Manuel Elogio Carpio Hernández (March 1, 1791 – February 11, 1860) was a Mexican poet, theologian, physician, and politician. Much of his poetry was religious or historical, with an inspiration for his poetry deriving from the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

. He was a

classicist Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

who often used

Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

. He wrote the earliest known literary depiction of the ghost

La Llorona (; ) is a vengeful ghost in Hispanic American folklore who is said to roam near bodies of water mourning her children whom she drowned in a jealous rage after discovering her husband was unfaithful to her. Whoever hears her crying either suffer ...

in a poem in 1849 and has received praise for his work.

Personal life

Carpio was born in Cosamaloapan de Carpio,

Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...

, Mexico, on March 1, 1791. As a child, he moved with his parents to

Puebla Puebla, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Puebla, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its capital is Puebla City. Part of east-centr ...

which is where his father died and they lost their wealth. He studied

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

, and

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

at the Conciliar Seminary in Puebla. He enjoyed reading Greek classics, Roman classics, religious books, and books about ancient history in the library. Carpio completed his schooling in medicine at the

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public university, public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countri ...

in 1832. He died in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

on February 11, 1860.

Career

Carpio translated ''Aphorisms'' and ''Prognostics'' by

Hippocrates Hippocrates of Kos (; ; ), also known as Hippocrates II, was a Greek physician and philosopher of the Classical Greece, classical period who is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of medicine. He is traditionally referr ...

. He was a teacher, writer, physician, and a member of learned societies. He was a part of the Legislature of Veracruz and was a representative in the

Congress of the Union The Congress of the Union (, ), formally known as the General Congress of the United Mexican States (''Congreso General de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos''), is the legislature of the federal government of Mexico. It consists of two chambers: t ...

. Carpio was briefly the President of the Chamber of Deputies. Although Carpio was known for his poetry, his first poems were not published until 1849. Carpio's inspiration for his poetry was the

, with the majority of his poems being either religious or historical. He was a

who often used

. His poems include ''Mexico'', ''El Popocatépetl'', ''Belshazzar's Feast'', ''The Witch of Endor'', ''The Annunciation'', ''The Virgin at the Foot of the Cross'', and ''Napolean in the Red Sea''. Carpio wrote the earliest known literary depiction of the ghost

as a poem in 1849. In Carpio's 14-line poem, a woman named Rosalia was murdered by her husband and becomes a weeping ghost that travels through streets and the riverbank, wearing a cloak.

Reception

In 1922, ''

The New International Encyclopedia ''The New International Encyclopedia'' was an American encyclopedia first published in 1902 by Dodd, Mead & Co. It descended from the ''International Cyclopaedia'' (1884) and was updated in 1906, 1914 and 1926. History ''The New Internatio ...

'' referred to Carpio as the "most popular Mexican poet of the century", and named ''Belshazzar's Feast'' his most important work. ''The Encyclopedia Americana'' said that Carpio is the "first and best epic poet of his country and his lyrics have true lyrical swing." ''History of Mexican Literature'' stated that ''Napoleon in the Red Sea'' is the "most pleasing" of Carpio's historical poetry and that Carpio was "respected and beloved by all".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carpio, Manuel Presidents of the Chamber of Deputies (Mexico) 19th-century Mexican philosophers Mexican male poets 1791 births 1860 deaths 19th-century Mexican poets 19th-century Mexican male writers 19th-century Mexican politicians Politicians from Veracruz Writers from Veracruz National Autonomous University of Mexico alumni People from Cosamaloapan