Key Figures of English Enlightenment and Romantic Poetry
Alexander Pope: English essayist, critic, satirist, and one of the greatest poets of the Enlightenment. Alexander Pope wrote his first verses at the age of 12. His breakthrough work, An Essay on Criticism (1711) appeared when he was twenty-three. It included the famous line “a little learning is a dangerous thing.” Pope’s physical defects made him an easy target for heartless mockery, but he was also considered a leading literary critic and the epitome of English Neoclassicism.
Notable Works:
- Pastorals
- An
18th Century Spanish Literature: Enlightenment & Theater
The Eighteenth Century in Spain
Historical Events and Dynastic Changes
The 18th century saw significant historical events, including changes in reigning dynasties with the death of Charles II and the ascension of Philip V. Developments in European intellectual currents directly influenced the establishment of the Bourbon dynasty in Spain.
Efforts were made to address political, economic, and cultural decay. Key monarchs of this era included:
- Philip V: Implemented reforms to unify administrations, established
Literary Analysis: Garcilaso, Quevedo, and Bécquer
Analysis of Literary Works: Garcilaso, Quevedo, and Bécquer
Garcilaso de la Vega: Sonnet Analysis
Location: Lyric poem by Garcilaso de la Vega, a Spanish Renaissance author and prototype of the knight of the time.
Topic: The poet urges a young girl to love before time withers her beauty (Carpe diem).
Structure:
- The poet refers to the color and grace of youth (lines 1-8).
- The poet refers to old age (lines 9-14).
Analysis and Content Development
- This sonnet falls within the hedonistic doctrine, which seeks
Gongora, Lope de Vega, Quevedo: Culteranismo and Conceptismo
Luis de Góngora and Culteranismo
A champion of comedies of little relevance, Góngora’s work is purely lyrical. He wrote mostly secular and religious poetry, using the verses of the time, long or short verses: romance, ballad, quatrains, sonnets (a large and complicated structure for perfection to create a poetic language itself), triplets, silvas, eighths, etc. His inspiration is oriented towards two opposite poles: humorous or burlesque, on the one hand, and refined idealization, on the other.
Read MoreUnderstanding Lyrical and Heroic Poetry in Anglo-Saxon Literature
Lyrical Elegy
In these poems, a mood of lyrical elegy dominates.
The Wanderer
It is a poem about the laments of a solitary man who once was happy in the service of a lord, but after his lord’s death, his happiness and friendship disappear, so he becomes a wanderer. The poem ends with a moralism like you have to be good. It’s an impressive lament for the gone joys.
The Seafarer
It has the same melancholic tone as The Wanderer, the same feeling of regret. It is about an old sailor who remembers the loneliness
Quevedo’s Sonnet: A Baroque Reflection on Mortality
Analysis
In the 17th century, the Baroque movement disrupted Renaissance conventions, embracing exaggeration and disproportion. Francisco de Quevedo’s sonnet exemplifies this aesthetic. Written in traditional form—two quartets and two tercets, each verse with 11 syllables and a cross rhyme scheme—the poem explores the author’s confrontation with mortality.
Structure and Themes
The sonnet is divided into two parts. The first (the quartets) depicts the author’s struggle with impending death, a battle
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