Benito Pérez Galdós (1843-1920) is generally recognized as Spain’s greatest writer of fiction after Cervantes, ranking amongst the major nineteenth-century Realists alongside Dickens, Balzac and Tolstoy. He was a prolific writer and his output includes forty-six Episodios Nacionales (“National Episodes”, i.e. historical novels), thirty-two novels, twenty-four plays and the equivalent of twenty volumes of shorter fiction, journalism and other writings.
Galdós was born on 10 May 1843 in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, the youngest of ten children of a middle-class family. His father, Don Sebastián Pérez, was a moderately prosperous ex-soldier who had fought in the War of Independence and his mother, Doña María Dolores Galdós, was inflexible and domineering. It has been suggested that she has been immortalized in Galdós’s eponymous character Doña Perfecta (Doña Perfecta, 1876) and that their strained relationship was reflected in that of the protagonist and Doña Sales in Ángel Guerra (1890-91).
Galdós attended the Colegio de San Agustín in Las Palmas and his early writings were published in the city’s publication El Ómnibus from 1862. Later that year, in order to break up his relationship with his illegitimate cousin, Sisita, Galdós, then aged nineteen, was sent to Madrid University to study law. However, he soon became distracted by the political and artistic life of the capital and abandoned his studies to concentrate upon writing as a career. Like many other leading Spanish writers, he worked as a journalist, contributing to a number of well-known publications, including La Nación, which published his translation of Dickens’s Pickwick Papers in 1868, and El Contemporáneo. Subsequently he became the editor of the Revista de España (1872-73) and worked as the European correspondent of the Buenos Aires publication La Prensa (1883-93). These years served as a necessary incubation period for his career as a writer and there is a close connection between his journalistic works and his literary output, in terms of both content and technique. It is likely, for instance, that Galdós’s work as a journalist helped to formulate his ideas and nurture his style, and that his prolific output can be attributed to this profession, which required him to write under pressure in order to meet stringent deadlines.
The Realist novel in Spain developed much later than in other countries and Galdós was clearly influenced by the major French, English and Russian realist authors, whose works helped him to clarify his aspirations from a relatively early date. In 1867, during his visit to France, he bought his first Balzacian novel, Eugénie Grandet and then moved on to read the work of Dickens, whom he described as “his beloved master”. It is generally accepted that Tolstoy influenced Galdós’s work from the 1880s onwards.
Galdós’s first novel, La Fontana de Oro, was written in the years 1867-68, but it was not published until 1870. In this same year he produced an article entitled “Observaciones sobre la novela contemporánea” (“Observations on the Contemporary Novel”), which reveals an increasingly clear idea of his role as a novelist. Here he argued that novelists should strive to produce truly Spanish works, disregard the demands of a frivolous public, resist the temptation to imitate foreign works and concentrate on observing reality. They should take as their subject the middle class, which was “the great model, the inexhaustible source” and reflect the “wonderful drama of contemporary life”:
La clase media, la más olvidada por nuestros novelistas, es el gran modelo, la fuente inagotable. [The middle class, the class most neglected by our novelists, is the supreme model, the inexhaustible source.]
Sabemos que no es el novelista el que ha de decidir directamente estas graves cuestiones, pero sí tiene la misión de reflejar esta turbación honda, esta lucha incesante de principios y hechos que constituye el maravilloso drama de la vida actual. [We know that it is not the novelist’s role to intervene directly in these grave matters, but it is his mission to reflect this underlying turbulence, this never-ending struggle between principles and events, which forms the essence of the wonderful drama of contemporary life.]
Unfortunately, he did not appear to put this into practice in his early novels, such as La Fontana (1870) and El audaz (1871), which are hampered by the adoption of a somewhat melodramatic plot and a tendency to incorporate intrusive authorial remarks.
During this period Galdós embarked upon the Episodios Nacionales (“National Episodes”), an ambitious venture of historical novels, which, rooted in fiction and based on a central character, recounted the history of nineteenth-century Spain from its beginnings to the present of Galdós’s day, seeking to identify themes of national identity and patriotism. Once again, then, he turned away from the intentions expressed in the “Observaciones”, perhaps because he wished to record and preserve the struggles of the past generation and also fuel the insatiable appetite of his generation for novels based on Spanish history. These historical novels brought Galdós great fame and he went on to produce forty-six in total, beginning with Trafalgar (1873), set at the time of the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, and ending with Cánovas (1912), during the post-Restoration ministry of Cánovas del Castillo.
Rather than the source of his fame during his lifetime, today’s critics would argue that Galdós’s most significant contribution was to the development of the Spanish novel and Realism itself. Of particular note are his Novelas contemporáneas (“Contemporary Novels”), which he divided into two main categories: the “Novelas de la primera época” (“Novels of the First Period”) (1870-79) and the “Novelas de la serie contemporánea” (“The Contemporary Social Novels”) (1881-1915). The early novels include Doña Perfecta (1876), Gloria (1876-77), Marianela (1878) and La familia de León Roch (1878) and deal with contemporary social problems without being set in a definite time period or exact Spanish location. They unleashed a great deal of controversy when they were first published, largely because they highlighted the tension between Catholic belief and modern Liberal thought and, in particular, prompted discussion on the interaction of religious controversy with family life. In Doña Perfecta (1876) the liberal Pepe Rey’s proposed marriage to Rosalía, the innocent daughter of the tyrannical protagonist, offers a glimmer of hope in a world filled with blind fanaticism, but the dashing of this hope, culminating in the persecution and brutal murder of the “hero”, suggests injustice, intransigence and, in essence, prevailing evil. Unsurprisingly, Catholics strongly condemned this work.
In artistic terms, the “Novelas de la primera época” (“Novels of the First Period”) are the works of a writer still striving to attain maturity. The style of these novels is deficient, the characters are more like stereotypes than credible individuals, the narrator’s intrusions are overbearing and the plots verge on melodrama. Thus they have come to be known as the “thesis novels”. They did, however, provide Galdós with the indispensable opportunity to practise and helped him to work on the fundamentals of his task as a writer, particularly as regards character presentation, plot organisation and structure, and reader involvement.
With La desheredada (1881) Galdós embarked upon a new style of writing. This next series of novels, widely known as the Novelas españolas contemporáneas (“Contemporary Spanish Novels”), span the years 1881-1897 and have attracted the greatest critical interest to date. They are much more impressive than his earlier works and were written at a time when he had attained artistic maturity and was able to progress as a creative artist with his own personal approach to the presentation of social reality and of character. Like Balzac’s Comédie humaine, these novels reproduce a whole society, in Galdós’s case the city of Madrid and a generation of its life. Once again, like Balzac, he employs a whole series of recurring characters, including the moneylender Torquemada, who is first mentioned in El Doctor Centeno (1883) and later reappears in La de Bringas (1884), Lo Prohibido (1884-85), Fortunata y Jacinta (1886-87) and Realidad (1889), as well as the Torquemada novels (Torquemada en la hoguera [1889], Torquemada en la cruz [1893], Torquemada en el purgatorio (1894) and Torquemada y San Pedro [1895]).
As in the Episodios, in these novels historical fact is combined with fiction, but this time the characters play out contemporary dramas, and readers are encouraged to reflect upon the past and present in Spanish society. Ramón Villaamil, the unemployed civil servant in Miau (1888), for instance, is the victim of the repeated changes in government throughout the turno pacífico (“peaceful rota”), but the novel covers far more than this political drama, and extends to embrace questions relating to family life, relationships, religion, suicide and so forth. Likewise, the novel La de Bringas (1884) is set against the background of the 1868 Revolution and the reader is given the opportunity to appreciate the significance of the historical events of this period as the characters’ private and personal dramas are played out. The role of history in Galdós’s work has been analysed with masterly detail by critics such as Geoffrey Ribbans and Peter Bly.
There is a greater boldness in the “mature” novels as Galdós dared to venture on scandalous ground, for instance by making the heroine of La desheredada (1881) become a prostitute. During this period he was influenced by the works of Émile Zola and Naturalism, but although heredity and environment are present in his novels, Galdós does not appear to endorse the claim that such forces were inescapable. Rather, he invites the reader to consider whether people are capable of exerting their own free will and changing their destiny, and also whether it is possible to re-educate such characters. In so doing, he suggests that the theory of determinism is unnecessarily restrictive and pessimistic.
Amongst all his works, many regard Fortunata y Jacinta (1886-87) as Galdós’s masterpiece. In this novel we see the colourful life of nineteenth-century Madrid as we witness the interaction between the banking families of Santa Cruz and Moreno Isla, the pueblo and the nouveaux riches, comprised predominantly of those who made their fortunes in Spanish America. The novel deals with themes such as the role of women in society, particularly since it revolves around the lives of two women from radically different classes whose destinies are joined through the adulterous Juanito Santa Cruz, as well as the “social question” to which the fast-moving society of nineteenth-century Spain gave rise.
Also worthy of note are the Torquemada novels (1889-95), a unique series that traces the fortunes of a character through the prime of his life until his death. Here we see the impact of change in many aspects of society, ranging from class structure, with the rise of the middle class and decline of the aristocracy, and materialism, as money acquired increasing importance and value. The novels also address numerous broader issues, including questions of life and death, religion, charity, education and regeneration.
Galdós never married, although he did have an illegitimate daughter, María, born from his relationship with a working-class woman, Lorenza Cobián. He had a series of relationships with women, some of whom had a strong influence on his work and even inspired his characters and plots. Concha Ruth Morell, for instance, bears a striking resemblance to the character of Tristana, whilst the outspoken feminist and writer, Emilia Pardo Bazán, following her infidelity to the author, declared that she recognised herself in the protagonist of La incógnita (1889) (Bravo-Villasante 81). Many of his novels deal with feminist concerns head-on. Realidad (1890), for example, highlights the issues of adultery and divorce, whilst the later novel Tristana (1892) considers the stifling restrictions imposed upon women at the turn of the century, initially expressed metaphorically through the “clipping” of her wings and then savagely and literally through the amputation of the protagonist’s leg.
As for the author’s political tendencies, Galdós was a liberal. He witnessed a number of major events in Spanish history. For example, in 1865 he participated in the student riots of St Daniel’s Eve, in 1866 he saw the sergeants’ revolt at the San Gil barracks followed by their execution, and he saw the triumphant revolutionary Generals Serrano and Prim return to the city of Madrid following the Revolution of 1868 and deposition of Isabel II. In 1869 he became the political correspondent for Las Cortes and, during the period when his first novel was published, Galdós identified with Prim and the hopes of the “constitutional monarchy”. Later he played an active role in politics. From 1886-90 he was the liberal Member of Parliament for a district of Puerto Rico during Sagasta’s term of government. In 1907 he was the Republican candidate for Madrid and in 1910 he became co-President (with Pablo Iglesias) of the Republican-Socialist Alliance. However, as Jo Labanyi has noted, “this picture of solid liberal and republican sympathies is only part of the story” since in 1886 he was a member of the official committee nominated to present the newborn Alfonso XIII to the nation and in 1912 he agreed to meet the King (Labanyi, 9; 11).
Critical reactions towards the author during his lifetime were mixed. Although he was frequently regarded as one of Spain’s leading contemporary writers, he made many conservative enemies and they became determined to avenge his attacks on the clergy. Thus he was refused membership to the Ateneo (literary society) in 1881. His election to the prestigious Real Academia (Royal Academy) was also opposed in 1883 and 1889, although, thanks to the intervention of Menéndez y Pelayo, he was elected in 1897. Likewise, in 1905 and 1912, on account of the controversies he had provoked, his candidature for the Nobel Prize did not receive the necessary national support.
One of the most turbulent events in Galdos’s literary life was the première of his play Electra in Madrid on 30 January 1901, which ended with frenetic anticlerical demonstrations as radicals escorted the author home. Following this, the Captain-General of the capital banned all demonstrations and the clergy reacted by threatening their parishioners with ex-communication if they dared to attend a performance of the play.
As well as battling to deal with the controversies ignited by his works, Galdós struggled to cope with various financial pressures. It is probably on account of these problems that he decided in the 1890s to turn to playwriting, a profession that was generally seen as being more lucrative than that of writing novels and, in addition, offered him the opportunity to communicate with a larger public. As Condé notes, there is a strong link between his novels and plays. In his first play, Realidad (1892), Galdós attempts to “portray some of the same complexity of life explored through the novelas contemporáneas in the theatre”, and hoped to encourage the audience to take on an active role in the belief that “showing is better than telling” (Condé xii). He produced a total of twenty-four plays, some of which were adaptations of earlier novels, but, in general, they were poorly received and his financial position did not improve greatly as a result of his efforts in this direction. Many of his contemporaries found them difficult to understand, and later Galdós lamented the fact that none of the critics studied them in depth (“Entre las diversas críticas no hubo ninguna que profundizase en el asunto y caracteres del drama juzgado.” [Amongst the various reviews that the play received, there was not one single piece that explored its main theme and its features in depth.]) Thus, following the premiere of Realidad, the critic Octavio Picón noted that
La ovación que anoche recibió Galdós se la hicieron principalmente el elemento jóven, las mujeres, y ese presentimiento misterioso que hace a las gentes entusiasmarse con lo bueno, aunque no lleguen a entenderlo. [The applause that Galdós received last night came primarily from the younger generation, women and from that mysterious effect that makes people enthusiastic about good things, even if they don’t understand them.] (“Estreno de Realidad”, El Correo, 16-3-1892; qtd in Condé xvi)
It is possible that this was largely because his aspirations were ahead of his time.
Galdós’s financial problems were aggravated in 1896 by a bitter dispute with his publisher, La Guirnalda, which was accused of depriving the author of profits. This led to legal action. Although Galdós won the case in 1897, he was still burdened by the legal expenses. In 1912 he went blind and his last years were spent in poverty. He died on 4 January 1920.
Although Galdós wrote primarily for his contemporary readers, many of the issues highlighted in his work are timeless and universal. Furthermore, even though many of his most significant novels are rooted in the growing city of Madrid, they transcend to a timeless, arguably placeless sphere, the world of “everyman”. Galdós was, above all, a writer who loved to experiment with different styles and themes. Through the use of narrative techniques like irony, ambiguity and his constant recourse to open endings, he forces the reader to play a central role in the creative process. In so doing, he not only educates them about the current problems in Spain but, rather than imposing opinions, he encourages readers to be reflective and form their own judgements. His works can also serve as springboards for fresh, new personal interpretations and reworkings in other genres, as testified by the film versions of Nazarín and Tristana made by Luis Buñuel. These films are, in many respects, radically different from the Galdosian novels which inspired them, largely because they reflect the personal interests and aims of the director, and deserve to be appreciated as works in their own right. What remains unquestionable is that Galdós’s works have attracted a wide range of critical opinions and will continue to fascinate readers of all ages and nationalities for years to come.
Works cited:
Bly, Peter. Galdós’s Novel of the Historical Imagination (Liverpool: Francis Cairns, 1983).
Bravo-Villasante, Carmen. Cartas a Benito Pérez Galdós de Emilia Pardo Bazán (1889-90). (Madrid: Ediciones Turner, 1975).
Condé, Lisa P. The Theatre of Galdós: Realidad (1892). (Lampeter: Edwin Mellen, 1993).
Galdós, Benito Pérez. Memorias de un desmemoriado. (Madrid: Renacimiento, n.d. [1930]).
Labanyi, Jo (ed.). Galdós (London: Longman, 1993).
Ribbans, Geoffrey. History and Fiction in Galdos’s Narratives (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993).
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Citation: Davies, Rhian. "Benito Pérez Galdós". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 14 December 2009 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5489, accessed 14 December 2025.]
