Castilian Medieval Literature: Cid, Mester de Clerecía, and Gonzalo de Berceo

Cantar de Mio Cid (Poem of the Cid)

Historical Context

Cantar de Mio Cid (Poem of the Cid) depicts real events, such as the exile and imprisonment of the Count of Valencia. However, the faces of the corporation and the tournament are fictitious. The first person singular highlights verisimilitude, while the second and third person emphasize the legendary nature of the tale.

Characters and Plot

The Cid's daughters were named Cristina and Maria. They married the Count of Barcelona and the King of Navarre. El Cid suffered exile and the King's enmity for a period. He consistently faces the Moors but also contends with the Count of Leon and the nobility. The poem's purpose is to degrade the nobility.

Social Structure

The social estates depicted are the King, nobility, gentry, bourgeoisie, and Jews. The central conflict is between the new class of nobility and the royalty.

Structure and Style

• The poem comprises 3,533 verses in 152 assonant, monorhymed, and irregular stanzas.
• It features anisosyllabism, with lines ranging from 10 to 20 syllables, divided into two hemistiches of 6, 7, or 8 syllables.
• Stylistic devices include stichomythia, soft enjambment, tokenism, and juxtaposition.
• The language is a blend of popular and archaic lexicon.
• The tone is generally gentle but occasionally shifts to a serious, weighty, and sublime style.
• The narrative begins in medias res.

Mester de Clerecía

Characteristics

• Period: 13th century
• Content Metrics: No popular content metrics
• Language: Written in Romance language
• Stanza Structure: Stanzas of four Alexandrine verses (14 syllables divided into two hemistiches of 7), with a consistent rhyme scheme.
• Authors: Except for Berceo, authors generally did not address religious themes.
• Sources: No written sources are used as a basis.
• Purpose: To teach and delight
• Audience: Intended to be read alone and then delivered by a minstrel.

Themes

The themes explored in Mester de Clerecía are diverse, including:

• Religious
• Ascetic teaching
• Legendary
• Romantic

Key Works

• Lives of Saints: Life of Santo Domingo
• Marian Works: Miracles of Our Lady
• Liturgical Works: From the Mass Slaughter
• Religiously Diverse Subjects: Martyrdom of San Lorenzo
• Novels: Book of Alexander, Book of Apollonius
• Epic Poems: Poem of Ferran Gonzalez
• Moral Teachings: Moral Proverbs of Santob
• Miscellaneous: Book of Good Love

Gonzalo de Berceo (GDB)

Milagros de Nuestra Señora (Miracles of Our Lady)

Gonzalo de Berceo's most famous work is Milagros de Nuestra Señora, a collection of 25 miraculous events performed by the Virgin Mary for her devotees. Each miracle is preceded by an allegorical introduction. While Berceo may have invented some of the subjects, he primarily drew from stories written in Romance, not Latin.

Purpose and Style

Berceo's purpose was didactic and moralizing, aiming to entertain the pilgrims who arrived at the monastery of San Millán. He adapted existing texts to make them more understandable to the common people.

Structure of the Miracles

The miracles in Berceo's work typically follow this structure:

1. The scene is set, and the characters are introduced.
2. The protagonist is described, highlighting both positive and negative aspects.
3. The antagonist is described.
4. The devil presents a temptation.
5. The sinner falls into temptation.
6. The Virgin Mary performs a miracle.
7. The devil appears in one of two forms: as an animal or through metamorphosis.