15th-Century Spanish Lyric Poetry: An In-Depth Look

1. Lyric Poetry

1.1. Popular Castilian Lyrics

As discussed previously, popular lyrics existed before the 15th century, which marks the beginning of written records. These lyrics were preserved through various songbooks of the period. These compositions are simple yet beautiful and lyrically dense. Their meter is irregular, with a tendency towards 6 to 8 syllables per line. The central theme is love.

One popular lyric form is the carol, which has the following structure:

• Opening lines forming a repeating chorus
• A stanza of 4 verses
• Two or more linking lines, one rhyming with the stanza and another with the chorus

Carols were often used in Christmas scenes. These traditional compositions were highly valued in the 17th century, with Lope de Vega incorporating them into his plays and Góngora writing popular letrillas.

1.2. Ballads

Romances, or ballads, are among the most appreciated manifestations of oral tradition in Spanish folk poetry. The earliest known ballads date from the late 14th and 15th centuries. They are thought to be derived from fragments of epic poems, inheriting their structure. Typically, they have 16 syllables per line and use assonant rhyme.

Both primitive ballads and minstrel ballads, created in the 15th century, are considered old ballads. They encompass epic, lyrical, and a variety of other themes.

Ballads blend narration and dialogue and are characterized by their expressive simplicity.

2. Key Poets of the 15th Century

2.1. Marqués de Santillana

Writing in the first half of the 15th century, the Marqués de Santillana's work is imbued with a noble and elegant style. His poetry can be classified as:

• Provençal-influenced poetry
• Italian-influenced poetry
• Didactic-moral poetry

For the modern reader, his ten serranillas are considered his best verses.

2.2. Juan de Mena

A contemporary of the Marqués de Santillana, Juan de Mena's most important work is the long, philosophical, and moral poem Laberinto de Fortuna. He follows the allegorical poetry style of Dante, using highly expressive language.

2.3. Jorge Manrique

Jorge Manrique is the most important poet of the second half of the 15th century. His poetic output consists of around 50 compositions, grouped into two categories: love poetry and the Coplas.

His love poetry follows the tradition of courtly and cancionero poetry, with a less cultivated, stilted, and artificial style.

The Coplas a la muerte de su padre (Verses on the Death of His Father) is his most famous work. Manrique wrote these verses expressing the pain caused by his father's death in 1476.

Coplas a la muerte de su padre

The dominant theme is praise for his father, Master of the Order of Santiago. Manrique goes beyond simple praise, incorporating reflections on life.

Features:

• Thematically, the poem is structured in three parts, moving from general to specific.
• Some verses have a propagandistic function.
• The poem consists of 40 stanzas in pie quebrado meter (a combination of hexameter and tetrameter lines). Manrique uses beautiful imagery and simple, elegant language.