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

Miguel de Cervantes: Life and Works

Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (1547-1616) was born in Alcalá de Henares and died in Madrid. His life was marked by adventure and hardship. In 1570, he traveled to Italy, where he was deeply influenced by the art, literature, and culture. He served as a soldier, fighting against the Turks at the Battle of Lepanto (1571), where he sustained a severe injury to his left hand. On his return to Spain, he was captured by Turkish pirates and spent five years as a prisoner in Algiers. After being rescued by Trinitarian Fathers, he returned to Madrid and began writing plays to alleviate his financial struggles.

Cervantes lived in various locations, working as a tax collector, and faced imprisonment due to irregularities... Continue reading "Cervantes: Life, Works, and Don Quixote" »

Federico García Lorca

Gypsy Ballads: Romance of the Black Sorrow

This poem from Gypsy Ballads (Romancero Gitano), specifically the "Romance de la Pena Negra" (Ballad of the Black Sorrow), features the Gypsy protagonist Soledad Montoya. At dawn, she searches for love, freedom, and joy, yet seems only to know grief and mourning. Soledad Montoya symbolizes the sorrow and marginalization of the Roma people. The narrator's voice speaks of loneliness, acting as a companion to Soledad. The poem employs various literary devices:

• Metaphors: e.g., "the spurs of the roosters dig / searching for the dawn" (las espuelas de los gallos / cavan buscando la aurora) refers to the rooster's crow signalling dawn.
• Symbols: e.g., the horse often represents passion

Poets at the Turn of the 1960s to 1970s

The poets at the turn of the 1960s to 1970s adopted a more intimate, individualistic, and dualistic stance. They were more concerned with personal freedom and their own destiny. The end of Francoism, the creation of publishing houses, new literary prizes, the relaxation of censorship, and the recognition of linguistic rights facilitated the work of poets of the 1970s. This period involved social and cultural consequences suffered from the war, experiencing the culture of mass media and the youth of the 1960s, and revolting in the street fight against Francoism. They also had more information about European culture.

Characteristics

• Break with realism
• Culturalism
• Ideological and moral transgression
• Return to

Modernism in Visual Arts and Literature

Modernism is a movement that significantly impacted the visual arts (painting, sculpture, decoration, and architecture) and literature. Nicaraguan writer Rubén Darío (1867-1916) marked an important milestone in 20th-century Castilian poetry. His collection of short stories and poems, titled Blue (1888), initiated his modernist path under the influence of French poetry. This new aesthetic is emphasized in his verses in Profane Prose (1896), which features exotic, elegant, and sensual expression, colorful language, and rhythmic verse. Songs of Life and Hope (1905), his masterpiece, includes poems of great brilliance and a marked formal pace. However, it is more guarded in book form and more intimate and... Continue reading "Modernism in Visual Arts and Literature: Key Figures" »

Miguel de Unamuno

Miguel de Unamuno was born in Bilbao in 1864.

Work

Unamuno's work spans culture, poetry, plays, novels, and essays. His writings maintain continuity through the repetition of certain themes and a personal style.

Topics

• Early works reveal a juvenile stage dominated by concerns about regeneration and evolution.
• Later works transition toward existential and religious themes, reflecting maturity.

Style

His style is characterized by expressiveness, passion, vividness, and directness, often incorporating exclamations.

Theater

Unamuno's philosophical theater recalls classical tragedy. It directly addresses the existential issues that obsessed him.

Lyric Poetry

Two broad themes dominate his poetry:

• His reaction to scenery
• His existential and religious

Ramón Gómez de la Serna: Spanish Avant-Garde Pioneer

Ramón Gómez de la Serna was a main introducer of the avant-garde (vanguardia) in Spain, starting at only 20 years old. He founded the Prometheus magazine, where he defended new European trends. He created a body of work that broke with conventions due to its originality.

Characteristics and Ramonismo

As a major literary figure, Gómez de la Serna helped shape his own movement, Ramonismo. This way of understanding literature is conceived as a phenomenon transcending genres. Its key features include:

• Fragmentary vision
• Objectification and dehumanization
• Unusual associations
• Humor

Major Works

• Theatre: Seres y medios (approximate title based on original text 'beings means')
• Novel: El novelista
• Ramón:

Avant-Garde Narrative: An Introduction

Vanguard Narrative: In the early decades of the twentieth century, avant-garde movements exerted great influence on narrative. From a refreshing perspective, the novel sought to break with traditional approaches and explore new forms.

Key Features of Avant-Garde Narrative

• Urban Environments: Avant-garde narratives reflect the changes in rural and urban life. Cities are modernized, and their conflicts are explored.
• Prevalence of the Intelligentsia: The narrative often prioritizes the problems and perspectives of intellectual characters.
• Inner Worlds: Principal characters express their innermost thoughts and feelings, drawing the reader into their subjective experiences.
• Use of Imagination: Imagination becomes

San Juan de la Cruz (1542-1591)

San Juan de la Cruz undertook to reform the Carmelite order, aiming for monks to return to a more austere and contemplative lifestyle. His reform efforts led to his imprisonment.

Major Works

• Dark Night of the Soul
• Spiritual Canticle
• Living Flame of Love

Literary Style and Influence

His literary style was influenced by Italian metrics (like the lira) and biblical texts. He expressed the union of the soul with God as a loving relationship, where the soul (the beloved) seeks Christ (the Beloved). He utilized symbols drawn from nature, such as the night and fire.

Lasting Relevance

Centuries later, his work influenced the poetic current known as Symbolism, which recognized San Juan de la Cruz as an important forerunner.

Spanish