San Manuel Bueno, Mártir facts for kids

San Manuel Bueno, mártir (1931) is a short novel by Miguel de Unamuno (1864–1936), a famous Spanish writer. This story is special because it changes who is telling the story and uses very simple descriptions. It's about the life of a priest in a small Spanish village. Unamuno wrote it quickly in 1930.

Story Setting

The story takes place in a small village called Valverde de Lucerna. It's next to a beautiful lake. There's an old legend that a hidden city lies under the lake. The village and the hidden city are like symbols. They show the difference between spiritual things (like beliefs) and material things (like objects).

The mountain and the lake in the story are also very important. They seem to become part of the main character, Don Manuel. The story says, "now everything was don Manuel, don Manuel with the lake and the mountain." Some people think the mountain stands for strong faith, and the lake for a more surface-level faith. This is because the mountain's reflection only appears on the lake's surface.

The village in the book might be based on a real place. There's a real lake called San Martín de Castañeda in Senabria. Near it are the ruins of an old convent. A legend there also talks about a city sleeping at the bottom of the lake.

Main Plot

The novel tells the story of Don Manuel, the Catholic priest in Valverde de Lucerna. Angela, one of the townspeople, tells his story. Everyone in the town loves Don Manuel. He always helps people and never judges anyone. He especially helps those who feel left out. For example, he helped a woman who had a child without being married. Instead of turning her away, he helped her marry the child's father. This brought peace back to the town. The people thought he was a "saint" because of all his good deeds.

Angela returns home after studying away. She is still amazed by Don Manuel's kindness.

Angela's brother, Lazarus, comes back from the New World. He is not happy with how poor the town seems, both in spirit and in wealth. He is also surprised by Don Manuel's good heart. But Lazarus thinks Don Manuel is "too intelligent to believe everything he teaches." Lazarus does not have faith himself. Angela and Lazarus's mother passes away. On her deathbed, she asks Lazarus to promise to pray for her. She also wishes that Don Manuel can help Lazarus find faith.

Lazarus starts walking with Don Manuel by the lake. This is where Don Manuel often goes to think. After some time, Lazarus takes Communion in church. The townspeople think he has found faith. But Lazarus is only praying for his mother, as he promised her. He still doesn't truly believe.

Right after Communion, Lazarus tells Angela a secret. He says that both he and Don Manuel do not believe in God, especially not in an afterlife. Angela is very sad and doesn't believe him. But when she talks to Don Manuel, she realizes Lazarus was telling the truth. Don Manuel believes that religion helps people live happy lives. He thinks it's the only way for them to feel content. Lazarus, after talking with Don Manuel, respects him greatly. He admires Don Manuel's strong will to do good, even if he doesn't believe what he teaches. So, Lazarus decides to keep pretending to be a believer. Angela wonders if this is a good thing. But Lazarus insists that Don Manuel is a saint for all the good he has done for the town.

Don Manuel becomes weaker and weaker. It's hard for him to teach about the resurrection when he doesn't believe it's real. He becomes very sad. The townspeople see his sadness as a sign that he is like Christ. When Don Manuel dies, he does so in public, in the middle of the town. The people see him as their "second Christ." Lazarus takes over Don Manuel's role until he also dies. Angela moves out of town. However, she ends her story by wondering if it was God's plan all along. Maybe God wanted Don Manuel and Lazarus to think they didn't believe. This might have helped them do so much good in the world. Angela hopes that just before they died, they finally understood the truth. The last part of the book says that Don Manuel is being considered for beatification. This means the church might declare him a blessed person. He is seen as a perfect example of a priest.

See also

In Spanish: San Manuel Bueno, mártir para niños

• Generation of 1898
• Spanish literature