Mort de dama
Mort de dama (in Catalan: "Death of a lady") is the first novel of the Majorcan writer Llorenç Villalonga written in 1931. It is considered one of the first modern novels written in Catalan language from the Balearic Islands. It's a psychological and satirical novel, in which the author carries out a criticism of almost all social estates of that time, except for the Church. At that point, his criticism caused a great controversy among the readers, who made a negative review of the book. Villalonga himself dedicated it to «all those who do not get  angry». Language. At the very beginning, one of the doubts that arise from reading the work is why the author chose the Catalan language instead of an other, like French or Spanish. Although Villalonga mocked those who used it and didn't have a great faith in the future of the language, it is worth noting that, before writing this novel, he had already written several works in Catalan. A possible answer to this question could be that he might have wanted to give the work more plasticity, in other words, he wanted to face the Majorcan society more easily . Characters. The characters receive a caricaturesque treatment that styles them turning them into grotesque figures. The most characteristic of them is the woman Obdúlia, who is presented by means of a magnificent parody of herself and of the Majorcan aristocracy that she symbolizes. Nevertheless, the novelist can not hide an admiration movement towards the strong personality of the lady, that places her over the stupidity of the marquess of Collera and over the meanness of Remei Huguet or Mrs. Gradolí, or even the astonishingly elegant Maria Antònia de Bearn. Who inspired this character was Rosa Ribera Carbonell, an aunt of  Villalonga who often came to the writer's parents home, and the rarities of whom annoyed the family. Editions. Its first edition appeared in 1931, with a preface by Gabriel Alomar and signed as "Dhey", the pseudonym that the author usually used when he signed article in the Majorcan press. This edition was immediately followed by the second. Important and numerous are the chapter that have been added to the original edition, as well as the modifications of the content. In the Spanish translation, by the author, published in the monthly magazine "Brisas", that Villalonga directed and where he wrote  to some extent, from the number XVIII (October 1935) to XXV (May 1936), the current tenth chapter was added «"Ravings of woman Obdúlia"». The 3rd Catalan edition incorporated chapter III «"Thirty years ago"». The 2nd Spanish edition, by J. Vidal Alcover, published in the magazine "Papeles de Son Armadans", volume IV, numbers 10 to 12 (from January to March) and volume V number 13 (April) of 1957, included for the first time chapter II «"The first moments"», chapter X «"That 20th of January"», chapter XIX «"That's how history is written"» and chapter XXIII «At Carme Street». Finally, the 4th  Catalan edition (1965) and the complete works edition of 1963 premiered chapter XVIII, «Aina Cohen visits woman Obdúlia». All in all, from the first to the last edition, the work increases in seven the number of chapters. Structure. The novel presents a vermicular structure and contains an introduction and 25 chapters, 18 of which are found in the original edition and the other 7 were added in ulterior editions. Some of them present flashbacks that bring face to face two phases of woman Obdulia's life. The chapters are the following: Reception. The publication of the Villalonga's novel did n't go unnoticed for most Majorcan society. The work received hard reviews due to its sarcastic tone it had with them. From left to right, conservatives and progressives, those for and against the Catalan people and culture, they all hardly and viciously criticised the work by Villalonga. Even so, it seems that nobility, although it was mocked as well, it stayed impassive, maybe because they didn't read it or didn't hear about it. An example of this negative reviews was the one done by members of the Escola Mallorquina, although it might be a bit contradictory. Despite these  authors wanting there to be a Majorcan novel in Catalan to promote, they did not accept "Mort de dama" as so, and they refused it for the virulent way it despised people. Among the several review that Villalonga received, the one by the writer Miquel Ferrà i Juan in an article in "El Día" stands out. Ferrà talks very negatively about both the characters and the dialogues and also about the irony used in the text, as well as the language and the model of serpentine realism. He even advises him to quit the culture of letters. Nevertheless, intellectuals like  Gabriel Alomar, Joaquim Verdaguer and Màrius Verdaguer had a positive impression on the work. In Catalonia, the work went almost unnoticed.