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

Cesar's Clever Tactic

Caesar believed he had found a clever tactic. He had arrived hoping to finish the campaign without struggle and without injury. Having intercepted the enemies of the wheat supply from their homes, he questioned why he should lose some of his own men even in friendly matches. Why suffer being hurt?

Encouraging His People to Find Fresh Water

After delivering this speech among his people, Caesar agitated the minds of all. He gave an assignment to the centurions to interrupt their current works and devote their efforts to digging wells, not disturbing any part of the night time. Having undertaken this task and brought all the animals for work, one night a freshwater stream was found.

The Cavalry of the Germans and Numerical Superiority

The... Continue reading "Key Moments in Roman Military Campaigns and History" »

Spanish Romances: Medieval Ballads

Some episodes of epic poems began to be narrated separately, adapting to a simpler metric form. These became known as romances (ballads).

Romances are formed by a variable number of eight-syllable verses, with assonance rhyme in the even-numbered verses, while the odd-numbered verses remain free.

Key Features of Romances

• Simplicity and Sobriety: They are characterized by brief descriptions and a general lack of adjectives.
• Oral Tradition: As compositions of an oral nature, they require the use of specific resources like repetitions and exclamations.
• Fragmentary Nature: They often begin in medias res and have abrupt endings.

Classification of Romances

• Historical Romances: They deal with historical events of the time

Classification of Literary Genres

Literary genres are categories of texts that share common characteristics in terms of content, form, themes, ideas, and the writer's attitude.

The Lyrical Genre

• Key Characteristic: Subjectivity.
• Function: Expressive or emotive function of language; the author expresses personal feelings, desires, and emotions.
• Classification:
  • Cultivated Lyric: Written transmission. Known writers.
    • Subgenres: ode, hymn, elegy, eclogue, epistle, satire, song, and fable.
  • Popular Lyric: Oral transmission. Anonymity.
    • Subgenres: carol, letrilla, lyrical romance.

The Narrative Genre

The expression of a story that happens to characters in a specific place and time. This story is explained by a narrator who guides the reader.

• Story Elements: Plot,

Significance and Function

As Greek culture evolved, it increasingly sought the perfection of images. Since most sculptures were created for shrines or cities, maximum realism was sought as a representative token.

Historical Context

It is very possible that Hermes with Infant Dionysus was sculpted to commemorate the peace between Elis and Arcadia, as Dionysus was the first patron of Elis and Hermes the second patron of Arcadia.

Symbolism and Dualism

The group is dualistic: it perfectly contrasts maturity and balance (represented by Hermes) with the immaturity and imbalance of Dionysus. In fact, it can be seen as a symbol of the world, as Hermes and Dionysus play just like the gods play with human destiny.

Mythological Narrative

Dionysus, son of Zeus... Continue reading "Praxiteles' Hermes and Infant Dionysus Sculpture" »

Writers and the Literary Market

Two literary movements were born: the group of Boedo and the group of Florida. The reading public had grown dramatically, a fact that influenced the perception of the writer. Previously, the man of letters had been viewed as an 'enlightened' figure, whose literary activity was removed from the hectic office. In principle, the writer was not seen as a 'professional,' nor was he, in fact, one.

Writers like Leopoldo Lugones had imposed their presence in national literature, but these were professionals who often came from more affluent classes. In contrast, emerging writers, whose social classes were much more modest, gained increasing participation in society. Roberto Arlt best represents this new figure of the writer.... Continue reading "Argentine Literary Movements: Boedo, Florida, and the Rise of Roberto Arlt" »

Rima XXIV: 'Two Tongues of Red Fire'

Subject and Core Theme

The central subject is joyful love, expressed through passionate poetry. Love is presented as the foundation of Bécquer's work. This poem specifically refers to the reciprocity between two souls, observed and mirrored by nature.

Fusion of the Poet and the Beloved

The poem speaks of the fusion between the loving poet and his beloved, comparing this union with the way elements in nature coalesce.

Structure of Rima XXIV

The poem can be divided into two main parts:

1. Part 1 (Verses 1–4): Focuses on elements of nature that coalesce:

   • Two tongues of fire
   • Two notes
   • Two waves

2. Part 2 (Stanza 5): Presents three images of the same type (ideas, kisses, echoes) in real terms, culminating in the declaration:

The Jarcha: Oldest Romance Poetry

The Jarcha is a unique form of popular lyric poetry from Muslim Hispania, often attributed to anonymous authors. These short poems served as the final part of a longer poetic form called the muwashshah, with examples dating back to the 10th and 11th centuries.

Jarchas were composed in colloquial Hispano-Arabic dialects or in the Andalusian Romance language, sometimes inaccurately referred to as Mozarabic. They were crafted by educated Arab and Jewish poets who drew inspiration from traditional Romance poetry. Poets could either derive them from popular folklore, adapt them to fit the metrical requirements of the muwashshah, or create new compositions based on established patterns.

Their immense importance lies... Continue reading "Medieval Spanish Literature: Jarchas, El Cid, Mester" »

Medieval Spanish Literature Foundations

The Jarchas: Early Romance Lyric Poetry

The jarchas are short songs from the 11th and 12th centuries written in Mozarabic. They represent the earliest manifestation of Romance lyric poetry in Spain. They consist of a few verses placed at the end of Arabic and Hebrew poems called moaxajas. In these verses, a woman, often addressing an informant (like her mother or sister), expresses her feelings about love.

Galician-Portuguese Lyric Poetry

Galician-Portuguese lyric poetry was influenced by the learned and courtly poetry cultivated in Provence (France) and developed during the 13th and 14th centuries.

Types of Cantigas

• Cantigas de amigo: Love poems with an intimate tone. Similar to the jarchas, a young woman

20th Century Novel: Social and Experimental Forms

The Social Novel

Authors of the Social Novel contribute their works to change society, aiming to raise awareness among readers and transform the existing state of affairs. The genre experienced a significant moment during "the Roaring Twenties."

Key authors include Ernest Hemingway, known for works like A Farewell to Arms and For Whom the Bell Tolls.

A related group of Hispanic writers, often associated with Magical Realism, interpreted harsh reality by projecting fabulous elements onto a real background, integrating them into everyday life. Notable figures include Juan Rulfo (with Pedro Páramo), Gabriel García Márquez (One Hundred Years of Solitude), and Mario Vargas Llosa.

The Experimental Novel

The... Continue reading "Defining Literary Movements: Novel and Theatre in the 20th Century" »

Characteristics of the Lyric Genre

1. The disposition of the lyrical author is characterized by emotional expression. This emotional emphasis is a primary feature, and the works are generally short.
2. Unlike dramatic and epic works, the lyric genre does not tell a story. Any anecdotal elements or objects that appear serve to evoke excitement rather than form the knots of a plot.
3. In contrast to the explanatory nature of other texts, lyric poetry specializes in delving deeply into a single aspect or emotion.
4. The linguistic structure of lyric poetry typically empowers the text to be autonomous. It draws attention to itself through recurrences, all kinds of parallels, and semantic games.
5. Although versification is not an essential condition, it has become