Maria José Dupré
Encyclopedia
Maria José Dupré, also known as Sra Leandro Dupré (1905 - 15 May 1984), was one of the most popular and prolific Brazil
ian writers of the 1940s and 1950s.
, Dupré published her first story "Uma Família Antiga de Jaboticabal" ("An Old Family from Jaboticabal") in the newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo
in 1938.
, was written in 1943 and praised by writer and critic Monteiro Lobato
and became a best-seller. Chronicling the struggles of a middle-class family in São Paulo
, the novel was awarded the Raul Pompeia Prize
for best work of 1943 by the Brazilian Academy of Letters. Dupré wrote Luz e Sambra ("Light and Dark") in 1944, Gina in 1945, and Os Rodriguez ("The Rodriguezes") in 1946. She published a sequel
to Éramos Seis called Dona Lola in 1949.
four times, in 1958, 1967, 1977, and 1994.
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 writers of the 1940s and 1950s.
Early life
Born in 1905 in a small town in the state of São PauloSão Paulo (state)
São Paulo is a state in Brazil. It is the major industrial and economic powerhouse of the Brazilian economy. Named after Saint Paul, São Paulo has the largest population, industrial complex, and economic production in the country. It is the richest state in Brazil...
, Dupré published her first story "Uma Família Antiga de Jaboticabal" ("An Old Family from Jaboticabal") in the newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo
O Estado de S. Paulo
O Estado de S. Paulo is a daily newspaper published in the Metropolitan region of São Paulo, Brazil, and distributed mainly nationally. It is owned by Grupo Estado, a holding company which publishes the Jornal da Tarde and owns the radios Rádio Eldorado AM and FM and the Agência Estado, largest...
in 1938.
Novels
Dupré published her first novel, O Romance de Teresa Bernard ("The Romance of Teresa Bernard"), in 1941. Her next novel, Éramos SeisÉramos Seis
Éramos Seis is a 1943 Brazilian novel by Maria José Dupré about a struggling middle-class family in São Paulo. Praised by writer and critic Monteiro Lobato, it became a best-selling novel and was awarded the Raul Pompeia Prize for best work of 1943 by the Brazilian Academy of Letters...
, was written in 1943 and praised by writer and critic Monteiro Lobato
Monteiro Lobato
José Bento Renato Monteiro Lobato was one of Brazil's most influential writers, mostly for his children's books set in the fictional Sítio do Picapau Amarelo but he had been previously a prolific writer of fiction, a translator and an art critic...
and became a best-seller. Chronicling the struggles of a middle-class family in São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
, the novel was awarded the Raul Pompeia Prize
Raul Pompéia
Raul d'Ávila Pompeia was a Brazilian novelist, short story writer and chronicler. He is famous for the Impressionist romance O Ateneu.He is patron of the 33rd chair of the Brazilian Academy of Letters.-Biography:...
for best work of 1943 by the Brazilian Academy of Letters. Dupré wrote Luz e Sambra ("Light and Dark") in 1944, Gina in 1945, and Os Rodriguez ("The Rodriguezes") in 1946. She published a sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
to Éramos Seis called Dona Lola in 1949.
Impact
Éramos Seis has been adapted as a telenovelaTelenovela
A telenovela is a limited-run serial dramatic programming popular in Latin American, Portuguese, and Spanish television programming. The word combines tele, short for televisión or televisão , and novela, a Spanish or Portuguese word for "novel"...
four times, in 1958, 1967, 1977, and 1994.