Baldomero Lillo was a Chilean writer who studied nature. He was born on January 6, 1867, in Lota, Chile, and died on September 10, 1923, in San Bernardo, Chile. His writings focused on discussing problems in society.

Early life

Lillo's father went to California in 1848 to join the Gold Rush. He learned how to mine but returned without a lot of money. Later, he moved to Lota, Chile, to work in coal mines. Baldomero Lillo lived in these mining communities and also worked in the mines.

Career

During this time, he read the works of French author Émile Zola. Zola used ideas from Positivism and a writing style called Naturalism to address problems in French coal mines. Lillo noticed similar problems in Chilean mines. He decided to help workers by writing about their difficult lives. He wrote many short stories, which were later collected in books called Sub Sole and Sub Terra. These stories caught the attention of people who wanted to improve society.