Literature: 1904

1) Mistral, Frederic, pronounced mee STRAL, fray day REEK (1830-1914), was a famous French poet who won the 1904 Nobel Prize for literature. He wrote in modern Provencal, the language of southern France. Mistral led a movement of the 1800's called the Felibrige, which tried to revive the literary tradition and enrich the language of the medieval troubadours (see TROUBADOUR).

In 1859, Mistral published his masterpiece, Mireio (also called Mireille), an epic describing the tragic love of a farmer's daughter in the valley of the Rhone River. The poem's success did much to gain sympathy for the Provencal revival in literature. In addition to Song of the Rhone (1897) and other poems, Mistral compiled Lou Tresor dou Felibrige (1876-1886), a dictionary of langue d'oc, the general term used for the dialects of southern France. He was born near Arles.

Contributor: Jean-Pierre Cauvin, Ph.D., Professor of French, University of Texas.

2) Echegaray y Eizaguirre, Jose (1832-1916), was the first important modern Spanish dramatist. He shared the 1904 Nobel Prize for literature with French poet Frederic Mistral.

Echegaray's early plays were romantic melodramas. Later in his career, he turned to more realistic dramas that explored social problems. His works are rarely performed today because they are considered dated and melodramatic. However, he achieved enormous popularity during his lifetime and had a great influence on Spanish theater because of his technical skill.

Echegaray was born in Madrid. He trained as a mathematician and became professor of mathematics at the School of Civil Engineering in Madrid while he was still in his early 20's. He entered government service in 1868, holding a variety of positions until he was appointed minister of finance in 1874. As minister, Echegaray helped establish the Bank of Spain. He did not turn to playwriting until he was 42 but still wrote almost 70 plays. The best known include Madman or Saint (1877) and The Great Go-Between (1881). In the first play, society condemns the central character as insane for his honesty in trying to return his fortune to its rightful owners. In the second play, the principal characters are destroyed by slander.