17th-Century Spanish Baroque: Politics, Society, Culture, and Poetry
1. 17th-Century Spain: An Overview
1.1 Political, Social, and Economic Aspects
Spain began the 17th century in decline, having lost significant territories and its European hegemony. Several factors contributed to this situation:
- Shift of Power: This period saw authoritarianism and the rise of validos (royal advisors with significant influence).
- Economic Crisis: Wars during Philip II’s reign and subsequent conflicts caused financial problems and state bankruptcy.
- Depopulation: Plague epidemics led to a substantial population decline.
- Corruption and Inaction: The nobility remained unproductive and idle, while corruption spread among the powerful.
1.2 Religion
Religion played a crucial role, marked by the Counter-Reformation and the Inquisition.
1.3 Baroque Ideology
Baroque art reflected a worldview shaped by conflict, crisis, and contradictions. This context fostered pessimism and disillusionment. Uncertainty stemmed from appearances and constant change, leading to distrust. Reality was perceived as a struggle of opposites, reflected in art through contrasts of light and shadow. Baroque celebrations blended the sacred and the profane, laughter and pleasure. Art explored human weakness, the fleeting nature of time, and the presence of death.
Collective Beliefs: Irrationalism, magical thinking, and belief in the supernatural intensified.
Schools of Thought: Reactions ranged from seeking pleasure and beauty to realistic acceptance or ascetic spirituality.
1.4 Baroque Culture
The 17th-century crisis coincided with a period of cultural flourishing known as the Golden Century.
- Patronage and Official Culture: The monarchy, nobility, and clergy supported artistic activities. Official culture resided in universities and colleges. Due to widespread illiteracy, information was transmitted orally and visually. Spain lagged behind in scientific advancements.
- Baroque Festivities: Public life revolved around celebrations, religious ceremonies, and processions.
- Theater’s Rise: Theater became a prominent form of entertainment.
2. Baroque Poetry
Baroque poetry intensified earlier poetic trends. Texts often expressed disillusionment and the era’s sense of crisis. Diverse themes and approaches characterized the period:
- Love Poetry: Renaissance ideals of love continued, with pained expressions of frustrated love and Petrarchan imagery. Love was also explored through parody and burlesque.
- Moral and Philosophical Poetry: Pessimism, disillusionment, the contrast between reality and appearance, life’s transience, and awareness of death were dominant themes. Stoic ideas about mastering passions to overcome the fear of death and live virtuously were revived.
- Religious Poetry: Spiritual reflection and repentance were common, alongside celebratory poetry.
- Burlesque Poetry: Humor, parody, mockery, and personal attacks were characteristic.
2.1 Formal Aspects
Baroque poetry displayed remarkable formal variety. Its wit and language use were evident in its expressive resources:
- Metrics: Octosyllabic verse was prominent, along with combinations like seguidillas, villancicos, letrillas, and ballads. Quatrains and choruses were common. Renaissance Italian verse forms like the silva were also cultivated.
- Concepts and Expressive Resources: Wit and poetic ingenuity were showcased in satirical, heroic, and minor art verse. Contrasts and contradictions were evident in the use of antithesis, oxymoron, and paradox. Dilogy, puns, and hyperbole were employed for surprising effects. Hyperbaton, parallelism, and anaphora were also notable. Learned words were used alongside colloquial and vulgar terms.