The Dignity of the Modest: Albert Camus and José Saramago

This work has as a point of departure in two coincidences: Albert Camus and José Saramago come from a modest family and both achieve the Nobel Prize in Literature. A few years later they write The First Man and Small Memories, so that we know where they are coming from and how their personalities have been shaped. An autobiographical mark in both texts shows their subjective memory through a few images that give a sense of their authors’ existence. My purpose is to look into these images in order to have a better understanding of their work. Additionally, I will show that the selection of these essential images has the intention of representing the life and destiny of modest people that through writing are elevated to greater dignity. I expose both writers with their common elements and try to follow an expository style allowing their words to illuminate each other.