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

Spanish Poetry: From the Fin de Siècle to the Post-War Era

The transition between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries was marked by the crisis of bourgeois consciousness. In Spain, this led to a generation of authors, often termed the "Generation of the Century," who expressed their rejection of the bourgeois world in two distinct ways:

The Fin de Siècle Literary Movements

• Modernism

  Produced an aestheticism that cultivated poetic themes and environments posing an escape from the bourgeois world. Influenced by Rubén Darío, poets in this current include F. Villaespesa and E. Marquina.

• The Generation of '98

  Much more focused on narrative and lyrical essay, this group addressed the problem of the regeneration of Spain and human existence from

In 1936, the Spanish Civil War erupted, profoundly impacting poetic groups and dividing society. This division was starkly reflected in the poetry of the era, with poetic culture often serving as a propaganda weapon.

Poetry in Exile After the Spanish Civil War

Many poets were forced into exile. Key figures and groups include:

• Poets of the Generation of '14: Notably Juan Ramón Jiménez.
• Poets of the Generation of '27: Including figures like Federico García Lorca (though his fate was tragic within Spain, many others from this generation went into exile).
• Poets whose work had barely begun:
  • Juan Gil-Albert: He managed to reconcile an initial serene and reflective poetry with moral-civic engagement.
  • Arturo Serrano Plaja: His work cries out against human

Chronicle of a Death Foretold: A Study of Honor and Revenge

The Presumed Guilt of Santiago Nasar

The novel's first paragraph introduces the presumed guilt of Santiago Nasar. Despite indications of his innocence, the narrative initially presents him as disgraced. Angela Vicario's statement, though protecting another, fuels this perception. Her declaration, "It was him," seemingly resolves the matter, yet leaves lingering doubt. This section also introduces the conservative moral conventions of women like Flora Miguel (Nasar's girlfriend) and contrasts them with the "stormy" Maria Alejandra Cervantes, a prostitute. Good women, like Angela and her mother, are raised to be subservient wives, accepting suffering to maintain order.

Angela's Recalled

Postwar Spanish Literature 1940s–1970s

Historical context

This stage was marked by the outcome of the Civil War. Those who remained in Spain faced reconstruction work, while a large part had to go into exile. The decade of the 1940s reflected the harsh conditions of the postwar period and the consequences of World War II (Spain remained neutral).

In the 1950s there was increasing international pressure and actions against the ex-regime; the country slowly evolved. The 1960s were a phase of expansion with foreign investment, tourism and migration of surplus labor. The 1970s signaled the end of an era with the death of the postwar dictator, Francisco Franco, which closed the strictly postwar period.

Literary context and censorship

This situation... Continue reading "Postwar Spanish Literature: Key Authors and Works (1940s–1970s)" »

Originally, literature was always in verse, as this facilitated singing and recitation, which were essential to spread works orally among an illiterate public. Verse, therefore, dominated the Middle Ages, encompassing both lyric and narrative poetry, although the latter would soon make use of prose.

Lyric Poetry in the Middle Ages

For most of the medieval period, written culture was cultivated by the clergy, and only in Latin. The common people, however, sang songs of celebration, love, or work in the new European vernacular languages. Most of this traditional, anonymous poetry has been lost, although some remains have survived, mainly in the Iberian Peninsula ( see t3 ).

Provençal Troubadour Poetry

In the early twelfth century, the first school... Continue reading "Medieval Literature: Troubadours, Courtly Love, and Chivalric Romance" »

Rafael Alberti: A Life in Poetry

Rafael Alberti (born in Puerto de Santa María, Spain, 1902) was a prominent Spanish poet. He studied at the Jesuit school in his hometown but was expelled for insubordination. In 1917, he moved with his family to Madrid, where he initially pursued painting while also developing an interest in Spanish Romantic and Modernist poets. However, his literary vocation soon took precedence. In 1925, he published Marinero en tierra, a collection of poems that earned him the National Prize for Literature, shared with Gerardo Diego. He followed this with other works inspired by Andalusian folklore and the poetry of *cancioneros* (songbooks).

The commemoration of the 300th anniversary of Góngora's death, a significant event... Continue reading "Rafael Alberti and Vicente Aleixandre: Spanish Poets" »

Key Characteristics of Spanish Golden Age Literature

Features of the Book of Good Love (*Libro de buen amor*)

The book highlights aspects of character and popular minstrelsy. Features of the style include lively and popular speech, a variety of expressive resources, and realism. Specific characteristics include:

• Metric irregularities.
• Personality reflecting the harsh mountain people.
• The casualness and the comic elements.

Themes and Topics in Jorge Manrique's Verses

The overriding theme of Jorge Manrique's elegy, *Coplas por la muerte de su padre*, is a compliment to his father of the Order of Santiago. Manrique expresses a series of reflections on life, death, and the transience of worldly things, utilizing several key medieval and Christian topics:... Continue reading "Spanish Golden Age Literary Analysis: Themes and Features" »

The Generation of '27: A Spanish Literary Movement

The Generation of '27 was a constellation of writers who emerged in the Spanish cultural scene around 1927, which marks the tercentenary of the death of the baroque poet Luis de Góngora. Building on this date, Culteranismo poets asserted the author's honor, tarnished by 19th-century criticism. They celebrated Góngora at the Ateneo de Sevilla.

His aesthetic attempted to find common elements between classical and popular literary tradition and the aesthetic avant-garde, both Spanish and European. It evolved from pure poetry, the avant-garde dehumanized (Futurism, Cubism, Ultraism, Creationism), and the frigid metaphor of Góngora, to human engagement involving the disclosure of surrealism and... Continue reading "Generation of '27: Spanish Literary Movement & Poets" »

The Novel and Tale of 20th Century Hispanic Literature

1. Narrative Until the 1940s

This period focused on three main thematic areas:

• Nature and Human Dominion: The attempt by man to dominate nature, often overwhelmed by its grandeur and diversity. Key authors include José Eustasio Rivera, Ricardo Güiraldes, and Rómulo Gallegos.
• Socio-Political Issues: Problems arising from the social circumstances and dictatorships experienced in certain countries. Notable figures are Mariano Azuela and Martín Luis Guzmán. The most famous indigenous novel from this time was Huasipungo by Jorge Icaza.

2. Narrative of the 1940s and 1950s

Narrative work was enriched during this period, overcoming realism through the influence of avant-garde literature and embracing... Continue reading "20th Century Hispanic Narrative: Key Authors and Movements" »

Novecentismo: The Generation of 14 in Spain

The Generation of 14, also known as Novecentismo, was a significant European intellectual movement characterized by a cosmopolitan trend, unifying fashion, music, and social forms across Europe. Its members possessed a solid intellectual formation, seeking beauty through intelligence. This generation was renowned for its academic rigor, proficiency in foreign languages, linguistic richness, and the musicality of its prose. While genres such as drama, poetry, and the novel were cultivated, the essay particularly excelled, championed by figures like José Ortega y Gasset.

Key Figures of Novecentismo

José Ortega y Gasset (1883-1955)

Ortega y Gasset, a prominent philosopher and essayist, authored influential... Continue reading "The Generation of 14 and Early 20th Century Avant-garde in Spain" »