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Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

Born in Alcalá de Henares in 1547, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra lived an eventful youth. In Italy, he participated in the Battle of Lepanto (1571), where he was wounded in the arm during the battle against the Turks. Once back in Spain, he was captured by pirates and taken to Algiers, enduring five years of captivity.

Upon his final return to Spain, he could not continue his military career and held various jobs. His first major work, La Galatea, was written in 1585. Twenty years later, his most important work, El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha (The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha), was published in 1605. The second part followed in 1615. In 1616, he published his latest work, Los trabajos

Verb Periphrasis

The verbal periphrasis category is comprised of two forms of verbal play; conjointly, they are the core function of the verb phrase.

Function of the Non-Auxiliary Personal Verb

Classes: infinitive, gerund, participle periphrasis.

Classification Based on Meaning

• Temporals: Refer to the beginning, development, conclusion, or repetition of the action.
• Modals: Indicate the speaker's attitude towards the verbal action, which occurs either as a duty, a potential, or a capacity.

Popular and Cultivated Lyric Poetry in the Middle Ages

During the Middle Ages, lyric poetry in various Romance languages of the Iberian Peninsula developed into two main components: a popular one and a cultivated one.

Popular Lyric Poetry

The collection of anonymous

Early Spanish Literature

This period presents challenges due to the oral transmission of many texts. The earliest known lyrical expressions are the Jarchas, short poems of Mozarabic origin, often appended to longer poems (Muwasahas). Within this century, the Mester de Juglaría flourished, exemplified by works like the Poem of the Cid.

Auto de los Reyes Magos

• Anonymous religious play.
• Part of a cycle of acts.
• Focuses on the journey and adoration of the Magi.

Mester de Clerecía

Associated with the clergy and monasteries, where culture and learning were developed and preserved. Key characteristics include:

• Religious and historical themes.
• Influence of classical antiquity.
• Written in cuadernavía (fourteen-syllable lines in monorhyme quatrains).
• Didactic

Spanish Theater: Main Trends

There are three main trends in Spanish theater:

• Theater of Tax Avoidance or Consumption: A continuation of the style established by Jacinto Benavente, it aims to entertain a public that identifies with the moral values of the bourgeoisie. Some representative authors are José Maria Pemán, Joaquín Calvo Sotelo, Juan Ignacio Luca de Tena, etc.
• Theater of Humor: Of an intellectual nature, it presents crazy situations, full of imagination and ingenuity, which demonstrate human contradictions. Notable authors include Enrique Jardiel Poncela (*Eloísa Is Beneath an Almond Tree*, *Thieves Are Honest People*) and Miguel Mihura.

Miguel Mihura's *Three Top Hats*

In Miguel Mihura's (1905-1977) production, *Three Top Hats* stands... Continue reading "Spanish Theater and Literature: Trends and Key Authors" »

Spanish Theater at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century

The development of drama was influenced by social constraints, primarily aimed at middle-class audiences who were not particularly interested in social problems or ideological themes. Playwrights had to cater to public demand, but faced limited financial resources for their works. Consequently, authors who adhered to these constraints were not marginalized.

The result was a period of relative stagnation in Spanish theater, characterized by a lack of innovation and renewal.

Background of Theater in the Second Half of the 19th Century

Romantic drama evolved into more balanced and thoughtful forms, culminating in the rise of high comedy.

Characteristics of High Comedy:

• Contemporary Setting
• Observation

Romance Languages of Spain

Post-Roman Empire

After the fall of the Roman Empire, Latin and Roman culture declined in many regions. However, in areas with stronger Roman influence, the language persisted and diversified into various dialects known as Romance languages.

Romance Language Family

• Hispanic
• French
• Italian
• Rheto-Romance
• Romanian
• Sardinian

Several of these Latin-derived languages became historically significant.

Mozarabic

In Muslim-conquered territories, Arabic became the dominant language. However, the Christians living under Muslim rule, known as Mozarabs, preserved their Romance language, Mozarabic.

Central Romance

Castilian

During the 9th century, the Kingdom of Asturias sought to fortify its eastern border. Fernán González unified the counties... Continue reading "Romance Languages in Spain: History and Evolution" »

Spanish Theater: Franco Era and Beyond

In the 1940s, the Spanish theatrical scene was dominated by a "national" theater in service of the dictatorship. The elusive theater, such as bourgeois comedy and humorous drama, triumphed. At the end of the 1940s, realistic protest theater emerged in 1949 with the premiere of Story of a Ladder by Buero Vallejo. This trend was later confirmed with the work Death Squad by Alfonso Sastre.

From the 1970s, a cutting-edge theater emerged with Fernando Arrabal and Francisco Nieva, influenced by the theater of the absurd and the theater of cruelty. Nor should we forget that in the late 1960s, independent theater emerged. From 1975, playwrights were attracted to contemporary issues.

Commercial or Evasive Theater

Postwar... Continue reading "Spanish Theater: Franco Era, Protest & Humor" »

Causes of the Late 15th Century Transformation

• The era of discoveries and the application of great inventions (compass, gunpowder).
• The rise of Humanism.
• Columbus's discovery of America.
• The development of the bourgeoisie.

Cultural and Historical Facts of the 15th Century

The rougher forms of medieval life were refined, extending the bourgeois mentality, and culture became a feature of social distinction. Columbus's discovery of America marked a pivotal moment.

Characteristics of Castilian Popular Lyric

• Variety
• Depicts nature
• Repetition
• Puns
• Contrasts

Romances: Forms and Origins

New Romances

Romances written by cultured poets of the 15th and 17th centuries.

Old Romances

A collection of romances that were sung at the end of the Middle Ages.

Theories on Romance

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Classical Influence and Pure Poetry

Poets of the Generation of '27 received the influence of Spanish classics, such as Góngora and Juan Ramón Jiménez. The influence of Bécquer and classical forms is evident in the use of hendecasyllables, tenths, eighths, and sonetos reales. Bécquer's presence is felt in the love poetry of Salinas and Cernuda.

Pure poetry, influenced by Juan Ramón Jiménez's poems and Dámaso Alonso, is exemplified by Pedro Salinas's La voz a ti debida. This work is part of a trilogy that includes Razón de amor and Largo lamento. In it, the beloved gives meaning to the existence of the lover.

Avant-Garde Poetry

Avant-garde movements that influenced the Generation of '27 were Creationism, Ultraism, and Surrealism. The... Continue reading "Classical and Avant-Garde Influences in Spanish Poetry" »

Juan Ramón Jiménez: Life and Work

This great natural poet from Moguer (Huelva) was born in 1881. The death of his father in 1905 profoundly impacted the author's personality. Since then, he suffered periodic nervous depressions for which he was interned in various sanatoriums where he received proper psychiatric care. In 1911, he met Zenobia Camprubí, whom he married in New York in 1916. During the Spanish Civil War, he joined the Republican side and had to emigrate to America, where he remained until his death in 1958. Two years before, in 1956, he won the Nobel Prize for Literature. He was a person who looked deeply at the time. Withdrawn and lonely, he rejected various honors, such as belonging to the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE). He represents... Continue reading "Juan Ramón Jiménez: Life, Works and Poetic Style" »