Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Language

Understanding Pablo Neruda's 'Walking Around'

The poem "Walking Around" is part of the poetry collection Residencia en la Tierra (Residence on Earth), which belongs to the second cycle of Pablo Neruda's poetic output, spanning the years 1931 to 1935. This period delves into the poet's inner world.

During this phase of literary production, Neruda, influenced by Surrealism, developed a vision of a culturally disintegrated and painful world. The poet, in this context, delves into the unconscious.

Residencia en la Tierra is a product of the loneliness and isolation Neruda experienced during his stay in the East as a diplomat. This was a profoundly painful chapter in his life, which Neruda himself called a "season in hell."

The perspective in this work... Continue reading "Pablo Neruda's 'Walking Around': Poetic Insights and Themes" »

Language and Dialect

Language: The fundamental instrument of social communication among members of a particular linguistic community, it serves as the hallmark of this community.

Dialect: Each of the language modalities present in different regions within its domain.

Horizontal Bilingualism: The balance of two or more languages in similar or comparable social situations, where both hold the same social and cultural prestige.

Diglossia: The imbalance between two or more languages where one enjoys greater social prestige and effectively dominates the other with which it coexists.

Cohesion in Language

Cohesion: A necessary condition for coherence. Cohesion is studied in spoken and written language. Methods of achieving cohesion include:

• Lexical Recurrence:

Factors of Communication

• Issuer: The individual encoding and sending the message.
• Receiver: The individual receiving and decoding the message.
• Message: The content communicated.
• Code: The language used to deliver the message.
• Reference Context: The subject or theme of the message.
• Channel: The medium of communication.

Functions of Communication

• Expressive/Emotional: Focuses on the issuer's feelings (e.g., "I love you").
• Appeals/Conative: Aims to elicit a response from the receiver (e.g., "Sir, you are a buyer").
• Referential/Representative: Focuses on the context (e.g., "Winter rains and cold").
• Poetic: Emphasizes the style of the message (e.g., "Your eyes captivate me").
• Metalinguistic: Focuses on the language itself (e.g., "Antepenultimate accents").
• Phatic:

Lyric Poetry

Lyric poetry is the manifestation of the inner world of the author, making it subjective and personal, but not necessarily individualistic. Typically, the author is inspired to write by external objects or events. Key features of lyric poetry include its brevity and the flexibility or variety it presents. It communicates a representation of the self, which is a reflection of reality. This is evident in each author's syntax, keywords, topics, and method of exposition.

Expression of the Self

The self is expressed through grammatical elements such as the first person, demonstratives, and adverbs of place and time. The representative function is predominant in the poetic work. The appellate function also appears, bringing with it the... Continue reading "Lyric Poetry: Characteristics and Subgenres" »

ITEM 7: Reading Comprehension

Why Develop Reading Skills?

Reading is one of the most important learnings provided by schooling. It is a powerful tool for learning in any discipline. Moreover, acquiring reading and writing skills involves developing higher cognitive abilities such as reflection, critical thinking, and awareness. Those who learn to read efficiently and consistently develop their thinking. Ultimately, reading becomes a landmark for school learning and intellectual growth.

Despite the importance of reading, many people still cannot read or write. There is much illiteracy and functional illiteracy. The latest data on functional illiteracy is alarming. It predicts an increase in people who, despite having learned to read and write,... Continue reading "Enhancing Reading Comprehension: Skills and Strategies" »

Spanish Literature After the Civil War

The period between 1939 and 1975 can be divided into three stages:

• First Decade: Very little literature, writers divided among addicts and non-conforming schemes.
• Second Decade: Social realism reflecting the dramatic circumstances in the country. Literature is committed and combative, aiming to transform society.
• From 1960 Onward: Social realism wanes, writers seek new ways and approaches for the renewal of literary language.

The Novel Since 1939: Post-Civil War

The Existential Novel (1940s)

A social disruption caused by the civil war and the disorientation caused by the war logic is added to the cultural and intellectual isolation by the rigorous censorship of the Franco regime. While there's narrative theme... Continue reading "Spanish Literature: Post-Civil War Novel Trends" »

Classes of Common Nouns

Common nouns can be classified in several ways:

• City (Proper Nouns, capitalized)
• Antonio (Proper Nouns, capitalized)
• Printer (Concrete)
• Love (Abstract)
• Coxes (Proper Nouns, capitalized)
• Salt (Uncountable)
• Lioness (Animate)
• Plum (Inanimate)
• Book (Individual)
• Army (Group)

Determiners

Determiners are words that accompany a noun, introducing or restricting its meaning. Examples include:

• Definite article (the)
• Indefinite article (a, an)
• Demonstratives (this, that, etc.)
• Possessive adjectives (my, our, your, etc.)
• Numerals:
  • Cardinal (one, two, three)
  • Ordinal (first, second)
  • Fractional (half)
  • Multiplicative (double, triple)
  • Distributive (each, every)
• Quantifiers (each, any, little)
• Interrogative/Exclamative (which, what)

Sentences

From a semantic point... Continue reading "Noun Classes, Determiners, Sentences, and Concordance" »

Machado's Life and Inspiration in Soria

Antonio Machado lived in Soria from 1907 to 1912. He became a cantor of Castile: its landscape, its people, its beauty, and its miseries. In Soria, he met Leonor Izquierdo, whom he married in 1909. However, their happiness was brief, as his wife died in 1912 of tuberculosis. These circumstances should be taken into account for the commentary of this poem, which was written in the spring of 1912 when Machado knew Leonor's disease was hopeless.

Symbolism and the Elm Tree

The starting point is a specific detail of the reality of Soria: the contemplation of an elm, attacked by graphiosis, with an unexpected rebound of spring. This physical reality charged a deep symbolic value for the poet. Remember his roots... Continue reading "Antonio Machado's Ode to an Elm Tree in Soria: A Symbol of Hope" »

Literary Language

Literary language is used by writers in their works to create a new reality, a fantasy world, through verbal language, which is also used in everyday communication. While other arts, like music or painting, have their own languages.

Linguistic Forms

Normally, the register of literary text is educated, caring, and sometimes very complex and elaborate, especially in poetry. The special use of language is due to its peculiar communicative situation: literary communication is unilateral to an unknown reader or listener, is conditioned by the social value of literary tradition (genres, techniques, styles, etc.), from which the writer cannot escape, and their goal is aesthetic.

Although, as stated above, it is difficult to define the... Continue reading "Literary Language: Linguistic Forms and Rhetorical Figures" »

Tristana by Benito Pérez Galdós: Historical and Literary Context

The 19th-century work, Tristana, by Benito Pérez Galdós, was written in 1892. This period was characterized by the contrast between political stability, with the alternating power between conservatives and liberals, and the growing threat to the bourgeoisie's privileged position posed by developing labor movements.

In the literary context, Tristana, a realist novel, is marked by a spiritualistic naturalism. It features an introspective approach to the characters and a concern for their spiritual conflicts. The novel emphasizes the idealism of the characters, and the description of reality becomes less important.

Key Aspects of *Tristana*

The most striking aspect of the work is... Continue reading "Tristana & Luces de Bohemia: 19th & 20th Century Spanish Literature" »