Marianela

By Benito Pérez Galdós, Benito Pç s, rez, et al.

Book Overview

"Marianela" is one of Benito P rez Gald 3s's most poignant and enduring works, serving as a masterpiece of Spanish realism. Set in the mining town of Socartes, the novel tells the heart-wrenching story of Marianela, a young orphan girl whose physical deformity is masked by her inner grace and devotion. She serves as the guide and constant companion to Pablo, the blind son of a wealthy landowner.

Their relationship is built on a spiritual and intellectual connection, as Pablo perceives the world through Marianela's vivid descriptions. However, their idyllic bond is threatened by the arrival of a revolutionary medical procedure that promises to restore Pablo's sight. The narrative explores the complex intersection of physical beauty, scientific progress, and social inequality. Through the lens of Marianela's tragic fate, Gald 3s critiques the superficiality of a society that often fails to see beyond appearances.

Rich in symbolism and emotional depth, "Marianela" remains a powerful exploration of the human condition and the conflict between idealization and reality. This classic work of literature continues to captivate readers with its lyrical prose and its timeless meditation on the nature of love and perception.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you may see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1025412753
• ISBN13: 9781025412757
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: Tradd Street Press
• Length: 338 Pages
• Weight: 1.04 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

La vision siempre es espiritual, no fisica

What is the actual implication of this fictitious work? Isn't there a serious, profound and truthful lessons in this love story so down-to-earth but yet so complex? Marianela, a love story published in 1878 portrays a relationship between a blind man and his guide-- not beautiful a woman, whom he imagines attractive. Loving him she worries that once the man recovers his eyesight realizes she is not as pretty as he thinks her to be. The author wisely crafts an interesting symbolism between the capacity to see, which is always spiritual and emotional, and on the other hand the human eyesight which can be inadequate, restrictive and misleading. The implication that runs through the whole story is that adversity is a blessing in disguise, since blindness forces him to be humble enough to perceive the beauty she and others manifest. Once he recovers his eyesight and sees her for the first time with his human eyes, he rejects her. Wasn't he in possession of real sight while blind than when he was able to recover his sight and to humanly see? Isn't Perez Galdos message, that the capacity to see and understand is mental, emotional and not necessarily physical? Finally I can say this classic must be understood as a lesson on the spiritual superiority over the evidence presented by the human senses. This emotionally complex story has a symbolism, it will teach a lesson to whoever is receptive enough to its deeper meaning.

Wonderful Story

I must admit that this book didn't pick my interest when I started reading it in My Spanish AP class in high school. Now after reading it I have to say that this book is wonderfully written and very educational.Marianela is a girl who lives in The Mines of Socartes, she is the guide of a rich boy who suffers fom blindness Pablo. I loved Marianela's character since the first pages, she is so full of life, so innocent. All her life she lived out of the pity of others but it didn't matter to her. Pablo "said" he loved her and she lived in this illusion where she thought that she would finally be loved and not criticized by her looks. Then, everything changed when Teodoro Golfin, a miracle doctor gave Pablo his sight. That's when everything changed. When Pablo saw what Marianela really looked like, he just started treating her horribly. Where did all his love go? I have to say that by the end of the book I hated Pablo with a passion. How can someone be so cynical as to tell a person how beautiful she is without really seeing the exterior appearance and then being disgusted by what he sees when he looks at how that person really looks? Sadly that's what happens with Pablo and it would have been better if he had stay blind.This book bring some things that are really important. True beauty is on the inside, never judge someone by their exterior appearace because you might be surprised. True beauty is not something that you can see or touch, beauty has to be felt. I highly recomend this book, it will touch your heart I promise

AWESOME! Great values and lessons

I first read this book as a Venezuelan teenager. I recently found it in the U.S., and intend for my child to read it also. You see: beauty is in th eyes of the beholder, and society focuses too much in the superficial aspect of everything. Literature such as this brings a new dimension to human relations and private conflicts which go on daily and often times unresolved in each persons psyche. A must read!

It was a sad but compelling short novel

Pablo fell in love with a small, scrawny shadow of a girl named Nela. He loved her with sincerity and was able to look past her exterior because of his blindness. But he doesn't realize that she was so hurt and afraid that if he saw her ugliness, he wouldn't love her. When he got his eyesight back, she died of lovesickness for him. It's sad but well written. So read it...in Spanish it has a better affect.