Mystical Literature: St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Jesus

St. John of the Cross: Mystical Works

The works of St. John of the Cross circulated first in manuscript and were printed only long after his death. They generally fall into two groups:

• Major Works: Spiritual Canticle, Dark Night of the Soul, and Living Flame of Love, accompanied by extensive prose commentaries.
• Minor Poems: Ballads, songs, and glosses composed in the conventional manner.

Regarding his inspiration, San Juan possesses a unique character. He drew from a variety of doctrinal and poetic sources, above all the Bible—specifically the Song of Songs, which provides the overall layout of his work. He utilizes human love to convey his spiritual experiences.

St. Teresa of Jesus: Literary Classification

Critics have classified the work of St. Teresa of Jesus into three groups:

• Prose: Autobiographical works, The Book of Life, Book of Foundations, spiritual relationships, and The Interior Castle (dwellings).
• Poetry: Carols, jingles, and glosses.
• Epistolary: Composed of over 400 letters.

Garcia believes the entire poetic production of Teresa of Jesus falls into two coordinates: poems born of mystic transit and ascetic/devotional poetry.

Stylistic Use of Verb Forms

Verb forms acquire different values depending on their context and meaning:

• Historic Present: Approximates the past to the present.
• Universal Present: Refers to facts of general or universal truth that exceed temporality.
• Attempted Past: Expresses an action located in the past that fails to be completed.
• Past for Future: Indicates actions to be produced in the future.
• Courtesy Imperfect: Used to beg or ask in situations where one lacks sufficient confidence.
• Opinion Present: Expresses personal opinion.
• Fictional Present: Refers to events in dreams or fictional situations.
• Hypothetical or Conditional: Used in colloquial records to replace the conditional mood.
• Mandatory Future: Expresses obligation or a mandate.
• Concessive: The speaker tentatively supports an assertion but immediately adds a demurrer.
• Probability Future and Conditional: Used to express doubt or uncertainty.
• Courtesy Conditional: Used to raise a question or request politely.