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

Tirant lo Blanc: A Deep Dive

Eisner: 15th century. Very academic. He is respected for his skill with weapons and his notions of military strategy. He moves deftly to the different courts of Europe (Portugal, Naples) and died in 1468. Reflected in his novel·la is his deepest desire. His biography is quite novelistic; his life went by as he pleaded for honor and possessions. In the end, he is left without possessions, and your sister married Ausiàs March. Tirant wrote at the end of his life, and the end of the pledge was to survive. Martí Joan de Galba published his work in 1490.

Tirant's Adventures

• Tirant in England (Representation of cavalry tournaments)
• Tirant in Sicily and Rhodes (A skillful admiral at sea)
• Tirant in the Greek Empire (Where

20th Century Spain: A Cultural Overview

The early 20th century in Spain was marked by technological advancements and the upheaval of World War I. The reign of Alfonso XIII saw the establishment of a military dictatorship in 1931, followed by the Second Republic. Socially, workers suffered during a period of crisis.

The Avant-Garde Movement

This era was characterized by a fascination with experimentation and a universal artistic vocation. Artists grouped themselves into aesthetic movements known as the avant-garde, or "isms." These groups were not homogenous and included:

• Surrealism: Aiming to transcend rationality through exploration of the unconscious mind.
• Dada: Embracing the absurd and championing art created by chance.
• Ultraism: Reacting against

Catalan Literature: From Romanticism to Realism

The Romantic Novel

Walter Scott proposed and explained the historical facts of the case, and later, the psychological and thematic aspects. The sentimental aspect is of interest.

Costumbrism

Testimonials described documents of traditions that were about to disappear. They wrote about customs, describing a moment in time.

The Realist Novel

Important writers include Balzac, Stendhal, and Flaubert. They were interested in current issues and the accurate description of the psychology of characters and environments.

The Emergence of the Modern Novel in Catalan

To create a modern Catalan narrative, it was necessary to overcome a series of problems:

• The lack of prestige of the language
• The anachronistic schemes

Modernism in the Early 20th Century

In the late 19th century, a renewed interest in early Romanticism's emphasis on originality and creative freedom emerged. This period, marked by a crisis in Western culture, led to a significant shift in artistic direction. The literary movement that defined this era is known as Modernism. Modernism drew inspiration from two 19th-century movements: Parnassianism and Symbolism. The core themes of Modernism include loneliness, escapism, cosmopolitanism, love, and eroticism.

Ruben Dario and Manuel Machado are the primary representatives of Parnassian Modernism. Dario, a Nicaraguan poet, transitioned from the aesthetic Parnassianism evident in Azul and Prosas Profanas to more profound and far-reaching themes in... Continue reading "Key Movements and Authors in Early 20th Century Spanish Literature" »

Topics

Francisco de Quevedo's work delves into an excruciating self-examination and a profound immersion in the human condition and powerful human intelligence. His intellect grew with solid knowledge, resulting in a demystified or burlesque vision of reality. Quevedo's poetry presents a wide thematic variety, encompassing:

• Metaphysical poems
• Moral poems
• Religious poems
• Satirical poems

Style

Quevedo was a genius of language, and his strongest features lie in his masterful use of stylistic resources:

• Metaphors: Often deeply rooted in traditional literary resources.
• Repetition and Polysyndeton: Used for emphasis and rhythm.
• Puns: Such as "Dos maravedís de luna" (Two farthings of moon).
• Antithesis, Oxymoron, Epithets, and Paronomasias: Employed to create

Grammar & Linguistic Concepts

This section delves into the fundamental building blocks and structures of language.

Phoneme: Smallest Unit of Sound

The phoneme is the smallest unit of sound in a language that can distinguish one word from another, though it is meaningless on its own (e.g., the 'd', 'c', 'e', 'n', 's' sounds in 'docenas').

The Syllable: Vocal Impulse Units

A syllable consists of one or more phonemes spoken with a single vocal impulse (e.g., do-ce-nas).

The Morpheme: Meaningful Language Units

The morpheme is the smallest unit endowed with meaning, though its meaning may depend on its combination with other elements (e.g., doc-ena-s).

The Word: Lexical Meaning Units

A word is the union of one or more morphemes, forming a unit with full... Continue reading "Foundations of Language & Medieval Literary Traditions" »

Modernism: A Literary Revolution (1885-1915)

The Modernist movement, flourishing between 1885 and 1915, found its most representative poet in Rubén Darío. This significant literary shift marked a decisive break from the aesthetics of Naturalism and Realism, embracing instead an aesthetic and escapist tendency. Modernism emerged during a period of universal crisis in letters and spirit, beginning around 1880 and culminating in the lead-up to a world war.

Key Influences on Modernism

• French Influence

  • Parnassianism: Théophile Gautier launched the theme of "l'art pour l'art" (art for art's sake), advocating the worship of formal perfection. This movement was characterized by calm and balanced poetry. Leconte de Lisle is its foremost exponent, known

The Novel

The novel Curial e Güelfa, written in the mid-fifteenth century, is an anonymous work. The author might be from the Valencian court of Alfonso V of Aragon in Naples. It is a story of love and arms that follows Curial, a knight, and his feats and deeds on behalf of the noble Güelfa, driven by a desire for personal promotion. The book contains numerous references to the classical Greco-Roman literary tradition, including Plato and Ovid. It also draws inspiration from Italian authors of that time, such as Dante and Boccaccio, as well as Catalan writers like Ramon Muntaner and Ramon Llull. The novel is divided into three books.

Book One: The Theme of Love

Curial, a young man of humble origins, enters the court of the Marquis of Monferrat,... Continue reading "Curial e Güelfa: A 15th-Century Chivalric Romance" »

Characteristics and Origins of Roman Portraiture

The Roman portrait is a crucial manifestation of Roman sculpture, focused on the perfect exaltation and perpetuation of the individual and their aspirations. The roots of the portrait lie in the sum of realistic Hellenistic inheritance, the Etruscan funerary portrait, and the Roman imagines maiorum (funerary masks).

This realistic portrayal is physiognomic and descriptive, meticulously reproducing the individual features of the model. It seeks primarily to highlight the social category. The most frequent type is the portrait bust, though full-body and equestrian portraits (reserved for emperors) were also created. Despite the predominance of realism, idealizing trends were combined according to... Continue reading "The Evolution of Roman Portraiture: Realism, Idealization, and Imperial Power" »

Lazarillo de Tormes

Lazarillo de Tormes is an anonymous work, censored in 1554 for its strong anticlerical content. It is presented as an autobiography, a first-person account written in the form of a letter to "Your Grace." The narrator recounts his past life to justify his present state of dishonor.

The book consists of a foreword and seven chapters or 'treatises.'

Key Features:

• The protagonist is the son of parents without honor.
• He experiences hunger and the desire for social advancement.
• He loses his innocence, evolves, and learns.

Themes:

• Reflection of the reality of society and the conflicts of Spain.
• Critique of the obsession with honor.
• Corruption of the clergy.

Structure:

• Chapters 1, 2, and 3: Early life and masters (Blind man, Clergyman, Squire)