Francisco Gómez de Quevedo Villegas was born in Madrid in 1580. He studied with the Jesuits and at the University of Alcalá de Henares. He was living in Valladolid when he became the lifelong enemy of Góngora, sparked by jealousy between two of the sharpest minds of the time. When he was young he corresponded with the famous humanist Justo Lipsio and took a liking to Séneca and the stoics. Many accounts of the time talk about his wit, his bad eyesight and his limp. There is not much about his love life, however. There are more details about his activities in the service of the Duke of Osuna, which started in 1613 and for whom he undertook delicate diplomatic missions and was also sent to prison. He died in Villanueva de los Infantes in 1645.
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Paul the Sharper or The Scavenger and The Swindler
Francisco de Quevedo’s first novel, in which he argues for the impossibility of rising up the social ladder.
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Dreams and Discourses
This is a collection of pieces by Francisco de Quevedo in which he provides a critical and bleak description of the occupations or trades and customs of the time.
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The Spanish Parnassus
Compilation of Francisco de Quevedo's poems by José Antonio González de Salas, commented by the author.
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Spanish National Library (Madrid)
