Ramon Llull: Life, Works, and Troubadour Poetry

Posted on Sep 27, 2024 in Latin

The Art of Ramon Llull

Aims:

  1. Convert infidels, especially Muslims, without fearing martyrdom. Llull believed discussions about sacred texts from the Bible and the Qur’an were futile.
  2. Write the best book in the world against the errors of unbelievers.
  3. Convince the Pope, kings, and princes to found monasteries for training missionaries.

Ramon’s new life was dedicated to loving, praising, and serving God. His essential objective was to spread the truth by making it clear and accessible to both believers and unbelievers, imposing it through the strength of evidence. His art was a technique that presented truth through rational formulations he called ‘necessary reasons’ or ‘demonstrative reasons’. The Book of the Gentile and the Three Wise Men is considered one of his most literary works on religious controversy.

Work

Philosophical Prose

The Art of Shortening Truth, written in 1271, was Llull’s first attempt at a general art. The Book of the Gentile and the Three Wise Men, though translated from Arabic into Catalan in 1272, predates it. The Tree is an encyclopedia of sciences organized through allegorical trees, covering all human knowledge.

Religious and Educational Works

Two notable works are:

  • The Book of the Order of Chivalry, which focuses on knightly training according to medieval conceptions.
  • The Book of Mary, a dialogue between two allegorical women: Prayer and Llausor, exploring ways to pray and praise the Virgin Mary.

Narrative Works

Two key pieces, Blanquerna and Felix, are well-known and studied. The Romance of Evast and Blanquerna, as Llull called it, is a crucial work. It’s often considered the first attempt at a novel in Western literature.

Llull’s Notable Works

  • Book of Evast and Blanquerna: An idealistic novel that influenced medieval narrative. It vividly depicts medieval life. Following his religious vocation, the protagonist seeks God through a life journey that leads him to become a monk, abbot, bishop, and pope, finally ending as a hermit.
  • Book of Beasts: Though presented as a zoology treatise, it’s a political fable about the fox Na Renard’s machinations to gain power. It’s been interpreted as a warning to King Philip the Fair of France.
  • Book of Wonders: Written in Paris between 1287 and 1289, Felix or The Book of Wonders is a doctrinal work combining narrative and dialogue between a teacher and student. Felix travels the world, exploring the gap between the divine order and human behavior. Hermits and philosophers represent the knowledge of the 13th century.

Minstrels and Troubadours

Minstrels

Minstrels were responsible for transmitting troubadour poems to the public, singing them while playing instruments. Some were dedicated to specific troubadours, while others had a wider repertoire. They were performers of poetry and juggling.

Troubadours

Troubadours were cultured poets of the 12th and 13th centuries who wrote in the vernacular, suggesting they came from the upper class. They wrote the lyrics and composed the music for their poems, which were disseminated through song.

Genres of Troubadour Poetry

  • The Song (Canso): The primary genre, focused on courtly love. It had its own melody and five to seven stanzas plus a refrain.
  • The Sirventes: The opposite of the song, expressing satire, anger, or attack. It used existing melodies.
  • The Planh (Complaint): Lamented the death of a person.
  • The Alba (Dawn): A love poem expressing the lovers’ sorrow at parting. Watchmen (Gilo or Llausangers) played a role.
  • The Pastorela: Depicted an encounter between a knight and a shepherdess.
  • The Tenso (Debate): Featured debates between troubadours.

Courtly Love

A major theme in troubadour literature, courtly love involves a love triangle (lover-lady-husband), mirroring the feudal relationship between lord and vassal. The troubadour (vassal) loves a married lady (lord), and their adulterous love remains secret. The Llausangers ensure the lady’s fidelity to her husband. This love is true because the troubadour cannot publicly reveal his beloved.

Ramon Llull

Considered the creator of Catalan literary prose, Llull was the first European author to use a Romance language to discuss topics traditionally reserved for Latin: philosophy, science, theology, pedagogy, astronomy, and astrology. Born in Majorca in 1232, he was the son of Barcelonan parents. He served as tutor, butler, and steward to James II of Majorca. Married to Blanca Picany, he had two children. At thirty, while composing a love song, he experienced five visions of Christ crucified, leading him to abandon his family and embrace a life of repentance and ministry. He traveled across Europe, the Holy Land, and North Africa, aiming to convert infidels through missionary work and establish schools to teach his art and languages. He preached in councils and universities, visited courts, and wrote around 250 works on diverse topics, including the Book of Contemplation, Tree of the Philosophy of Love, Book of Wonders, and Book of Beasts. He died in 1315.