Horacio Quiroga (1878-1937)

Uruguayan short story writer who has been compared to Edgar Allan Poe. Quiroga wrote over 200 short stories. Among his famous tales is the haunting 'The Feather Pillow,' Quiroga was born in Uruguay, but he went to Argentina in 1901, to live and work. His life was marked by a series of tragic events : his father had died in an accident with a rifle, briefly after that he lost his eldest brother and his stepfather in another accident. In 1900 he lost his best friend in an accident with a pistol ànd his wife committed suicide. In 1937, Quiroga learned that he was seriously ill and committed suicide.

"These parasites of feathered creatures, diminutive in their habitual environment, reach enormous proportions under certain conditions. Human blood seems particularly favourable to them, and it is not rare to encounter them in feather pillows." (from 'The Feather Pillow')

Horacio Quiroga, escritor rioplatense (Uruguay), nace en 1878. Empezó su vida literaria con un libro de poesía, Los arrecifes de coral (1901) antes de trasladarse a Argentina, donde pasa el resto de su vida. Las regulares tragedias que tuvo que enfrentar en su vida (muerte accidental de su padre, suicidio de su padrasto, le tira un balazo accidentalmente a su mejor amigo, su mujer se suicida...) tuvieron una relacion directa con su obra, que consta sobre todo de cuentos cortos e intensos, en los cuales expresa una fascinación inagotable por la muerte. Al descubrir la selva misionera, gran fuente de inspiración, se apasiona por un estilo de vida sobrio pero productivo y salvaje (los trabajos manuales eran para el una manera de acercarse al misterio de la naturaleza, de la vida, y afirma que solo se sentia a su gusto con los trabajadores). Algunos de sus cuentos entran en el genero fantástico, ya que para él lo fantástico es una expresión violenta y desesperada de la situación del hombre.