Ramón de Campoamor

[Marta Elena Díaz García]

Ramón María de las Mercedes de Campoamor y Campoosorio (September 24, 1817 -February 11, 1901), known as Ramón de Campoamor, Spanish realist poet and philosopher, was born at Navia (Asturias).

He studied medicine at Madrid, found an opening in politics as a supporter of the Moderate party, and, after occupying several subordinate posts, became governor of Castellón de la Plana, of Alicante and of Valencia. His conservative tendencies grew more pronounced with time, and his Polémicas con la Democracia may be taken as the definitive expression of his political opinions.

His first appearance as a poet dated from 1840, when the Madrid Lyceum of Art and Literature published his Ternezas y flores, a collection of idyllic verses, remarkable for their technical excellence.

He always showed a keen interest in metaphysical and philosophic questions, and defined his position in La Filosofia de las leyes, El personalismo, apuntes para una filosofía, La metafísica limpia, fija y da esplendor al lenguaje, Lo Absoluto and El Ideísmo. These studies are chiefly valuable as embodying fragments of self-revelation, and as having led to the composition of those doloras, humoradas and pequeños poemas, which the poet's admirers consider as a new poetic species.

The first collection of DOLORAS was printed in 1846, and from that date onwards new specimens were added to each succeeding edition. It is difficult to define a “dolora”.
The poet himself declared that a dolora is a "dramatic humorada", and that a "pequeño poema" is a dolora on a larger scale.

The genuine Campoamor is a poet of the sunniest humour who, under the pretence of teaching morality by satire, is really seeking to utter the gay scepticism of a genial, epicurean nature.

His influence has not been altogether for good. His formula is too easily mastered, and to his example is due a plague of doloras and humoradas by poetasters who have caricatured their model.
Campoamor, as he himself said, did not practice art for art's sake; he used art as the medium of ideas, and in ideas his imitators are poor.
He died at Madrid on February 11, 1901. Of late years a deep silence had fallen upon him. But he certainly survives, as a distinguished humorist, an expert in epigrammatic and sententious aphorism, an artist of extremely finished execution.

Here is an example of a Dolora

El GAITERO DE GIJON


I

Ya se está el baile arreglando
Y el gaitero ¿dónde está?
-Está a su madre enterrando,
Pero en seguida vendrá
-Y ¿vendrá? -Pues ¿qué ha de hacer?
Cumpliendo con su deber
Vedle con la gaita... pero,
¡Cómo traerá el corazón
El gaitero,
El gaitero de Gijón!

II

¡Pobre! ¡Al pensar que en su casa
Toda dicha se ha perdido,
Un llanto oculto le abrasa
Que es cual plomo derretido!
Mas, como ganan sus manos
El pan para sus hermanos,
En gracia del panadero,
Toca con resignación
El gaitero,
El gaitero de Gijón.

III

¡No vio una madre más bella
La nación del sol poniente!...
¡Pero ya una losa, de ella
Le separa eternamente!
¡Gime y toca! ¡Horror sublime!
Mas, cuando entre dientes gime,
No bala como un cordero,
Pues ruge como un león
El gaitero,
El gaitero de Gijón.

IV

La niña más bailadora,
-¡Aprisa! -le dice- ¡aprisa!
Y el gaitero sopla y llora,
Poniendo cara de risa.
Y al mirar que de esta suerte
Llora a un tiempo y los divierte,
¡Silban, como Zoilo a Homero,
Algunos sin compasión
Al gaitero,
Al gaitero de Gijón!

V

Dice el triste en su agonía,
Entre soplar y soplar;
-¡Madre mía, madre mía,
Cómo alivia el suspirar!
Y es que en sus entrañas zumba
La voz que apagó la tumba;
¡Voz que, pese al mundo entero,
Siempre la oirá el corazón
Del gaitero,
Del gaitero de Gijón!

VI

Decid, lectoras, conmigo:
¡Cuánto gaitero hay así!
Preguntáis ¿por quién lo digo?
Por vos lo digo, y por mí.
¿No veis que al hacer, lectoras,
Doloras y más doloras,
Mientras yo de pena muero,
Vos las recitáis, al son
Del gaitero,
Del gaitero de Gijón?.. .

[Maestro Tomberi]

Marta Elena, me alegro mucho de que hayas mencionado a Campoamor, pues a pesar de que muchos han defenestrado su figura y lo han tachado de ripioso, chocho y ramplón (hay que decir que el abuelo, entre todas las cosas, ha parido una cantidad de bazofia tirando a considerable) tiene piezas muy hermosas y que por ello vale rascar entre toda la mencionada anteriormente para encontrar todas esas joyas, como la Dolora que has expuesto anteriormente.

[jmartinez2767]

Hi there Marta Elena…

I have been researching this poet for a couple of days and found your post today. Would it be possible for me to impose upon you for a little more bio information?

I have been looking for names of his children if any. Or the names of his brothers or aunts or parents. I have not found this anywhere yet. Would you know if a biography was ever written? Thanks so much for any help you can give me.

Gracias…

Juan A Martinez
Miami, FL

PS - I sent this email via email yesterday to the "moderator" email account. I am sorry if I have caused any confusion...

[Bob]

Campoamor married an Irish woman, Guillermina o'Gorman.

[Marta Elena Díaz García]

Hello Juan:

I was trying to send you a pdf file with the Campoamor's biography; however, something is wrong with your e-mail address.

As the biography is a bit long, I don't believe it is a good idea to include it here as a text. Please, check the e-mail you have included in your profile.
Cheers,
Marta.

[Art]

Hi, Marta, I'll send you his real email address. I hadn't realized that his username was almost his email. I'll shorten that.

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Hola, Marta, voy a enviarte su correo de verdad. No noté que su nombre de usuario era su correo... casi. Voy a acortarlo.