15th-Century Spanish Literature: Tradition and Renewal
15th-Century Spanish Literature
Historical Context
The Catholic Monarchs unified Spain, marking the beginning of the modern era. The 15th century witnessed the rise of the bourgeoisie alongside the existing medieval estates (clergy, nobility, and commoners). The invention of the printing press facilitated wider dissemination of texts.
Cultural Context
Humanism, a cultural movement promoting the study of classical Greek and Roman literature, history, and grammar, arrived in Spain. This movement placed man at the center of the universe. The printing press further spread humanist ideals.
Literary Tradition and Renewal
The 15th century saw a blend of medieval and humanist themes, forms, and genres. This fusion resulted in a medievalizing trend, evident in the continued interest in chivalric themes, allegory, and the influence of Provençal lyric poetry. This period also saw a renewed appreciation for fame, admiration for ornate style, and the decline of medieval schools of thought.
Learned poetry, influenced by Dante’s Divine Comedy, coexisted with the development of folk poetry (ballads). Petrarch was a key influence among humanist authors in 15th-century Spanish literature.
Cultured Poetry
15th-century poetry explored diverse themes, including love, satire, and morality. These poems are often referred to as cancionero poetry, as they are preserved in songbooks of the period. These songbooks reflect the varied poetic production of different regions. Love poetry was influenced by medieval courtly love, the Provençal troubadour tradition, and the allegorical-moral style of Italian lyric poetry, particularly Dante.
The Marquis of Santillana is particularly known for his compositions that imitate traditional poetry, such as serranillas.
Jorge Manrique (Coplas por la muerte de su padre)
Jorge Manrique, known for his love poems and the elegy Coplas por la muerte de su padre (Stanzas on the Death of His Father), was a prominent poet. While his love poetry reflects the artificiality of the genre, his personal voice shines through. Manrique, a member of the Castilian nobility, died at 39 in battle. He represents one of the last figures of the warrior aristocracy, embodying medieval ideals within a humanist context.
Coplas por la muerte de su padre: An Elegy
This elegy expresses Manrique’s grief.
- Metrical Structure: Each of the 40 stanzas consists of twelve verses (octosyllabic and tetrasyllabic) arranged in rhyming couplets (abc, abc).
- Themes: The work explores the transience of life, the inevitability of death, a nostalgic evocation of the past, and a celebration of his father’s virtues.
- Style: The style is simple and profound, avoiding excessive rhetoric. The natural language contrasts with the gravity of the subject matter.
- Meaning: The work reflects the sensibilities of the late Middle Ages, while the figure of his father embodies chivalric and Christian virtues.
Ballads (Romances)
The popularity of ballads is linked to the appreciation of traditional forms, emerging at the end of the 15th century under the influence of humanism. Learned poets and courtiers took interest in orally transmitted ballads, incorporating them into songbooks that collected both music and lyrics, which were sung in the courts. These songbooks preserved both traditional songs and ballads.
- Old Ballads: Anonymous, orally transmitted, often dealing with epic themes.
- New Ballads: Authorship known, written form.
Characteristics of Ballads
- Lyrical-narrative composition intended for singing.
- Octosyllabic verse.
- Assonant rhyme in even lines, odd lines unrhymed.
- Combines elements of poetry and epic.
- Fragmentary storytelling, isolated from context.
- Focus on essentials, abrupt beginnings and endings.
- Use of mystery and dramatic tone.
Style of Ballads
- Distinct style with lyrical, epic, and dramatic elements.
- Simple, strong, and agile tone in narrative and emotional expression.
- Use of description, dialogue, and fragmentation.
- Mysterious and dramatic tone.
Types of Ballads
- Epic Ballads: Reflect themes and characters from epic poems (e.g., Roland, El Cid).
- Historical or News Ballads: Deal with recent history, often with a propagandistic function.
- Lyrical and Romantic Ballads: Brief, emotional ballads about love, death, and loneliness. These often feature characters from European epics (e.g., King Arthur, Charlemagne).
Prose in the 15th Century
Castilian prose developed following the models of the time: idealistic novels and satire.
- Idealistic Novels: Present an embellished reality. Key authors include Rodríguez del Padrón and Diego de San Pedro.
- Satire: Works like El Corbacho by Alfonso Martínez de Toledo, which examines love from a Christian perspective.
Theater in the 15th Century
- Lucas Fernández (religious drama)
- Juan del Encina (Renaissance theater)