Benito Jerónimo Feijóo y Montenegro

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Benito Jerónimo Feijóo y Montenegro

Portrait of Feijóo y Montenegro by Juan Bernabé Palomino
Born October 8, 1676(1676-10-08)
Casdemiro, Ourense
Died September 26, 1764 (aged 87)
Oviedo
Occupation Monk, scholar, essayist

Benito Jerónimo Feijóo y Montenegro (Casdemiro, Galicia, 8 October 1676 — Oviedo, Asturias, 26 September 1764) was a Spanish neoclassical monk and scholar noted for encouraging scientific thought in Galicia and others places in Spain.

He joined the Benedictines at the age of 12, and had taken classes in Galicia, León, and Salamanca. He later taught theology and philosophy at the University of Oviedo, where he earned a professorship in theology. Feijóo was a prominent essayist for the Spanish, and his critiques, letters, and plays helped change the steadfast beliefs of many during the 18th century.

His two famous multi-volume collection of essays, Teatro critico universal (1726-1739) and Cartas eruditas y curiosas cover a range of subjects, from education, law, and medicine, to superstitions and popular beliefs. He is also of interest as a writer in the Galician language. He also wrote what is considered to be one of the first pieces of feminist literature in his essay entitled "Defensa de las mujeres". In which, he discusses the lack of reason and/or evidence, a huge focus of the Enlightenment, in the attitudes towards women during that era in Spain.

Statue of Feijóo where he lived in Oviedo
Statue of Feijóo where he lived in Oviedo

Father Feijóo was a debunker of myths. He had great interest in natural science and many of his essays touch on topics related to this subject and to the many myths about creatures and lands that abounded at that time. One example of how far his naturalistic bent went can be found in a story told by Julio A. Feijóo, one of his descendents, born in Cuba in 1910. Father Feijóo believed that demonic possession was a psychological phenomenon. Once he was called upon to perform an exorcism, and in order to demonstrate that this phenomenon was more due to suggestibility than anything else, in performing a spurious exorcism on the "possessed" subject, he read from Bocaccio's famous bawdy work the Decameron. Upon hearing the Latin lines, the "possessed" individual settled down and declared himself to be free of demonic influence.[citation needed]


Persondata
NAME Feijóo y Montenegro, Benito Jerónimo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Feijoo y Montenegro, Benito Jerónimo
SHORT DESCRIPTION Monk, scholar, essayist
DATE OF BIRTH October 8, 1676
PLACE OF BIRTH Casdemiro, Ourense
DATE OF DEATH September 26, 1764
PLACE OF DEATH Oviedo
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