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

Antonio Machado

Early Life and Education

Antonio Machado was born in Seville in 1875. He came from a learned, liberal family that moved to Madrid in 1883. He studied at the Free Institution of Education. His secular, progressive, and tolerant spirit forever marked his character. In 1907, he obtained a full professorship of French at the Institute of Soria, and there he met Leonor Izquierdo, whom he married in 1909. In 1911, he traveled to Paris and attended philosophy classes by the admired Henri Bergson. When his wife fell ill, he returned to Soria. She died in 1912, and he moved to Baeza, deeply hurt.

Career and Relationships

He continued to publish poetry, studied philosophy, and developed a radical political consciousness in contact with the... Continue reading "Antonio Machado: Life and Poetic Works" »

The Voyages of Christopher Columbus

First Voyage (1492-1493)

On his first voyage, Columbus departed from Palos de la Frontera with two caravels, the Pinta and the Niña, and the nao Santa Maria. After calling at La Gomera, ostensibly to repair a rudder while awaiting the trade winds that would facilitate navigation to the west, he set sail. After two months at sea and facing mutiny attempts from the crew, he reached land on October 12, 1492, which he named San Salvador. He skirted the islands of the Bahamas and visited Cuba and Haiti, which he christened La Española (Hispaniola). Off its coast, the Santa Maria ran aground, and its remnants were used to build Fort Navidad. Columbus befriended the natives and their chief. He returned to Spain... Continue reading "Christopher Columbus: The Four Voyages to the New World" »

Relative Pronouns in Latin

Singular and Plural Forms

Five Declensions Overview

Vocabulary Lists (Pages 16-21)

Page 16

• agmen, agminis (n.): column of troops
• confertus, -a, -um (adj.): tight, crowded
• confirmo, -as, -are (v.): to ratify, confirm
• expeditus, -a, -um (adj.): without baggage
• impetus, -ūs (m.): violence, attack
• implacabilis, -e (adj.): implacable, inexorable
• necessarius,

Cantar de Mio Cid

Cantar de Mio Cid is the most significant epic poem in Spanish literature and the only one that has survived almost in its entirety. It was written by two minstrels from Soria: the first focused on historical truth, while the second incorporated more romantic elements. The work is divided into three parts: the Cantar del Destierro (Exile), the Cantar de las Bodas (Weddings), and the Afrenta de Corpes (Affront of Corpes). It features irregular verses, predominantly Alexandrine, with assonant rhyme.

Mester de Clerecía

Emerging in the 13th century, the Mester de Clerecía represents a stream of cultured poetry. Key authors include Gonzalo de Berceo (Vida de Santo Domingo de Silos and Milagros de Nuestra Señora) and anonymous works... Continue reading "Key Works and Authors of Medieval Spanish Literature" »

The 17th Century in Spain: A Period of Transformation

Economic and Political Landscape

The 17th century in Spain, under the rule of the Austrias (Philip III, Philip IV, and Charles II), was a period marked by significant decline and continuous military conflicts with other European powers. Monarchs inherited a country teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. By the end of the century, Spain had lost its hegemony and experienced population stagnation.

Economically, Spain was predominantly rural (approximately 80%). The largely illiterate peasant population faced widespread disappointment and discontent. A powerful and dominant noble class further exacerbated social inequalities. The era was also plagued by devastating epidemics, including the plague,... Continue reading "Spanish Golden Age: 17th Century Society, Art, and Literature" »

La Llegada a Barcelona y la Inseguridad

Andra nos cuenta que, a su llegada a la calle Aribau (Barcelona), donde se hospeda en la casa, todo es publicado en sus boletines. Se nota un parque extraño. Recibe la lacasa de la abuela. Nadie la confunde con Gloria, y sus tallos dicen "no". Comienzan a aparecer los ángeles y tíos de la buena Andrea. Juan se hace cargo de la situación en Gloria, con la criada yendo con vestimentas negras y un perro negro, y Angustias la recibe con desprecio.

Una cansada Andra acepta las comodidades que le ofrece la criada (viajes en lanzadera a su habitación), toma una ducha donde se da cuenta de que la casa ya le inspira inseguridad.

Al amanecer, Andra mantenía esa sensación de inseguridad que la había impregnado... Continue reading "La Llegada de Andrea: Conflicto y Juventud en la Calle Aribau" »

Spanish theater faced significant restrictions due to the new socio-political situation following the Civil War. Many intellectuals went into exile, and a rigid censorship was established on all performances, though it softened over time. The rise of cinema, and later television, drew the public, primarily the bourgeoisie, away from the theaters, leading to what is often referred to as the 'crisis of theater'.

The 1940s and Early 1950s

The initial years following the Civil War were characterized by low literary production. Writers largely kept themselves apart from overt political and ideological influence, focusing instead on human themes. Three main currents emerged:

• Bourgeois Comedy: These plays featured elaborate theatrical constructions,

Spanish Romanticism and Costumbrismo

Key Authors and Works

• Ramón de Mesonero Romanos: Known for costumbrista works like Escenas Matritenses.
• José de Larra: Famous for his critical "Articles" ("Artículos"), including El castellano viejo and Vuelva usted mañana.
• Serafín Estébanez Calderón: Wrote Escenas Andaluzas.

Early European Influences

Spanish Romanticism was influenced by European figures such as Chateaubriand, Henry Fielding, Daniel Defoe, and Sir Walter Scott. Lyrical influences include Lord Byron, while Victor Hugo impacted theater, and Alexandre Dumas influenced novels with works like The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers.

Notable Romantic Writers

• José de Larra: Also noted for his youthful contributions.
• Enrique Gil y Carrasco:

Romantic Theater

Romanticism pretended to be a drama that could shake the audience. People are represented by protagonists with a hovering mystery.

Characteristics

• The focus is usually love.
• The outcome combines the tragic and the comical, verse and prose.
• Use of measured action.
• The action transpires in different places and scenarios, and temporal skips can occur.
• Secondary actions.

The Student of Salamanca

Félix de Montemar, a Don Juan, seduces and abandons Elvira, provoking her death. Following a mysterious woman, Félix contemplates his own funeral and is brought to the "somber mansion". There, he discovers the lady is but the skeleton of Elvira, with whom Montemar marries before dying.

José de Espronceda

(1808-1842) was born in Almendralejo (Badajoz)... Continue reading "Romanticism in Spanish Literature: Authors and Works" »

Cervantes' Don Quixote: Social Documentary and Literary Synthesis

The work is a dense social documentary of its era. In it appear real places, characters, historical events, and all kinds of social groups like pastoralists, bandits, and priests. The characters of the protagonists, Don Quixote and Sancho, evolve along the work. Through dialogue, each one acquires features: Don Quixote (the idealistic, crazy one) ends up being more realistic and disillusioned, while Sancho loses much of his rusticity.

Literarily, Don Quixote is a very attractive novel. It constitutes a synthesis of all previous literature: pastoral novel, novel of love, Moorish novel, and maintains the fiction of chivalric romance. Cervantes uses literature within literature: literary... Continue reading "Don Quixote's Structure and the Three Textual Modalities" »