Themes in Miguel Hernández’s Poetry
Miguel Hernández’s Poetry
Main Themes
Miguel Hernández’s poetry can be explored through four stages, each reflecting key concepts:
Orihuela Phase:
Focus on nature, as seen in Perito en lunas.
Love and Existential Phase:
Exploration of love and existential themes in Rayo sin cesar.
Fighting Phase:
Poetry of social commitment: Viento del pueblo and El hombre acecha.
Final Stage:
Themes of freedom, justice, and love in Cancionero y romancero de ausencias.
The Theme of Nature
Depiction of the rural environment
Spanish Literature of the Renaissance
Garcilaso de la Vega (1501-1536)
Born in Toledo, Garcilaso de la Vega was a man of arms and letters. His love for Isabel Freyre inspired much of his work. His poetic works include 38 sonnets, five songs, three eclogues, two elegies, one letter, and verses in eight-syllable lines. His poetry reflects Renaissance themes in an intimate and personal way. His style is characterized by his selection of vocabulary and imagery, and he uses soft melancholy to express his feelings.
Fray Luis de León (1527-
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The House of Bernarda Alba
Plot Summary
The play begins in Bernarda’s house following the funeral of her husband. Only two maids are present, as the rest of the household is still at the funeral. After the death, Bernarda orders her daughters into a period of absolute mourning, forbidding them from leaving the house. Angustias, the eldest daughter, is engaged to Pepe el Romano, and he visits her at night, speaking through the window to avoid being seen or heard. However, Adela and Martirio witness
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Fuenteovejuna
Synopsis
This play explores the uprising of the people against the Commander’s abuse of power, highlighting the social conflict between the feudal lord and his vassals. The first act reveals the Commander’s tyranny, focusing on his abuse of Laurencia and the “right of the first night.” The villagers, seeking justice, take matters into their own hands and ask the king to endorse their actions. Their unity is key to their success; even under torture, no one reveals the individuals responsible
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Consistency and Cohesion in Texts
Consistency
Consistency, a fundamental property of texts, ensures a coherent whole. A text’s assumptions are implicit propositions—information the sender presumes the receiver knows. Additional information constitutes the text’s implications. Consistency relies on the organization and distribution of information, encompassing the quantity, quality, and structure of the content.
Cohesion
Cohesion involves cross-references within a text or its communicative context.
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Bernarda Alba’s House
Genre and Inspiration
This is a genre of literary fiction that incorporates elements of reality, modified by the author’s poetic vision. One source of inspiration for Lorca’s character of Bernarda was Doña Perfecta, the protagonist of the novel by Galdós. While the play is poetic and not strictly realistic, the settings and some characters are drawn from real life.
Symbolism
Symbolism plays a crucial role. Lorca achieves a symbolic language by condensing and selecting elements
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