El Cantar de Mio Cid: Intertextuality and Orality in Medieval Spanish Literature

El Cantar de Mio Cid: Intertextuality and Orality

Type of Text

El Cantar de Mio Cid is an epic poem that recounts the great deeds of the Cid.

Intertextuality

Intertextuality is the phenomenon of connections between different texts. It can be between literary and non-literary works. It may appear in different ways: appointment, allusion, imitation, parody, comment, or processing. To recognize them, the reader should have some literary competence that allows them to relate the texts.

El Cantar de Mio Cid (12th Century)

Castilla (20th Century)

Signs of Orality in El Cantar de Mio Cid

• Appeals to the public: The poem takes into account the audience.
• Statement by the minstrel in the narrative: The minstrel includes commentary.
• Direct speech: The story is updated as if it were occurring in real-time.
• Anticipations: The poem is ahead of the facts to catch the reader's attention.
• Polysyndeton: Repetition of the conjunction "and" at the beginning of the verse.
• Fragmentary: The poem cuts or ends abruptly (almost always).

Castilla as an Intertext of El Cantar de Mio Cid

Castilla is an intertext of the entrance of the Cid into Burgos, where a girl warns him that he must leave because no one will open their doors to him, as King Alfonso XI has threatened to take the eyes and goods of those who do so. She blesses him, and he launches into exile along with his faithful subjects.

The Aim of El Cantar de Mio Cid

El Cantar de Mio Cid's aim is the restoration of honor, symbolizing Spanish honor, to achieve victory in the Reconquista.

The Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is the historical period from the 5th century to the 15th century. It began in the year 476 with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ended in 1453 with the fall of the Byzantine Empire.

Characteristics of the Middle Ages

The Middle Ages were characterized by the theocentric theory, given between God and King, which stated that God gave power to the king. Transmission of knowledge was oral and often by anonymous authors.

Romance Languages

The Romance languages are derived from Vulgar Latin, that is, spoken Latin. Examples include French, Castilian, Italian, and Portuguese.

Epic Poems

Epic poems are epics of national heroes.

The Minstrel

The minstrel was the one who recited (and even composed) the chansons de geste.

Mester = work

Mester de Clerecía vs. Mester de Juglaría

• Mester de Clerecía: Written, but with oral disclosure. Educated authors. Regular meter. Language: Latin. Narrates religious facts.
• Mester de Juglaría: Oral. Poorly educated authors. Anonymous. Irregular meter. Language: Romance. Chronicles the exploits of heroes.

Spanish Literature

• Movement: Specific orientation that acquires the culture of an era as the dominant worldview. The literary movement is a trend that includes all the features that appear in the writing of an era, including different countries and various genres.
• Worldview: Man's worldview and reality. Idea about the universe in all its orders.