Gabriel García Márquez — Magic Realism and Narrative Techniques
Gabriel García Márquez and Context
Gabriel García Márquez was born in Aracataca (Colombia) in 1928. He belongs to a group of writers of the 1960s and combined his journalistic activity with writing short stories and novels. His summit was his novel One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967). He received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1982.
Key Elements of the Latin American Novel
The most significant elements often found in Latin American novels include:
- Magic realism
- Incorporation of the subconscious
- Incorporation
Spanish Lyric Poetry Movements: 1898 to 1939
Lyric Poetry in Early 20th Century Spain
Since the early twentieth century, literature, and particularly lyric poetry, suffered a series of changes due to significant historical circumstances. These included:
- The Disaster of ’98, where Spain lost Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines.
- A shift from Rural Spain, marked by a drift toward the cities.
- Limited industrialization (except in the Basque Country and Catalonia).
- The defeat at Annual, contributing to a pervasive decadent spirit.
From these historical
Read MoreLiterary Analysis: Structure and Forms of Narrative Texts
Narrative Texts: Definition and Structure
Narrative texts relate real or imagined events that happen to characters developed in space and time.
Essential Elements of Narrative
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The Narrator: Recounts the events or circumstances that happen to the characters. The story can be told in:
- First Person: As a character involved in the story (autobiographical).
- Third Person: Without intervening in the history (as a witness), or taking an omniscient stance (knowing the feelings, thoughts, and emotions of the
Athenian Social Structure: Citizens, Metics, and Slaves
Unit 5: Social Groups: Free and Unfree
Social Classes in Athens
There were three main groups in Athenian society:
- Citizens
- Metics
- Slaves
Citizens
Citizens were born in Athens (Athenians). They possessed all political rights and obligations—political, economic, and social. The most important decisions concerned this group. The worst consequences they could face were being deprived of their civil rights or being exiled from Athens. Citizens were dedicated to managing and administering the city.
Metics
A
Read MoreHuman Nature: Dignity, Misery, and Insoluble Riddles
The Human Being: Dignity or Misery?
The man, dignity or misery? In Pico della Mirandola, we find this famous passage: “The Supreme Craftsman made man, creation of an indefinite form, and placed in the center of the world. I talk this way: ‘You have no fixed place or a face of your own, or a particular trade, Oh Adam! For the job, the picture of the job, and what you wish for yourself, you shall have and possess through your own decisions and choices. For others, nature is contracted within certain
Read MoreLiterary Genres and Bibliographic Documentation Standards
Literary Genres and Their Characteristics
Poetry and Lyric Forms
Poetry: It is the genre in which the author expresses their most private feelings: love, sadness, or distress, and generally provides beauty. Types of poetic works include:
- Oda: Exalted themes in poetic form.
- Elegia: Poetic expressions regarding the death of a person close to the poet, such as Verses on the Death of His Father by Jorge Manrique.
- Eclogues: Poetic dialogues between loving shepherds, such as the idealized works of Garcilaso