Mario Benedetti

The Uruguayan storyteller, poet, and playwright was born in 1920 in Paso de los Toros, Tacuarembó Province, and passed away in May 2009. He was one of the most representative figures of the literary generation of '45 in his homeland and, above all, the chronicler of Montevideo. He evolved from "poetic ethnography" to themes reflecting the political awareness of both the author and his characters. In his narrative work, he employs psychological analysis while subtly highlighting the metaphysical anxiety of humans in the absence of any transcendental support. The most creative aspect of his writing lies in the use of simple language which, far from being affected or pretentious, remains profoundly poetic.