Key Figures and Concepts in Classical and Modern Culture
Classical Mythology and History
Key Figures of Antiquity
- Spartacus: An escaped slave leader during the Third Servile War, he led a major uprising against the Roman Republic.
- Julius Caesar: A renowned general, politician, and scholar in Ancient Rome. He played a critical role in the events that led to the demise of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire, eventually becoming dictator.
- Cleopatra: Ruler of Ancient Egypt for three decades, she was the last in a dynasty of Macedonian rulers founded
The Evolution of Latin American Poetry: 19th and 20th Centuries
Modernism: Origins, Characteristics, and Evolution
Modernism emerged in America and Europe at the end of the nineteenth century, standing in opposition to Realism (the previous movement) and expressing a rebellious attitude against bourgeois values. The artist, heir to the Romantic spirit, rebelled against society and institutions.
Key Precursors of Modernism
- José Martí (Cuba)
- Manuel Gutiérrez Nájera (Mexico)
- Above all, Rubén Darío (Nicaragua), known for works such as Azul and Prosas profanas (
The Generation of ’27: Key Authors, Aesthetics, and Stages
The Generation of ’27: Spanish Literary Movement
Under this name are grouped a number of writers who combined the Spanish literary tradition (songbooks and poets of the Golden Age) with new avant-garde trends. The reference date was 1927, marking the three hundredth anniversary of the death of Góngora, a time used to re-evaluate the Baroque poet.
The most important authors in this group were: Pedro Salinas, Jorge Guillén, Gerardo Diego, Vicente Aleixandre, Federico García Lorca, Dámaso Alonso,
Read MoreConceptismo vs. Culteranismo in Spanish Baroque Literature
Conceptismo and Culteranismo in Baroque Literature
Within the Spanish Baroque period, two main literary tendencies emerged: Conceptismo and Culteranismo.
Culteranismo
Its foremost representative is Luis de Góngora, who sought to create an enlightened and exclusive poetic language. This style emphasizes formal beauty, colorful brilliance, and sensory details. It is achieved through the careful elaboration of language and a profusion of various resources, such as:
- Bold metaphors
- Hyperbaton (altered word
Literary Movements in Spain and Latin America (1950-1970s)
Spanish Poetry in the 1960s: The Renewal
The poetic language of Renovación is regarded as an end in itself, not merely as a means of transmisión of an ideological message, unlike social poetry.
Key authors include: Claudio Rodríguez and Jaime Gil de Viedma.
The Poetry of the Last Things (Novísimos)
In 1970, José María Castellet published an anthology of Nueve novísimos poetas españoles (Spanish Novísimos), which introduced young poets such as Pere Gimferrer and Leopoldo María Panero.
The work
Read MoreEssential Answers in Classical Literature: Oedipus, Homer, and Horace
Key Questions on Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex and Thebes
The Plague and the King’s Murder
Whose murder must be avenged to end the plague in Thebes?
The murder that needs to be avenged to end the plague in Thebes is that of Laius, the former king of Thebes.
What news did Creon bring from the Oracle at Delphi?
Creon brought news from the Oracle at Delphi that the plague ravaging Thebes could only be lifted by finding and punishing the murderer of the former king, Laius.
How does Oedipus try to avenge the murder