Ausias Marc: The Catalan Poet of Love, Death, and Despair

Ausias Marc: Life and Legacy

Author's Biography

Born in Valencia (VLC), into an aristocratic family, Ausias Marc participated in naval campaigns under Alfonso the Magnanimous, who later made him his chief falconer.

He married Isabel Martorell (sister of Joanot Martorell), who died shortly after. He subsequently married Joana Escorna, who also died. He had no children from these marriages but recognized four illegitimate children in his testament.

Poetic Works

We preserve 128 poems written between 1425 and 1459, though some poems are of uncertain authorship. Among his work, the following are highlighted:

• Love Songs
• Spiritual Songs
• Songs of Death

The love songs are grouped into cycles, often using a senyal (signal) that conceals the name of the beloved. Examples of these senyals include:

• “Plena de seny” (Full of wisdom)
• “Llir entre cards” (Lily among thorns)
• “Amor, amor” (Love, love)
• “Oh, Déu, si fos” (Oh, God, if it were)
• “Foll'amor” (Foolish love)

Key Poetic Features

Marc's poetry is characterized by:

• Rejection of Rhetoricism: He avoids the rhetoricism of the previous poetic tradition and seeks simplicity in expression, often conveying the difficulty of recognizing the feelings he experiences.
• Language Choice: He renounces writing in Provençal, considering that the language and tradition of the troubadours are inadequate to convey the sincerity of his verses.
• Troubadour Influence: He conserves some formal characteristics from the troubadour tradition, such as the use of the senyal (Mon), formulas of treatment and respect, the spiritual search for love, and the tendency to idealize the beloved.

Structure of the Poems

The typical structure of his poems involves three parts:

1. Exposition: Presentation of a hypothetical situation in real life, sometimes using a comparison that serves as an explanatory example.
2. Application (Mon): The poet applies the situation to his own state of mind, either to praise the beloved or to moralize for all possible readers.
3. Conclusion.

Note: Other times, the structure is reversed.

Major Thematic Elements

Love

1. Love is personified, holding the poet prisoner.
2. The poet suffers because of love.
3. Ausias Marc transforms himself into the greatest poet-lover and master of love.
4. Marc theorizes and moralizes about love.
5. Love often leads to contradiction and the poet's failure.
6. Amorous failure leads to despair, often provoked by a sinful conscience.
7. Ausias Marc cannot live without love, even though it causes him mortal illness.

Women and the Beloved

1. Marc falls in love primarily with the physical beauty, but also the spiritual and intellectual qualities of the lady.
2. Marc considers his love worthy of being received by the lady.
3. Faced with such a perfect figure, the poet feels helpless, alone, and marginalized without correspondence.
4. The poet views himself as a loving martyr.
5. Faced with amorous failure, Marc takes responsibility, avoiding the misogyny often found in the tradition.

Death

1. Death is often desired because it means the end of the pain caused by love.
2. Death itself is otherwise hateful because it implies leaving the beloved.
3. Death is the solution to the amorous conflict.
4. Death is also desired because the poet could then live with the deceased beloved.
5. Death is feared because of the divine trial and eternal condemnation.