La biografía en el siglo XIX venezolano. Apuntes para su estudio

Abstract

This article studies the biography produced in the Venezuelan XIX century, trying to establish an approach to its general characteristics and its production during that century; this objective, based on the evaluation of some balances, bibliographic repertories and inventories and a search in different national libraries, archives, repositories and newspaper archives, allowed to relate approximately one hundred and sixty elaborations of this type, published over two stages: one between the decades of 1850 and 1860 and another, marked by the predominance of the liberal political current, between 1870 and 1899. From the nineteenth-century Venezuelan biography, after its analysis as a set in which there is variety observed in terms of purposes, scope, editorial preparation, historical criteria, narrative style, contextual examination, extension, use and treatment of sources; can be highlighted, among its general characteristics, the epic and heroic charge related to expressions of providentialism, the commendable sign, the archetypal factory with moralizing purposes, the spacious political content, the propaganda utility at the service of power and the apology to the leader.