Spanish Golden Age Theater and Novel: Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina, Calderón, Cervantes
Spanish Golden Age Theater and Novel
Lope de Vega
Lope de Vega: He created a dramatic new formula that triumphed in the Spanish art scene. His comedies are characterized by:
- Freedom in the choice of topic.
- Mixture of tragic and comic elements.
- Unity of action and freedom of place and time (apart from the classical unities).
- Division into three acts (compared to five in classical comedies: beginning, middle, and end).
- Verisimilitude in the characters’ speech, according to their social status.
- Adequacy of
Spanish Romanticism: Authors, Works, and Themes
Don Juan Tenorio: A Masterpiece of Spanish Romanticism
Don Juan Tenorio, the great religious drama by José Zorrilla, reflects the myth of Don Juan. The most important theme of this work is the freedom to decide an individual’s ability to change their destination by their will, besides love and the mercy of God.
Structure, Time, and Space
The work consists of two parts, of four and three acts each. A contrast is provided between the two parts: the first focuses on the characterization of the protagonist,
Read MoreCatalan Literature: History, Movements, and Key Authors
Catalan Literature: A Historical Overview
Prose:
- Religious and Moral: Ramon Llull laid the foundation for Catalan prose maturity. Eiximenis Francis and St. Vincent Ferrer promoted Christian doctrine.
- Narrative History: Chroniclers like James I, Peter of Aragon, Bernard Desclot, and Ramon Muntaner wrote historiographic tales defending Catalan kings’ policies.
- Moral and Philosophical Prose: Bernat Metge debated classic works on topics like the immortality of the soul and love.
- Chivalric Novel: Curial e
Understanding Literature: Definition, Functions, and Evolution
Understanding the Nature of the Literary Phenomenon
Literature is a phenomenon that is difficult to define, since the field of literature includes texts of great variety. Literature is an art form whose raw material is the units of language, which the writer manipulates to produce an aesthetic and emotional effect on the receiver. The two defining elements of the literary phenomenon are the creation of a fictional world and the use of language in a special way. The term fiction designates the peculiar
Read MoreGothic Literature: Origins, Themes, and Key Novels
Narrative provides order, meaning, and a metaphoric map in time, with a beginning, middle, and end, guiding us.
Gothic Romance: Origins and Evolution
GOTHIC The gothic romance emerged in England shortly after the novel form itself. Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto (1764) reacted against the limitations of early novels. The novel of manners and didactic sensibility were exposed to the unconscious. Sensibility was under pressure. Sexuality, elemental passions, and fear moved to the center. The
15th Century Novel Trends: Idealistic and Realistic
15th Century Novel Trends
Idealistic Trends
- Cavalry Novel:
- Sentimental novel.
- New genres like pastoral novel (inspired by Virgil, love stories among pastoralists).
- Moorish novel (exalting the Moor’s nobility and sentiment).
- Byzantine novel (imitating Heliodorus, adventures of a couple in love, with trips, kidnappings, shipwrecks, and happy endings).
- Idealistic Cavalry Book:
- Preferred reading of the court.
- Presented as a translation of a story written in a strange language.
- Novela de Caballería: set in the