Spanish Renaissance Poetry: Garcilaso, Fray Luis de León, San Juan de la Cruz

Garcilaso: Love Lyric and Pastoral Eclogues

Garcilaso: The dominant theme is the love lyric, with melancholic expression caused by the absence of the beloved. Nature is related to the topic through the locus amoenus, reflecting the poet's inner world. Other poems deal with subjects such as friendship, fate, or fortune. In his early Petrarchan-style poems one can see the influence of the poetry of Ausiàs March and the cancionero tradition. From 1532 Garcilaso increased his contact with Petrarchan poetry.

Garcilaso's Eclogues

In these lyrical compositions, shepherds voice complaints about love in idealized environments. Key eclogues include:

• Eclogue 1: Contains monologues of two shepherds, Nemoroso and Salicio, which deal with the pain of rejection and the death of the beloved.
• Eclogue 2: Stands out for its heterogeneity and metrical variety. The first part focuses on the pain and madness of unrequited love: Albanio's love for Camilla. Albanio attempts suicide and recounts his misadventures. The second part contains praise for the deeds of the house of Alba.
• Eclogue 3: Tells the stories woven by four nymphs; three are mythological stories (Orpheus and Eurydice; Apollo and Daphne; Adonis), and the fourth (Venus) concerns the death of Nemoroso and the figure of Elisa, amada.

Style

Style: Characterized by a pursuit of naturalness of expression, particularly highlighting the use of epithets. The style also includes hyperbaton, metaphors, and personifications, producing a refined and expressive poetic voice.

Fray Luis de León: Spiritual Poetry and Prose

Fray Luis de León: He coincides with the rise of spiritual literature in the second half of the 16th century. His poetry includes 23 original poems (liras), which were published in 1631 by Quevedo. He wrote mainly secular poetry with a few religious and moral pieces.

His sources are classical poetry and Biblical texts; his style emphasizes biblical diction, the use of metaphors related to nature, repetition of words, and cultismos (learned vocabulary).

Prose Works and Exegesis

His prose works include Exposition of the Song of Songs, Exposition of the Book of Job, and The Perfect Wife; these are commentaries on Biblical texts. On the Names of Christ (De los nombres de Cristo) is among his most important works. It is written in dialogue form, typically Renaissance in genre, and explores the meanings of the various names by which the Bible refers to Christ.

San Juan de la Cruz: Mystical Lyric and Treatises

San Juan de la Cruz: His poetic works are a milestone in the Western lyric for their intensity of love and literary excellence. The Living Flame of Love is a pure celebration of the mystical union. Dark Night of the Soul is a poetic voice that culminates in a joyful meeting—the loved and loving union with God. The Spiritual Canticle dramatically presents a woman in love searching for love in a locus amoenus.

Prose Treatises

His prose works consist of four mystical treatises that gloss his poems. These include the Ascent to Mount Carmel and the treatise on the Dark Night (the latter is sometimes noted as incomplete). These prose texts function as theological and mystical commentaries that deepen the meaning of his lyric poetry.

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