Catalan Literature and European Artistic Movements: A Historical Overview
Books of Chivalry
Arthurian legend, the ideal of chivalry is characterized by the presence of wondrous elements and unlikely places in distant lands. Exotic and timeless themes are described, especially in the old Spanish Amadís de Gaula. These themes degenerate in Cervantes’ Don Quixote.
Novels of Chivalry
Novels that still treat the myth of King Arthur, but do not incorporate marvelous elements. Strong protagonists are violent but within the human dimension, and the settings are localized in time. These novels are set in a time immediately after they were written, and the characters are realistic. Examples include Curial e Güelfa and Tirant lo Blanc.
Curial e Güelfa
Debate about the authorship and genre: Anonymous 15th-century novel. It can be placed between 1435-1462, making the novel close to the 14th century. It is a total novel: chivalric, sentimental, adventurous, courtly, and psychological. Divided into 3 books. Curial, a young orphaned man without fortune, enters the service of a rich lord, the Marquis of Montferrat. He is great and handsome and attracts the lord’s sister, Güelfa, a 15-year-old widow.
Romanticism
Aesthetic movement in the mid-18th century that lasts for about 18 years and determines not only the art of the century, but also the sensitivity and attitudes of European artists. Passion is given preference over reason (illustration), an attitude of rebellion.
Sources
Originating in Germany in the 18th century, with an attitude of revolt against classicism, it made its way to England and from there to other European countries. Its onset was influenced by Shakespeare, but was weak at first for two reasons: strong neoclassicism, and Germany being the enemy.
Characteristics
It had a liberal and a conservative side. It was a revolt: a confrontation arises from classicism and the defense of creative freedom and the importance of the rational world. It is a state of mind: the feeling of dissatisfaction is fundamental, developing into enthusiasm and disappointment. It is a literary program: it wants to communicate an emotion.
Topics
Historic time: time of social conflict throughout Europe, the recent era of freedom. Big changes: the evil of the century / nostalgia for the past / the self / nature / the suffering of the people / awakening of national identity.
Renaixença
Recovery movement that aims to revitalize Catalan culture during the 19th century, promoting the dignity of language and literature. The recovery project begins around 1870. Parallel to the advent of Romanticism, it is influenced by the industrial revolution.
Jacint Verdaguer
Prestigious poet of Catalan literature of the 19th century. His literary work has great coherence: overflowing imagination, descriptions often of natural catastrophes, and works closely with detail. His intimate and tender language is rooted in the purest tradition of popular song.
The Renaissance
Can be defined as humanism, a historical period focusing on all aspects of human life and promoting the arts and scientific and technical discoveries of the modern age (Copernicus, Galileo, Da Vinci…). The Crown of Aragon joined in 1479, the universal man.
Baroque
European artistic trend that prevailed between the late 16th and 18th centuries. Its art contrasts with the Renaissance period: the ideal of balance and serenity of Renaissance art is replaced by the desire to impress and dazzle through defects in light and medium, mass movement, etc. Castilian authors maximize the resources of rhetoric and syntax, creating dark poetry. To impress, the topics addressed are the passing of time, calamity, and the setbacks of fortune.
Ramon Llull
1232. Son of a noble family from Barcelona, born in Mallorca 3 years after James I. A great traveler, he worked in Catalan and Latin, with 265 titles. He worked towards the council, the Ramon Llull University. His prose work includes Book of the Lover and the Beloved.
Bernat Metge
Born between 1340-6 in Barcelona. Prose work: Griselda and Walter, promoting philosophical dialogue. Unfinished sketch of The Dream (1399), written after his release from jail, freed of guilt. 4 books.
Troubadour Poetry
Lyrical movement linked to feudal vassalage.
Guillem de Berguedà
1138-1196. Great feudal lord and landowner. 31 preserved poems. He was assassinated by Ponç de Mataplana. Fierce criticism of his enemies, simple style and popular disclosure.
Cerverí de Girona
1259-1285. Professional troubadour who lived from his art. 120 preserved compositions, including proverbs and a moral poem. Perfect and original rhythms, understandable poetry close to two centuries old.