The Nivola

Unamuno coined the term "nivola" to describe his own style of fiction writing. Unamuno considered a nivola to be a work of fiction in which the setting and events of the plot are less important than the ideas expressed by the characters. "Saint Emmanuel the Good, Martyr" is an example of Unamuno's concept of the nivola. In this story, the fictional characters are portrayed primarily in terms of their spiritual struggles, with most other character traits and life events left out of the story. Unamuno thereby foregrounds the story's central theme of religious and philosophical questioning, and the characters in the story are only developed insofar as they express specific ideas about religious faith and doubt.

Narrative Voice and Confessional Fiction

"Saint Emmanuel the Good, Martyr" is written in the first person narrative voice, meaning that the story is told exclusively from the perspective of one character...