Written by Spanish Nobel Prize laureate Camilo Jose Cela, The Family of Pascual Duarte is a novel revolving around "tremendismo", a style of writing which focuses on the characters' pain and suffering. Met with public backlash, the first few publications of the book were banned in Spain; eventually a new edition was re-released in 1946.
The Family of Pascual Duarte is about a man named Pascual Duarte and his relatives. Pascual is a character who constantly experiences bad luck; however, much of his misfortune comes from his own traits of impulsivity and recklessness as well. Other characters include Rosario Duarte, Pascual's sister who leaves the household to work as a prostitute, and Esteban Duarte, Pascual's father, who dies from a dog bite. The book focuses around the family's experiences, narrated from Pascual's perspective in the future in a jail cell after unfortunate events in his life.
The Family of Pascual Duarte was extremely controversial when it was first published. However, critics agree that it was essential to the movement of tremendismo, as well as a crucial historical work in the context of Spain's instability. Camilo Jose Cela was awarded the 1989 Nobel Prize in Literature for his writing contributions including this novel.
