The Argentine poet José Hernández (1834-1886) was an active social force during the period of consolidation of the Argentine nation. He is best known for his classic gaucho epic, "Martín Fierro."

José Hernández was born on Nov. 10, 1834, on a ranch not far from Buenos Aires. His family was engaged in cattle raising, and various difficulties prevented him from obtaining any sort of formal education. Political events of the mid-19th century in Argentina--most directly the civil wars then being fought--dictated his being sent to live with relatives in Brazil. He eventually returned to Argentina and came to know and sympathize with the life and tribulations of the gauchos of the plains, who were frequently little more than pawns in the raging struggles for political dominance in the young nation.

By 1863 Hernández had settled in Buenos Aires and, after...