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

Hispanic American Fiction: Magical Realism

The 1940s saw a focus on the unique American experience through an aesthetic blending realism and fantasy. This approach, known as magical realism, sought to capture the essence of the American world. It was a literary movement that renovated existing aesthetics tied to the European avant-garde, but with a distinct aim: to reflect American reality. In magical realism, the extraordinary is presented as ordinary, and the most fantastical events are grounded in everyday life.

This new reality is characterized by Hispanic stylistic innovation and a desire to unravel the American peculiarity through a synthesis of reality and fantasy. New themes emerged, including nature, the indigenous world, political issues,... Continue reading "Magical Realism in Hispanic American Fiction: Themes and Techniques" »

Spanish Poetry in Exile: Voices of the Generation of '27

The Spanish Civil War and subsequent dictatorship led to the exile of many intellectuals and artists. Among them were prominent poets of the Generation of '27. With the notable exceptions of Gerardo Diego, Dámaso Alonso, and Vicente Aleixandre, many key figures wrote and published outside Spain, including Pedro Salinas, Luis Cernuda, Jorge Guillén, Rafael Alberti, Manuel Altolaguirre, and Emilio Prados. Juan Ramón Jiménez, also in exile, continued to produce his final works.

These exiled poets followed diverse paths, yet their productions were universally outstanding. Initially, their work was often filled with anguish, frequently addressing the theme of Spain. These authors continued... Continue reading "Exiled Voices and 1940s Currents in Spanish Poetry" »

Modernism: A Literary Movement

Modernism is a literary movement that champions art for art's sake, whose primary purpose is to celebrate beauty and evoke emotion in the reader. It is particularly evident in poetry.

Directions of Modernism

• Escapist: Characterized by legendary and exotic imagery.
• Intimate: Expresses lively, sad, and anxious moods.

Key Themes in Modernism

• Romantic Distress: Modernism shares significant affinities with the Romantic mood, including similar discomfort, rejection of a vulgar society, rootlessness, and loneliness.
• Escapism: Fleeing the world through dreaming, escape into space, and escape in time.
• Cosmopolitanism: An aspect of the need to escape; anywhere in the world can be considered a homeland.
• Love: Appears delicate, encompassing

The Latin Alphabet: Origins

The Latin alphabet is a variant of the Etruscan Greek alphabet. It is used today by almost everyone. It has 23 letters: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, X, Y, Z.

The Disappearance of Spoken Latin

For centuries, Latin was the language spoken in most parts of Europe. It became increasingly differentiated into a cultured form and a common form. The common form evolved to give rise to Romance languages.

During the Middle Ages, Vulgar Latin became the language of communication between people, while cultured Latin was restricted to the Church and the courts of the Carolingian Renaissance. During the 8th to 11th centuries, Charlemagne favored the preservation of the cultural legacy, used in all centers... Continue reading "Latin Alphabet and Romance Languages: Origins and History" »

Miguel de Cervantes: A Literary Life

Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was born in Alcalá de Henares in 1547. He lived a somewhat unstable childhood and early life. He studied in Madrid with a humanist teacher, López de Hoyos, but did not complete university studies.

Captivity and Struggles

In 1575, while returning to Spain by boat, he was kidnapped by Turkish pirates and taken to Algiers. He spent five years in captivity there, despite several attempted escapes. Later, a request for a vacancy was denied, possibly due to his converso (Jewish convert) origin.

He managed to find work as a tax collector, a job that often required him to travel. However, he ended up in jail due to the failure of the bank where he had deposited the collected funds. Afterward,... Continue reading "Miguel de Cervantes: Life, Legacy, and Don Quixote's Enduring Impact" »

Spanish Modernism

Modernism began in the late nineteenth century, originating in Latin America. Key figures who created and spread this movement include José Martí and Rubén Darío.

The most important characteristics of Modernism include:

• An aesthetic focus, always seeking beauty above all else.
• A desire to escape reality, often setting works in remote locations, both spatially and temporally.
• Frequent expression of feelings like boredom, apathy, and melancholy.
• Common use of symbolic elements.

The Generation of '98

The Generation of '98 refers to a group of authors born in the late nineteenth century whose texts addressed two main themes: the decline of Spain and existential angst. The texts of the Generation of '98 show a strong influence from... Continue reading "Authors and Themes of Spanish Modernism & Gen '98" »

First Stage

His operas are characterized by a search for his own poetic language and the conservative influence of Ramón Sijé. Perito en Lunas and El Rayo que no Cesa. The first work is 40 stanzas of influence and vanguard. The Gongorine author has to poetry as an equal to the mystical experience in which the hermetic is essential. Incorporated in the genre of poetry riddles and proposes riddles. In El Rayo que no Cesa, a previous text to poems, the underlying theme is a love that cannot be complete because moral standards prevent access to his beloved. Erotic passion, the lightning symbol conveys the passionate fire in which the lover is consumed, while the wound suggests that this conception of love causes him torture. It arouses ideas of... Continue reading "Miguel Hernández: A Journey Through His Poetic Stages" »

Spanish Poets: Lorca, Alberti, and Hernández

This document examines the lives, works, and styles of three significant Spanish poets: Federico Garcia Lorca, Rafael Alberti, and Miguel Hernández.

Federico Garcia Lorca (1898-1936)

Lorca's work can be divided into three stages:

1. Early Stage: Characterized by intimate realism, difficult metaphors, and symbolism. Themes include passion, land, love's destruction, and shadows of paradise.
2. Post-Civil War: His writing becomes more humanistic and accessible.
3. Later Stage: A return to introspection and surrealist style, considered his most significant contribution to Spanish surrealism.

Lorca was born in Granada and tragically killed during the Spanish Civil War. His trip to New York exposed him to surrealism.... Continue reading "Spanish Poets: Lorca, Alberti, and Hernández - Life, Works, and Styles" »

San Juan de la Cruz: Mystic Poet of Spain

Biography and Spiritual Journey

San Juan de la Cruz, born in Ávila in 1542, stands alongside Santa Teresa de Jesús as a paramount figure in Spanish mystical literature. Juan, later canonized as San Juan de la Cruz, joined the Carmelite order and studied in Salamanca. He then pursued his studies with great activity and determination, becoming a reformer. For this, he was imprisoned in Toledo in 1577, where he suffered beatings and fell into a state of weakness, almost illness, due to fasting and penances. He escaped from jail and took refuge in a monastery. The rest of his life was spent in Andalusia, dedicated to social life.

Literary Output and Themes

His writing is totally detached from the real world.... Continue reading "San Juan de la Cruz: Spanish Mysticism and Poetic Legacy" »