Spanish Post-War Poetry: From Anguish to Social Realism
Post-War Poetry
1944 marks the start of a violent awakening in Spanish poetry. Dámaso Alonso’s (1898-1990) Children of Wrath, a book of torn, uprooted poetry, not based on traditional experiences like religion, home, politics, or family, reflected this. His conversational tone captured the existential angst of the 1940s. Another poet of the Generation of ’27, Vicente Aleixandre, pointed the direction of poetry at this time with Shadow of Paradise (1944), where pain is expressed from the perspective
Read MoreEnglish Neoclassical Literature: Restoration to Johnson
Neoclassicism in English Literature
In England, Neoclassicism flourished roughly between 1660, when the Stuarts returned to the throne, and the 1798 publication of Wordsworth’s Lyrical Ballads, with its theoretical preface and collection of poems that came to be seen as heralding the beginning of the Romantic Age. Regarding English literature, the Neoclassical Age is typically divided into three periods: the Restoration Age (1660-1700), the Augustan Age (1700-1750), and the Age of Johnson (1750-1798)
Read MoreModernism in Literature: A Deep Dive
MODERNISM (1895-1915):
1. Concept
Modernism is a literary manifesto, a genre of Latin American poetry with root development in 1915. It was between 1885 and a time and an attitude, a new mentality, thinking in a manifesto and in all the arts.
2. Features
A) Aesthetic rebellion: aspire to renew the art by the belleza. Se buskeda oppose bourgeois aesthetic s.xix. Rechazan the industrial ugliness and utilitarianism defended by contrast the aesthetic refinement and art for art and vulgaridad.
B) Social and
Read MoreLiterary Movements: Baroque to Romanticism in Catalan Literature
Baroque Conceptismo
Baroque Conceptismo: Line and satiric burlesque. Francisco Garcia Vicen.
Culteranismo: Find the absolute expression of beauty from the exaggeration of forms used in the revival. (F. Fontanella, influenced by Garcilaso)
The Rector of Vallfogona (XVII): F. Vicente Garcia, a poet known for the variety and diversity in his work, imitated Spanish poetry. Two different literary attitudes:
- Elegant and Rhetorical
- Satirical, burlesque, irony, and eschatological, which gave him more fame.
Vallfogonisme:
Read MoreSamuel Pepys’ Diary: A Window into 17th Century England
The Diary of Samuel Pepys
Chaucer, Langland, and the Medieval Estates System
(i) Pardoner’s Tale
The extract from “The Pardoner’s Tale” shows how Geoffrey Chaucer critiques the corruption in the medieval Church. The Pardoner is a character who represents greed and hypocrisy. He uses his sermon to trick people into giving him money by selling fake indulgences and relics.
The italicized words in line 12, “as clean and eke as clear,” are very important because they show how fake his promises are. These words make it seem like he is offering a very pure and holy solution to
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