The Poema de Mio Cid: Authorship, Structure, and Style
The Poema de Mio Cid: Authorship Debates
The Spanish medieval epic suffers from a serious shortage of preserved texts. The Poema de Mio Cid is a notable exception, but its origins have been a subject of scholarly debate.
Theories on Authorship
Traditionalist Theory
Represented by Menéndez Pidal, this theory argues that Castilian epics emerged in the immediate aftermath of the events they describe. In the case of the Poema de Mio Cid, Menéndez Pidal states that the work originated and was transmitted orally shortly after the protagonist’s death.
Individualist Theory
This theory is represented by Colin Smith, who posits that the poem is a unified and experimental work, composed by a single author at a specific time.
Poema de Mio Cid: Content, Structure, and Characters
The poem presents a tripartite structure based on its three constituent “songs”:
- The Song of Exile (Cantar del Destierro)
- The Song of the Wedding (Cantar de las Bodas)
- The Song of Corpes Affront (Cantar de la Afrenta de Corpes)
Regarding the author’s intention and fidelity to historical facts, it seems clear that the work is a poetic creation that blends historical truth with fictional elements for a primarily artistic purpose. While the Cid exemplifies faithfulness to the king, some interpretations focus on the work’s role as propaganda for the low nobility of Castile and León against the aristocracy.
El Cid is the central character and exemplifies the virtues of the medieval knight:
- Loyalty to the king
- Honor and integrity
- Military prowess
- Family devotion
- Religious piety
Poema de Mio Cid: Metrics and Style
The verses are grouped into monorhyme and assonant laisses (tiradas), having variable length and a caesura that divides each into two hemistiches. The text exhibits many stylistic features common in oral epic poetry, which some critics relate to its oral origin and the style of legal documents that the author would know well. Key stylistic elements include:
- Use of epic epithets and binary phraseology, enumerations, and antithesis.
- Frequent use of direct speech, which provides realism and intensity.
- Appeals to the audience for their attention.
- Variety of tenses, with a predominance of the historical present.
Medieval Literary Movements: Mester de Juglaría & Clerecía
Mester de Juglaría (Minstrelsy)
Flourishing in the 13th century, the office of the minstrels (juglares) was to entertain audiences with their resources and skills: songs, music, acrobatics, and storytelling. The audience was diverse, and performances often adapted to the spectators. There were various types of minstrels, from the humble ‘cazurros’ to the more highly appreciated professional minstrels.
Mester de Clerecía (Clergy’s Craft)
The name “Mester de Clerecía” first appears in the Libro de Alexandre. In this work, the author argues that the Mester de Clerecía is the opposite of minstrelsy, priding itself on its regularity and consistency, in contrast to the irregularity and perceived lack of inherent skill in minstrelsy. This style, advocated by the author of the Libro de Alexandre, is summarized by the following traits:
- Works written in Castilian by educated authors, characterized by being “with reason” (en seso), unlike those of the minstrels.
- Uses the “cuaderna vía” stanza: a four-line stanza with monorhyme Alexandrine verses and a caesura in the middle.
- Poems have an informative and educational intention, aiming to disseminate knowledge and reach a wider public, unlike the minstrels.
However, authors of Mester de Clerecía sometimes incorporated resources and techniques from minstrelsy to make their works more accessible.
Gonzalo de Berceo: Pioneer of Spanish Poetry
Gonzalo de Berceo, the first Spanish poet whose name is known, was born in the late 12th century in Berceo. Gonzalo is the most representative figure of the genuine Mester de Clerecía. All his works are thematically religious.
As is characteristic of the Mester de Clerecía, Berceo expressed great interest in adhering to his sources. He also infused his original works with his own worldview, a certain irony, some comedy, and especially resources borrowed from the minstrels, using language that oscillates between the cultured and the familiar and everyday. It is in his use of the popular and most vivid and accessible language that Berceo shines as a poet, intensely realistic, giving life to what could have remained dry moralism and exemplary scholarship.
His best-known work is Milagros de Nuestra Señora (Miracles of Our Lady). These miracles are part of a broader stream of Marian devotion manifested across Europe in collections of miracles in Latin and Romance languages.