she married Mário Lage (a doctor that treated her for a long time). Her brother Apeles Espanca died in an airplane accident (some believe he committed suicide, due to his fiancées death), which deeply affected her and inspired the writing of As Máscaras do Destino (The Masks of Destiny).
In October and November 1930, Florbela twice attempted suicide
, shortly before the publication of her last book Charneca em Flor (Heath in Bloom). Having been diagnosed with a pulmonary edema
, Florbela died on December 8, 1930, her 36th birthday. Her precarious health and complex mental condition make the actual cause of death a question to this day. Charneca em Flor was published in January 1930. After her death in 1931 «Reliquiare», name given by the Italian professor Guido Battelli, was published with the poems she wrote on a further version of "Charneca em Flor».
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
poet (Vila Viçosa
Vila Viçosa
Vila Viçosa is a municipality in Portugal with a total area of 195.0 km² and a total population of 8,745 inhabitants.The municipality is composed of 5 parishes, and is located in the District of Évora....
, December 8, 1894 — Matosinhos
Matosinhos
Matosinhos Municipality is located in Porto District, Portugal. The main city is Matosinhos. It is bordered to the south by the city of Porto and lies within the Greater Porto subregion. The municipality has a population of 168,451 in 10 parishes. Many people have recently moved from the...
, December 8, 1930). Precursor of the feminist
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
movement in Portugal, she had a tumultuous and eventful life that shaped her erotic and feminine writings.
Biography
The daughter of Antónia da Conceição Lobo, she was baptized as the child of an "unknown" father. After the death of her mother in 1908, Florbela was taken into the care of Maria Espanca and João Maria Espanca, for whom Antónia had worked as a maid. João Maria Espanca, who always provided for Florbela (she referred to him in a poem as "dear Daddy of my soul"), officially claimed his paternity in 1949, 19 years after Florbela's death.Florbela's earliest known poem, A Vida e a Morte (Life and Death), was written in 1903. Her first marriage, to Alberto Moutinho, was celebrated on her 19th birthday, December 8, 1913. After graduating with a literature degree in 1917, she became the first woman to enroll at the law school of the University of Lisbon. In the year of 1915-1917 she collected all her poems and wrote "O livro D'ele" (His book) that she dedicated to his brother.
She had a miscarriage in 1919, the same year that Livro de Mágoas (The Book of Sorrows) was published. Around this time, Florbela began to show the first serious symptoms of emotional illness. In 1921 she divorced her first husband, which exposed her to significant social prejudice. She married António Guimarães in 1922.
The work Livro de Soror Saudade (Sister Saudade's Book) was published in 1923. Florbela had a second miscarriage, after which her husband divorced her (according to Rui Guedes, a very remarkable person on her studies, António Guimarães hit her). In 1925 she married Mário Lage (a doctor that treated her for a long time). Her brother Apeles Espanca died in an airplane accident (some believe he committed suicide, due to his fiancées death), which deeply affected her and inspired the writing of As Máscaras do Destino (The Masks of Destiny).
In October and November 1930, Florbela twice attempted suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
, shortly before the publication of her last book Charneca em Flor (Heath in Bloom). Having been diagnosed with a pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema , or oedema , is fluid accumulation in the air spaces and parenchyma of the lungs. It leads to impaired gas exchange and may cause respiratory failure...
, Florbela died on December 8, 1930, her 36th birthday. Her precarious health and complex mental condition make the actual cause of death a question to this day. Charneca em Flor was published in January 1930. After her death in 1931 «Reliquiare», name given by the Italian professor Guido Battelli, was published with the poems she wrote on a further version of "Charneca em Flor».