''Life and Death of a Spanish Town''The Life and Death of a Spanish Town: Author: Elliot Paul Publisher: London : Peter Davis; Publisher United States; Random House, New York; 1st Edition (1937) ASIN B002DQL7GKThe Life and Death of a Spanish Town: Author: Elliot Paul Publisher: Greenwood Press (1971) is a book by Elliot Paul based on his actual experiences of living in the town of

Santa Eulària des Riu Santa Eulària des Riu (, ) is a coastal town on the south eastern coast of the Spanish island of Ibiza. The town is located on the designated road EI-200. Santa Eulària is the third largest town on the island and also has the only river on th ...

Arnold Goldman
"The Town That Did Not Die"
''Journal of American Studies'' (Cambridge University Press) Vol. 25 (1991), pp. 71-78. on the Spanish island of

Ibiza Ibiza (; ; ; #Names and pronunciation, see below) or Iviza is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is 150 kilometres (93 miles) from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of th ...

, at the outbreak of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

. The book was published in 1937 by

Random House Inc In common usage, randomness is the apparent or actual lack of definite pattern or predictability in information. A random sequence of events, symbols or steps often has no order and does not follow an intelligible pattern or combination. In ...

, of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

Format

The book starts with a list of the ''Men and Women of Santa Eulalia''. The story is then presented in two parts. The first is titled ''4000 BC to 1936 AD'', with the second part called ''July 14 to September 15, 1936''. There is also a postscript by Paul, dated 14 June 1937.

Synopsis

The book is set in and around the small town of

, on

, where Paul had lived since 1931. The first part of the book describes the town and many of the characters who live and work there. He details their family lives, their hopes, their aspirations, and their

politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

. He provides details of the people at work and at play and describes how he becomes part of the community of the town. Paul also writes of other expatriates who have made their homes in and around the town. The second part of the book starts with Paul and his family returning to Ibiza after some time away. The narrative is set in 1936 in the week leading up to the outbreak of hostilities on Ibiza during the

and describes the events that eventually lead to Paul, his family and other refugees from the violence, fleeing the island. It tells the story of civil disobedience, collaboration, and the violence that split a once-happy community, but the narrative finishes before the tragic turn of events reaches its conclusion. The postscript, written by Paul, dated 14 June 1937, details events following his departure from Ibiza and describes his hopes and fears for his friends on the island and a way of life that he thought would change forever.

The Characters

''The Fishermen and their Families''

* ''Captain Juan'' * ''Mateo Rosa, His Wife Paja, their daughter Maria'' * ''Edmundo, Mateo’s brother'' * ''Toniet Pardal, his wife and children''

''Hotel and Café keepers''

* ''Cosmi, his wife Anna'' * ''Antonio the cook, Cosmi’s brother'' * ''Catalina, servant in Cosmi’s hotel'' * ''Juanito, young proprietor of the Royalty'' * ''Pedro, the waiter at the Royalty'' * ''Xumeu Ribas, proprietor of Can Xumeu and custodian of the public telephone, his wife and daughter'' * ''Francisco Ribas, Xumeu’s son'' * ''Antonia, proprietress of the fisherman’s bar'' * ''Julia her daughter'' * ''Andres, of Can Andres''

''Storekeepers''

* ''Old Jaun, of the Casa Rosita, his on Mariano, his daughter-in-law Vicenta'' * ''Toni Ferrer, of Las Delicias'' * ''Miguel Tur, of the Casa Miguel'' * ''Guarapiñada, of Tot Barat'' * ''Mousson, the butcher, his daughter Catalina, his blind aunt''

''Artisans and Mechanics''

* ''Guillermo, the blacksmith'' * ''Sindik, the carpenter'' * ''Jaun Sindik, his son'' * ''Jaume, the carpenter'' * ''Primitivo, the electrician'' * ''Bonéd,

Fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural soci ...

mason'' * ''Vicente Cruz, younge republican mason'' * ''Ramon, the bus driver''

''The Priest''

* ''Old Father Coll'' * ''Father Torres'' * ''Father Margall, and assisting on holidays, Father Clapés and the priest who looked like a butcher boy'' * ''The San Carlos priest and his father''

''Officials and Guardias''

* ''Mayor Serra, Republican'' * ''The

Mayor'' * ''The Secretario'' * ''Anfita, the postmaster, his two idiot sons, Pepe and Chicul'' * ''Sergeant Gomez, of the

Guardia Civil The Civil Guard (; ) is one of the two national law enforcement agencies of Spain. As a national gendarmerie, it is military in nature and is responsible for civil policing under the authority of both the Ministry of the Interior and the Minis ...

'' * ''Guardias Ferrer, Jiminez and Bravo'' * ''The Portero'' * ''Ex-Captain Nicolau, retired army officer'' * ''Fernando, a schoolmaster'' * ''Carlos, his cousin, also a schoolmaster''

''Farmers and Landowners''

* ''Pep Salvador, Cosmi’s brother'' * ''Pere des Puig'' * ''José and Catalina, of Can Josepi'' * ''Francisco Guasch'' * ''José Ribas, the diving champion'' * ''Don Ignacio Riquer'' * ''Don Carlos Roman'' * ''Don Rafael Sainz, vacationing banking millionaire'' * ''Pep des Horts ( Algot Lange), the Dane''

''The Banker''

* ''Don Abel Matutes''

''Artists''

* ''Andres, the young socialist'' * '' Rigoberto Soler'' * ''Derek Rogers, English painter''

''Woman and Young Girls''

* ''Eulalia Noguera'' * ''Marie Anfita, the postmans daughter'' * ''Teresa Bonéd, her daughter Juana'' * ''Maruja, the Secretario’s daughter'' * ''Odila, Ex-Captain Nicolaus daughter'' * ''Angeles, granddaughter of old Vicent the mason'' * ''Maria, Pep Salvador’s favourite daughter'' * ''Marguerita, fiancée of Fernando the schoolmaster''

''Military Officers and Militiamen''

* ''Captain Don Alfredo Bayo, leader of government expedition'' * ''Captain Pastor, second in command'' * ''El Cubano, a corporal'' * ''Maño, a militiaman'' * ''Pedro, Maño comrade'' * ''Ex-Commandant Mestres, rebel Governor of the island''

Part 1

''4000 BC to 1936 AD''

* ''I. Dawn and Moonlight'' * ''II. Of Fish and Fishermen'' * ''III. The Morning Bus'' * ''IV. Stores and Storekeepers'' * ''V. The Church'' * ''VI. Cosmi and the Punta de Arabie'' * ''VII. Of Farms and Farmers'' * ''VIII. A Group in the Main Street'' * ''IX. The Back Street'' * ''X. Of Public Service'' * ''XI. Les Jeunes Filles en Fleur'' * ''XII. The Guardia Civil'' * ''XIII. Communists, Fascists, and Others''

Part 2

''July 14 to September 15, 1936''

* ''XIV. The

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

Boat'' * ''XV. An Airplane'' * ''XVI. The

Manifesto A manifesto is a written declaration of the intentions, motives, or views of the issuer, be it an individual, group, political party, or government. A manifesto can accept a previously published opinion or public consensus, but many prominent ...

'' * ''XVII. The Fleet'' * ''XVIII. The Man Hunt'' * ''XIX. The Bombardment'' * ''XX. Victory'' * ''XXI. The Internationale'' * ''XXII. Dios Foutut'' * ''XXIII. La Lutte Finale'' * ''XXIV. Maño'' * ''XXV. Shadows of Vultures'' * ''Postscript''

Reviews

The book was praised by Richard Rees, editor of ''

The Adelphi ''The Adelphi'' or ''New Adelphi'' was an English literary journal founded by John Middleton Murry and published between 1923 and 1955. The first issue appeared in June 1923, with issues published monthly thereafter. Between August 1927 and Se ...

'' magazine, who called it, along with

George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950) was an English novelist, poet, essayist, journalist, and critic who wrote under the pen name of George Orwell. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to a ...

's ''

Homage to Catalonia ''Homage to Catalonia'' is a 1938 memoir by English writer George Orwell, in which he accounts his personal experiences and observations while fighting in the Spanish Civil War. Covering the period between December 1936 and June 1937, Orwell re ...

'' and

Georges Bernanos Louis Émile Clément Georges Bernanos (; 20 February 1888 – 5 July 1948) was a French author, and a soldier in World War I. A Catholic with monarchist leanings, he was critical of elitist thought and was opposed to what he identified as d ...