Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and exercises for Arts and Humanities for Secondary education

Romanticism

Romanticism was a reaction against Neoclassicism's emphasis on reason and rhetorical style. It prioritized emotional expression and explored themes of individualism, nature, and the sublime.

Principal Authors of Romanticism

• Lord Byron: Expressed rebellion and weariness.
• Goethe: Known for his novel The Sorrows of Young Werther.
• José de Espronceda: Composed long poems and songs.
• Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer: Author of Rhymes and Legends.
• Mariano José de Larra: Depicted Spanish situations.
• José Zorrilla: Wrote Don Juan Tenorio.

Romantic Poetry

Romantic poetry often employed rhetorical language and explored two main forms:

• Lyrical: Expressed personal sentiments and the poet's perspective, exemplified by José de Espronceda and Bécquer.
• Narrative:

Key Figures in Postwar Spanish Literature

• Miguel Delibes: With his first book, The Shade of the Cypress is Long. The rural life of the people of Castile, the mentality of the provincial middle classes, the world of children, and the lives of humble and marginalized people are the most frequent themes of his novels, alongside his deep concern for nature.
• Carmen Laforet: Nada. Her novel offers a portrait of the sordid and monotonous life of the postwar years in Barcelona through the experiences of the protagonist.

The Social Novel of the 1950s

The dominant current in the 1950s was social realism (or critical realism), characterized by the following features:

• The novel serves as a direct testimony of Spanish society, aiming to denounce social injustices

Core Functions of the Press

The functions of the press are to report and comment. The primary function is to inform readers in an objective and truthful manner. The secondary function is to comment on the present and thus help to form the opinion of the readers.

Common Publication Types

Publication types include weekly, daily, and monthly formats. The press is composed of newspapers that collect the latest news. Non-daily publications are often magazines, which can be published every week or every month. Examples of magazines include those focused on entertainment, cinema, music, and books.

Newspaper Organization and Design

In a newspaper, texts are distributed and arranged carefully in order to attract the reader's attention and facilitate the...

🟢 Section B: European Art

Realism, Impressionism and Post-Impressionism

During the mid to late nineteenth century, European art underwent a radical transformation. Artists began to reject traditional academic approaches that focused on idealized subjects, precise perspective, and polished techniques. Instead, they turned toward modern life, experimenting with composition, color, light, and subject matter. This shift is clearly visible in the work of Jean-François Millet, Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, and Vincent van Gogh.

🎨 Realism: Jean-François Millet

Realist artists rejected idealized historical and mythological subjects, choosing instead to depict the lives of ordinary people. Millet's parents were peasants who were part of a large, deeply...

Architecture

Quattrocento Architecture (15th Century)

Architecture in the Quattrocento sought harmonious spaces based on mathematical and geometrical principles.

Key architects of this period were:

• Brunelleschi, who designed the dome of Florence Cathedral.
• Alberti, who wrote several influential books on architecture.

Cinquecento Architecture (16th Century)

The most significant architectural works were built in Rome, largely due to papal patronage. Buildings became more monumental and strictly adhered to classical architectural orders.

• Bramante designed the most important building of the century: St. Peter's Basilica, and also the Tempietto of San Pietro in Montorio, both located in the Vatican.

Painting

Quattrocento Painting (15th Century)

Painters refined...

Theme 1: Culture, Identity, and Relationships

Vocabulary Related to Culture and Behavior

• Alike: appropriate, appropriateness, awkward, culture gap, fit in, foreign, language barrier, manners, misconception, narrow-minded, outlook, roots, rude, rudeness, sensitive, sense (n/v), sensitivity, straightforward, subtle, tend to, unheard of, value.
• Anxiety: anxious, attempt, come what may, fetch, heritage, inappropriate, insensitive, insensitivity, long for, lose touch with, overwhelming, resentful, stay behind, trembling, untouched.

Phrasal Verbs (TEMA 1)

• Call on, call off, carry out, dress up, dress down, make of, make for, show off, stand up for, stick to, go ahead, go over.
• Resent, resentment.

Fixed Expressions and Idioms

• Catch a cold = coger un resfriado
• Catch

Genres

Musical, Action, Romantic Comedy, Western, Science Fiction, Drama, Animation, Horror, Futuristic, Humorous

Adjectives

Others

Based on a novel: basada en una novela.

Based on a true story: basada en una historia real.

A hit: éxito de taquilla.

Cast: reparto  (de actores).

Costumes: vestuario.

Direct: dirigir.

Get rave reviews: conseguir críticas muy favorables.

Last: durar.

Main character: protagonista, personaje principal.

Nominate for an Oscar: nominar a un Óscar....

• The earliest preserved art object to date to the Paleolithic period, which occurred between 44000 and 9000 BCE.

• The inhabitants of ancient Sumer in Mesopotamia established the earliest city-states.

• Hierarchy of scale is used to indicate the greater importance of figures by either size or position.

• The Neolithic architecture in northern Europe is described as megalithic because it uses large stones.

• The two centuries of peace that began under the reign of the emperor Augustus are called the Pax Romana.

• Any sculpture that is completely detached from its original material so that it can be seen from all sides is called a sculpture in the round.

• Ancient Mesopotamia is situated in the so-called “fertile crescent” between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.

Futurism: The Art of Speed and Technology

Futurism (Italian: Futurismo) was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy in the early 20th century. It emphasized and glorified themes associated with contemporary concepts of the future, including:

• Speed
• Technology
• Youth
• Violence
• Industrial objects (cars, aeroplanes, and the industrial city)

While largely an Italian phenomenon, parallel movements emerged in Russia, England, and elsewhere.

Principles of Futurism

The Futurists practiced in every medium of art, including painting, sculpture, ceramics, graphic design, industrial design, interior design, urban design, theatre, film, fashion, textiles, literature, music, architecture, and even gastronomy. Key figures of the movement included Marinetti,...

Narrative Voice and Point of View

Elements of Narrative

• Narrator/Storyteller: The issuer of the story.
• Characters: Individuals within the narrative.
• Setting: Characteristic time and space.

Narrative Perspectives

• First-person protagonist: The narrator recounts what happens to them.
• First-person witness: The narrator recounts what happens to another character.
• Third-person witness: The narrator recounts what happens to others.
• Omniscient: The narrator knows more than the characters.

Types of Description

Descriptive Dynamics

• Dynamic descriptions: Provide an image of a moving object or process, recording each stage of its development.
• Static descriptions: Register an object or a state of stillness, aiming to present a stable image like a picture.

Descriptive