Medieval Literature: Clergy, Lyric, Prose, and Celestina Analysis
Medieval Clergy Literature
The Mester de Clerecía was a school of writers succeeding the Mester de Juglaría. The term ‘clergyman’ was applied to men of letters. Their works aimed to educate the public on church doctrines and Christian values. Emerging in the twelfth century, its main features include:
- Subjects: Religious and romance texts, often inspired by Latin authors.
- Characters: Historical figures, court members, and saints.
- Metric: Regular lines, often stanzas of four 14-syllable lines with rhyme.
- Style: Careful language, descriptive, using literary devices like comparisons and metaphors.
Cultured Lyric in the Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages, two literary currents existed: popular and cultured. The Mester de Clerecía was part of the cultured tradition. Cultured Lyric, starting in the 15th century, focused on arts and classical culture, causing popular poetry to evolve. Key aspects include:
- Themes: Love, society, and death. Love is treated differently from popular poetry.
- Metric: Eleven-syllable verses and sonnets. The canción repeats words in stanzas. The pie quebrado couplet is also used.
- Style: Enriched language with more literary resources.
Medieval Prose
Castilian prose emerged by the 13th century. Before this, texts were mainly in Latin. The Toledo School of Translators, with Arab, Christian, and Jewish scholars, was crucial. The growing interest in these works and the decline of Latin knowledge contributed to the use of Castilian.
Prose Narrative and Don Juan Manuel
During the 14th century, prose became didactic. Don Juan Manuel’s best-known work is El Conde Lucanor, a collection of 51 short stories. The structure includes:
- Topics: Varied, offering practical lessons.
- Characters: Historical or real.
- Structure: Introduction of the matter, a question, an example story, and moral counsel in verses.
Celestina
The authorship of Celestina is debated, but it is attributed to Fernando de Rojas. The title varies, but the popular name ‘The Matchmaker’ is definitive. Its dramatic character makes it hard to classify. The plot involves Calisto, a nobleman, who falls for Melibea. He seeks help from Celestina, an old woman, to win her love. Celestina is killed by Calisto’s servants. Calisto dies trying to climb Melibea’s garden wall, and Melibea commits suicide.
Phrases and Adjective Degrees
A phrase is a word or group of words with the same syntactic function, built around a core.
Degrees of Adjectives:
- Positive: Neutral quality.
- Comparative: Comparison between two elements (superiority, equality, inferiority).
- Superlative: Maximum quality, not comparing.
- Explanatory: An attribute of the noun.
- Specifying: A particular quality that differentiates the noun.