Amalia

José Mármol (1818-1871) was an Argentine poet, novelist, and journalist. Born and raised in Buenos Aires, he left law school for a career in politics. In 1839, he was arrested by the regime of Juan Manuel de Rosas and was forced to flee within two years for his political opposition. In Montevideo, he befriended a vibrant community of fellow exiles including Esteban Echeverría and Juan Bautista Alberdi. Several years later, Mármol fled to Rio de Janeiro following the siege of Montevideo by Manuel Oribe, an ally of Rosas. He returned in 1845 and remained in Uruguay for seven years. In the Uruguayan capital, he founded three journals and gained a reputation as a prominent political poet. His twelve-canto autobiographical poem El Peregrino (1847) and a collection of his lyric poems placed Mármol at the forefront of the Latin American Romantic school. He is perhaps remembered most for his Costumbrist novel Amalia (1851), which was recognized as Argentina's national novel following the defeat of Rosas in 1852. Mármol returned after thirteen years in exile to serve as a senator, national deputy, and diplomat to Brazil. From 1858 until his retirement due to blindness, Rosas served as the director of the Biblioteca Nacional de la República Argentina, a position later held by his fellow countryman Jorge Luis Borges.