Un Matrimonio
In his youth, Santayana wrote a novela entitled "Un Matrimonio". It and a
translation are printed on the following two pages.1
The Spanish text was reproduced in the journal Indice in 1952.2 It
was apparently written by Santayana when he was eight years old.
However a certain interesting ambiguity attends the dating of the
composition of Santayana's first "novel." If it was written in Avila, it may
well have preceded 1872, the year in which in June, Agustin Santayana
and his son set out from Spain to join the rest of the family in Boston.
Josefina and her two daughters had been in Boston since 1869, and
Roberto since 1867. If young George wrote in Spain between ages five or
six and eight, his work was a precocious, charming attempt to put himself
imaginatively back in the family circle, particularly back in the presence
of his favorite Susana, whose experience with Queen Cristina the piece
reflects. If the narrative was written in Boston, where it was undoubtedly
"published," it shows the young boy celebrating his reunion with Susana
and the others.
A second part of this "novel," entitled "Un Viaje" is lost.3
UN MATRIMONIO
POR
JORGE SANTAYANA
Imprenta de
R. S. STURGIS &COMP
1872
This "novel* appears in the forthcoming biography of Santayana written by John
McCormick, and is printed here by courtesy of its publisher, A. A. Knopf, New York. The
editors are grateful to John McCormick for his translation and comments.
2 E. Ducay, "Una Novela Inedita de Santayana escrita a Los Ocho Aflos," Indice de Artes y
Letras (Madrid), Nov. 15, 1952. The text is presented here as found in the Indice article,
without accents.
s See the entry in the Bibliographic Update below in the Chronological Listing of
Primary Sources under the year 1871.
39