The Narrative in the Renaissance: From Idealism to Realism
The Narrative in the Renaissance: Deep Renewal
16th-Century Printing and the Spread of Literature
The 16th century saw a significant shift in the literary landscape due to the advent of printing. This technological advancement facilitated the widespread dissemination of texts, leading to the emergence of two distinct trends in narrative fiction:
Idealist Fiction
Drawing inspiration from medieval and Italian models, idealist fiction presented idyllic worlds and characters far removed from the realities of everyday life. These narratives often featured noble protagonists embodying virtues such as courage, loyalty, and honor, providing readers with escapism and entertainment.
Trends within Idealist Fiction:
- The Sentimental Novel: Explored themes of love and loss, often culminating in the tragic demise of the protagonists.
- The Pastoral Novel: Depicted the lives of refined shepherds in idealized natural settings, focusing on love, challenges, and the complexities of human emotions.
- The Moorish Novel: Narrated the conflicts between Moors and Christians on the frontier, featuring idealized characters renowned for their beauty, nobility, and bravery.
- Byzantine Fiction: Inspired by classical adventure novels, these stories involved separated lovers overcoming obstacles and demonstrating unwavering fidelity before ultimately reuniting.
- Novella: Presented a collection of short stories with diverse themes, characters, and plots, often connected by a common thread such as a shared setting or event.
- Chivalric Fiction: Enjoyed immense popularity, featuring valiant knights driven by noble ideals such as love, justice, and the defense of the weak.
Example: Amadis of Gaul
This chivalric romance follows the adventures of Amadis, a knight who embodies the ideals of chivalry. He is deeply in love with Princess Oriana and fights for her honor and the kingdom of King Lisuarte. With the support of his squire Gandalin and the protection of the fairy Urganda, Amadis confronts his nemesis, the giant Arcalus.
The Knight-Errant Archetype
The knight-errant emerged as a central figure in chivalric fiction, representing the embodiment of noble ideals. These knights dedicated their lives to serving their ladies, upholding justice, and defending the weak. They often embarked on perilous quests, facing formidable enemies and relying on the guidance of fantastical beings.
The Rise of Realistic Fiction
During the 16th century, a significant demographic shift occurred as people migrated from rural areas to cities. This influx of population strained urban resources, leading to unemployment, poverty, and social unrest. Literature began to reflect these realities, shifting away from idealized narratives towards a more realistic portrayal of society.
Influenced by works like La Celestina, realistic fiction explored the lives of ordinary people and the challenges they faced. This trend paved the way for the emergence of the picaresque novel, exemplified by Lazarillo de Tormes, which reached its full expression in the 17th century.
Cervantes and the Novel
Miguel de Cervantes, a renowned literary figure, excelled in various genres but is best known for his contributions to the novel. As a well-educated individual with a deep understanding of classical and contemporary literature, Cervantes served as a soldier in the Battle of Lepanto, where he lost the use of his left hand, earning him the nickname “El Manco de Lepanto” (The One-Handed Man of Lepanto).
Cervantes’s literary legacy rests primarily on his two masterpieces: Novelas ejemplares (Exemplary Novels) and Don Quixote. In the prologue to Novelas ejemplares, he included a self-portrait, providing insights into his life and experiences.
Exemplary Novels
Published in 1613, between the first and second parts of Don Quixote, Novelas ejemplares is a collection of twelve short stories that offer poetic and moral interpretations of life. Cervantes referred to them as “exemplary” because he believed each story contained valuable lessons in morality, literature, and other aspects of human experience.
The novels are self-contained, with no direct connections between them. They can be broadly categorized into two groups:
Realistic Novels
These stories depict scenes from the social underworld, often featuring picaresque characters:
- Rinconete and Cortadillo: Follows the adventures of two young rogues who join a criminal organization in Seville.
- The Deceitful Marriage: Explores the theme of deception as a con artist is outwitted by his intended victim.
- The Jealous Extremaduran: Tells the story of an elderly man who returns to Spain from the Indies with a young wife, only to be consumed by jealousy and suspicion.
- The Dialogue of the Dogs: Presents a satirical commentary on society through a conversation between two dogs.
- The Lawyer of Glass: Depicts the rise and fall of a brilliant young man who loses his sanity and reputation due to a love potion.
- The Little Gypsy Girl: Narrates the tale of a young nobleman who falls in love with a gypsy girl and agrees to live as a gypsy for two years to win her hand in marriage.
- The Illustrious Kitchen Maid: Follows two students from aristocratic backgrounds who become rogues and get involved in various escapades.
Idealistic Novels
These stories are characterized by a more poetic and fictional tone:
- The Spanish-English Lady: A Byzantine-style romance involving separated lovers and their eventual reunion.
- The Liberal Lover: Similar in style to The Spanish-English Lady, exploring themes of love, adventure, and redemption.
- The Two Maidens: A tale of love, mistaken identity, and the complexities of human relationships.
- The Force of Blood: Explores the consequences of a forced relationship and the power of forgiveness.
- The Lady Cornelia: A story of love, honor, and social status.
The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha
Considered the most celebrated work in Spanish literature, Don Quixote is a novel divided into two parts: the first published in 1605 and the second in 1615. During the interval between the two parts, an apocryphal sequel titled El Quijote de Avellaneda emerged, written by Alonso Fernández de Avellaneda.
The novel tells the story of Alonso Quixano, an elderly gentleman from La Mancha who becomes obsessed with chivalric novels. Driven to madness by his readings, he assumes the identity of Don Quixote and sets out on a series of adventures with his squire, Sancho Panza, to revive the ideals of chivalry and right the wrongs of the world.
Structure and Plot
Don Quixote is structured around three main salidas (departures) of Don Quixote:
- First Salida: Don Quixote is knighted at an inn he mistakes for a castle. He encounters various misadventures, culminating in a beating by merchants and his return home severely injured. The local priest burns his books, but Don Quixote remains determined to continue his quest and seeks a squire.
- Second Salida: Don Quixote and Sancho Panza embark on a series of adventures, including the famous episode with the windmills, the encounter with the goatherds, and the acquisition of Mambrino’s helmet (actually a barber’s basin).
- Third Salida: Don Quixote and Sancho’s adventures continue, blurring the lines between reality and fiction. They travel to Aragon and eventually reach Barcelona. Don Quixote begins to exhibit signs of sanity and disillusionment, while Sancho becomes increasingly influenced by his master’s delusions.
The first and second salidas comprise Part 1 of the novel, while the third salida constitutes Part 2. A key difference between the two parts lies in the characters’ attitudes towards reality. In Part 1, Don Quixote lives in a world of fantasy, while Sancho represents pragmatism. In Part 2, Don Quixote regains his sanity and perceives reality more clearly, but others create illusions to mock his madness. Sancho, on the other hand, becomes increasingly immersed in a world of fantasy.
Characters
Don Quixote features a multitude of characters, with Don Quixote and Sancho Panza serving as the central figures. Despite their contrasting personalities, they represent the duality of human nature: idealism versus realism, fantasy versus pragmatism.
Don Quixote and the Modern Novel
Don Quixote is considered a groundbreaking work that established a new mold for narrative fiction, paving the way for the modern novel. It brought together various narrative subgenres of the time, introduced innovative writing techniques, and synthesized the entire narrative tradition.
Key Features of the Modern Novel:
- Realism: While fictional, the novel is grounded in social and human realities.
- Dynamism: Characters are complex, contradictory, and capable of evolving throughout the story.
- Perspectivism: The narrative does not present a single point of view, allowing readers to draw their own conclusions.
- Verisimilitude: The story is presented as believable and relatable, despite being fictional.
Cervantes’s Don Quixote stands as a testament to the transformative power of literature and its ability to reflect and shape our understanding of the world.