JORGE CARRERA ANDRADE: BIOGRAPHY, LITERARY STYLE AND WORKS - LITERATURE - 2025

Jorge Carrera Andrade (1903 - 1978) was an Ecuadorian writer, poet, historian, translator and diplomat of the 20th century. He was one of the greatest exponents of Ecuadorian letters and poetry in the region.

From a young age he knew how to coordinate his career as a diplomat with that of an author. Carrera Andrade was on missions as a representative of the Republic of Ecuador in countries such as Peru, France, Venezuela, Japan and the United States of North America.

Neruda50, from Wikimedia Commons

He came from an important family that had the means to provide him with an education appropriate to his abilities. From early on he identified with the Ecuadorian Socialist Party, of which he became general secretary.

He was a true cosmopolitan and rubbed shoulders with the most important writers of each country in which he resided. In the field in which his work stood out the most was in poetry. Carrera Andrade's texts were translated into different languages.

At the end of his activity as a diplomat in the late 1960s, Carrera Andrade devoted himself to teaching for a time at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He also took on the task of translating the work of Paul Valéry.

In 1976 the Academy of the Ecuadorian Language nominated him to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature. The following year Carrera Andrade was honored with the Eugenio Espejo Award, the highest distinction for an Ecuadorian writer.

Some of his most outstanding works in poetry were The ineffable pond published in 1922, The garland of silence of 1926, The hour of the illuminated windows, which appeared in 1937, and Floresta de los guacamayos which was completed in 1964.

He also wrote other key pieces such as Faces and climates (1948), and essays such as La tierra siempre verde (1955). In addition, one of his works is a famous autobiography which he entitled The Volcano and the Hummingbird (1970).

Biography

Early years

Jorge Carrera Andrade was born on September 18, 1903 in Quito, Ecuador. He was the son of Dr. Abelardo Carrera Andrade and Carmen Amelia Baca Andrade. His father was a lawyer and retired as Minister of the Supreme Court of Justice. In his younger years, he had sympathized with the Liberal Party.

Carmen Amelia was a well-educated woman, who spoke French, knew about music and art. In addition, it is said that she was beautiful and loving with her family, also that she worried that her children received a proper education.

At the age of five, Jorge Carrera Andrade began to study at the Borja Boarding House. In 1914 he entered the Normal Juan Montalvo, but then he knew that his vocation was not in teaching.

From there he went to the School of Mercenaries for a short time and, finally, in 1915 he entered the Mejía School where he studied secondary school. His literature teacher was Alejandro Andrade Coello.

At this time his literary streak began to awaken. The young man frequented the Sucre Bookstore and in June 1916 he created, together with some colleagues, a magazine called El Crepúsculo. In the only two numbers they published, he signed as "Jean Valjean" and "Ortos".

Literary beginnings

After the brief publication of El Crepúsculo, César Ariosto Orellana, Luis Aníbal Sánchez and Jorge Carrera Andrade met, the three of them created the César Borja Literary Society. With her they published a magazine called The idea.

In his early works, Carrera Andrade had a lot of influence from Rubén Darío, then he began to assimilate to the modernist style. Later, thanks to the texts of Walt Whitman, the young man from Quito discovered naturalism.

During those years the boy collaborated with the magazine of his school, called Intellectual Life. He also wrote for a humorous weekly magazine called Caricature. At the age of 16, Carrera Andrade was writing for the magazine Juventud Estudiosa de Guayaquil.

In 1921 he made a selection which he called Anthological Summary of Modern Ecuadorian Lyric. Then, he received a bachelor's degree and began studies in law; however, he withdrew from this career quickly.

He joined the Renovación group, in which there were figures of the stature of Benjamin Carrión and Miguel Ángel Zambrano. Then he started writing a novel of which he did not finish more than a few pages.

Last years

Between 1970 and 1972, Jorge Carrera Andrade worked as a professor at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Then he went to France, where his wife and children were.

In 1975, when he was 72 years old, he returned to Quito and took a job at the National Library, despite being deteriorated as a result of Parkinson's disease. The Ecuadorian continued writing and publishing.

Among his works from this period, his autobiography The Volcano and the Hummingbird stands out. In addition, volumes with his complete works were published. In 1977, Carrera Andrade received the Eugenio Espejo award. She ended her years in a difficult economic situation, but with the admiration of her country and the world.

Death

On November 11, 1978 Jorge Carrera Andrade died at the age of 75 in his hometown, Quito. The writer was the victim of a perforated ulcer that was complicated by heart problems that he presented.

Ecuador received from Carrera Andrade a rich literary legacy that was summarized in almost thirty volumes that contain his publications. The influence and relevance of Quito had worldwide magnitude and exalted him as one of the greatest Latin American writers of the 20th century.

Literary style

At first, his work was influenced by Modernism. It is said that Jorge Carrera Andrade was part of the Ecuadorian avant-garde, although some have described his style as "indofuturist", because he mixed landscape themes with naturalism and the experiences of everyday life.

He is one of the best-known Ecuadorian poets of the 20th century, and his name is prominent along with the greats of Latin American letters.

His poetic work is extensive, but he did not limit himself to exercising only one of the areas of writing, since he wrote several essays, as well as anthologies, historical texts and his autobiography.

Plays

Poetry

- Guide to the young Ecuadorian poetry, 1939.

- Poetic Anthology of Pierre Reverdy, 1940.

- Index of Modern French Poets, 1940.

- Paul Valery: Marine Cemetery, Canticle of the Columns, Other Poems, 1945.

- Contemporary French Poetry, 1961.

Autobiography

- The volcano and the hummingbird, 1970.

Translations

Jorge Carrera Andrade translated texts from several languages, among them is the novel by Boris Andreevich Lavreniov called The seventh comrade. Also for Vicente Clavel he translated several novels while he was in Barcelona.

From French he translated Alfredo Gangotena, an Ecuadorian poet who liked to write his texts in that language. Likewise, Carrera Andrade would bring to Spanish several works by Paul Valéry, including Le Cimetière marin.

Other poets he translated were Reverdy, Georges Duhamel, Jules Romains, André Gide, Tristan Tzara, Paul Eluard, and François Mauriac.

References

1. En.wikipedia.org. (2018). Jorge Carrera Andrade. Available at: en.wikipedia.org.
2. Cvc.cervantes.es. (2018). CVC. Quito. Jorge Carrera Andrade. Available at: cvc.cervantes.es.
3. Avilés Pino, E. (2018). Carrera Andrade Jorge - Historical Characters - Encyclopedia Del Ecuador. Encyclopedia Of Ecuador. Available at: encyclopediadelecuador.com.
4. Pérez Pimentel, R. (2018). JORGE CARRERA ANDRADE. Biographical Dictionary of Ecuador. Available at:biograficoecuador.com dictionary.
5. Vanegas Coveña, S. (2018). Jorge Carrera Andrade: "Things, that is life." Circle of Poetry. Available at: circulodepoesia.com.
6. Martino Alba, P. (2012). Translator Biographies - Jorge Carrera Andrade (1903-1978). Ecuador. University of Alicante. Available at: web.ua.es/es.
7. Ecuador letters. (1947). Autobiography of a poet. Available at: repository.uasb.edu.ec.