Manuel Zeno Gandia

Zeno Gandía's parents were wealthy land owners in the city of Arecibo, Puerto Rico, where he was born and raised. As a child, Zeno Gandía witnessed firsthand the harsh working conditions of the poorfarm workers. After receiving his primary and secondary education in his hometown, he went to Spain where he studied medicine at the University of Barcelona's school of medicine. He graduated with thetitles of Doctor in Medicine and Surgeon. He developed his love for political literature during his stay in Spain. His interest in politics led him to become an outspoken advocate for Puerto Ricanindependence.

When Zeno Gandía returned to Puerto Rico, he set up his medical practice in Arecibo. In 1894, he published La Charca (The Pond), the first serious Puerto Rican novel, which dealt withthe harsh life in the remote and mountainous coffee regions in Puerto Rico. This naturalist novel tells about the injustices that the poor farm hand suffered against the rich landowners. La Charca is aPuerto Rican classic and is one of four novels in Las Crónicas de un Mundo enfermo (Chronicles of a Sick World). The other three are Garduña, El Negocio (The Business) and Redentores (The Redeemers).In the 1960s, Zeno Gandía's best-known novel, La Charca was translated to English by Kal Wagenheim. It remains in print as The Pond, published by Markus Wiener Publishers of Princeton NJ.

AfterPuerto Rico was invaded during the Spanish-American War in 1898, Zeno Gandía traveled to Washington, D.C. where, together with Eugenio María de Hostos, he proposed the idea of independence for PuertoRico. The men were disappointed when their ideas were rejected by the government of the United States and the island was converted into a territory. Zeno Gandía returned to the island where he continuedto write and was politically active. As a member of the Puerto Rico Union Party, he also advocated allowing voters to choose among non-colonial options, including annexation, an independent...