Criollismo and Costumbrismo in Latin American Literature
Criollismo in Literature
Criollismo emerged in the last decade of the 19th century and continued until 1929. This literary trend originated when a group of writers adopted the slogan of striving for a truly national literature that reflected and portrayed the native Venezuelan man.
Key Aspects of Criollismo:
- Unbiased Vocabulary: Authors used regional vocabulary without bias.
- Psychological Insight: Writers were thoroughly familiar with the psychology of the inhabitants of these regions.
- Realistic Portrayals: Works avoided exaggerations or unrealistic idealizations.
Background and Influences:
Criollismo was influenced by earlier traditionalist writers such as Nicanor Bolet Peraza, Daniel Mendoza, and Francisco de Sales Pérez, as well as novelists like Manuel Vicente Romero García.
Published Works:
Examples include discussions on national literature, as well as works like “*El Cojo Miguel*” and “*La Casa de los Cuatro Patios*.”. Creole works aimed to be sociological documents of the time, rather than solely artistic endeavors.
Criollismo vs. Cosmopolitanism:
- Criollismo: A literary movement born in the late 19th century, influenced by the newly independent nations of the Americas under Spanish rule.
- Cosmopolitanism: A theory and lifestyle of people who consider themselves citizens of the world, having lived in many countries.
Characteristics of Criollismo and Modernism
- Mastery of language and deep knowledge of syntactic regionalism.
- Dialogues that are loyal to local dialects.
- Thorough understanding of the psychology of regional inhabitants, presented without exaggeration or unrealistic idealization.
Literary Costumbrismo
Literary Costumbrismo is the application of the artistic movement known as Costumbrismo. It reflects social customs and practices without analysis or interpretation, which would fall under literary realism. The description is limited, almost painterly, to the most external aspects of everyday life. It usually occurs in prose, although the theatrical genre has produced great folkloric works.
Within works of greater depth and different styles, the genre includes paintings throughout the entire history of literature, not only in the 19th century, when this type of literature had its heyday, especially in Spanish literature.
Costumbrismo is a literary genre characterized by the portrayal and interpretation of customs and types of a country. The description is known as “*cuadro de costumbres*” if it depicts a typical scene, or “*artículo de costumbres*” if it describes, with humor and satire, some aspect of life.
The *Cuadro de Costumbres*
The *cuadro de costumbres* is a subgenre of Costumbrismo that describes popular types, attitudes, behaviors, values, and habits common to a profession, region, or class. This is often done through satirical or nostalgic descriptions, sometimes with a brief narrative pretext, of environments, customs, clothes, parties, entertainment, traditions, crafts, and representative types of a society.
Costumbrismo in America and its Relation with Romanticism
Costumbrismo was a literary event that was introduced in almost all American countries from 1830 onward. It satisfied the Romantic principle of being inspired by the local color or a search thereof.
Origins of *Cuadros de Costumbres*
The *cuadros de costumbres* originated from the need for each country to establish those facts peculiar to the people, which history does not address, as well as certain types of familiar characters who stood out at a given time. They were also born with the intention of social criticism and political satire, all amidst cheerful humor.
Early Characteristics of American Costumbrismo
Initially, original American Costumbrismo was limited because it did not fully utilize the *cuadros de costumbres* that had become fashionable by the Romans and the Spaniard Mariano José de Larra.