La Celestina by Fernando de Rojas: Characters & Structure
La Celestina by Fernando de Rojas
La Celestina is one of the most appreciated works of literature, written by Fernando de Rojas in the last years of the 15th century. It hinges at the junction of two major phases of culture and picks up echoes of the medieval universe, which is ending, and the early Renaissance world, which reflects the start of the Modern Age.
Genre
La Celestina is included within the humanistic comedy genre. The theatrical elements are narrative; it lacks a narrator (except for the
Read MoreLazarillo de Tormes: Summary and Features
Lazarillo de Tormes
Plot Summary
Lazarus, the protagonist, tells his life story from birth to the present, emphasizing the societal pressures that shaped him. He is a humble boy, orphaned, with a mother who, after losing her husband, seeks another boyfriend. The story follows Lazarus’s transformation from a naive child into a rogue, a necessary adaptation for survival. This evolution is depicted through his experiences with different masters. Eventually, Lazarus finds employment as a town crier in
Read MoreSpanish Theater Before the Civil War: Trends & Authors
Spanish Theater Before the Civil War
Spanish theater before the Civil War emerged as a genre driven by entrepreneurs seeking works that appealed to the bourgeois public for financial gain. The bourgeoisie favored pieces that provided aesthetic and ideological entertainment without delving too deeply into reality. This led to the rise of two distinct theatrical trends: the successful commercial theater and the innovative theater, which included elite authors from the Generation of ’98 and ’27.
Commercial
Read MoreQuevedo, Gracián and Origins of Peninsular Theater
Quevedo’s Satirical Prose
Quevedo’s satirical prose includes works on political, philosophical, and moral-satirical themes. Dreams (moral-satirical), published in 1627 and re-edited in a series of stories in 1631, features social satire that exemplifies reprehensible individual behaviors.
- Sueño del Juicio Final: All characters representing different social classes and types are raised and submitted to the final trial.
- Sueño del Infierno: A beautiful natural area gives birth to two paths. One is the
Understanding Avant-Garde Movements and Generation of ’27
What are the Avant-Gardes?
A group of artistic and literary movements that developed in Europe and America during the first third of the twentieth century.
What is the Most Important Characteristic?
The common denominator of the avant-garde is a break with prior literature, art, and Western aesthetic tradition. It arose from dissatisfaction with the present, which accelerated after the First World War.
Four Common Characteristics:
- Antirealism: Disagreement with reality; the authors break with the idea
Understanding Spanish Literary Terms and Concepts
Understanding Spanish Literary Concepts
sust + sust = purchase
adj = adj + adj = Patapalo rojiblanco submarine
prep + = v + sust sust = dishwasher Subeybaja
v + v = v + adv = adv + adj = boss smelly
cn: Nominal with preposition is a phrase that states a quality of the name it bears before
cd: Is the complement in which lies the action of the verb
ci: Is that the action experiences
intransigence transitive = cd: cd not
reflexive: Acts on the subject (me)
reciprocal: Between different subjects (it)
cordcopulativas: