Middle Ages in Spain: Society, Culture, and Literature
Middle Ages in Spain
Introduction
The Middle Ages span from the fall of the Roman Empire (476 AD) to the discovery of America (1492 AD). During the late Roman Empire, Germanic peoples, including the Visigoths, settled in Spain, eventually uniting the peninsula into a kingdom with Toledo as its capital.
The Islamic Period and Social Minorities
The Islamic domination lasted eight centuries, with Christians in the northern kingdoms and Muslims in the south (Al-Andalus). Several social minorities coexisted:
- Jews: This influential group was often educated and involved in intellectual pursuits.
- Mozarabs: Christians living in Muslim territory who retained their religion.
- Muladis: Christians who converted to Islam.
- Mudéjars: Muslims living among Christians without converting.
Thought and Society
Monastic activity and theological discussions shaped a theocentric worldview, influencing social organization. Society was divided into three functional groups:
- Bellatores: Those who fight.
- Oratores: Those who pray.
- Laboratores: Those who work.
Feudalism was the dominant social structure. Society was further stratified into:
- Nobility: Based on economic power, divided into high and low nobility, including knights and warriors.
- Clergy: Composed of the higher clergy (church dignitaries) and the lower clergy (popular sectors).
- Commoners: Lacking privileges, they constituted the majority of society. From the 13th century, the bourgeoisie emerged in towns.
Culture and Learning
Cultural exchange flourished through several avenues:
- The Way of St. James: This pilgrimage route connected Europe with Santiago de Compostela, facilitating cultural exchange.
- Toledo School of Translators: Under Alfonso X the Wise, Muslims, Jews, and Christians collaborated on translating works from Arabic to Latin and Castilian.
- Universities: Institutions with papal privileges, founded in Palencia, Salamanca, and Lleida.
- Birth of Romance Languages: Evolving from Latin (also called Neo-Latin), these included Castilian, Catalan, and Mozarabic.
Literature
Lyric Poetry
- Early Lyric: Initially recited, later sung by troubadours (clerics of noble origin). Courtly love, the idealization of the beloved, was a central theme.
- Mozarabic Lyric: Featuring jarchas (short poems in Mozarabic, the language of Christians in Muslim territories) inserted at the end of longer poems (moaxajas). Love and lament were common themes.
- Galician-Portuguese Lyric: Emerging in the 12th century, often with parallelistic structure. Included cantigas de amigo (female lamenting lover’s absence), cantigas de escarnio (satirical songs), and Cantigas de Santa Maria (by Alfonso X).
- Castilian Lyric: Notable forms include villancicos (strophic poems with chorus and verse) and serranillas (pastoral poems about encounters between knights and shepherdesses).
Ballads and Romances
As epic poetry declined, poems fragmented into romances. These were variable-length poems with eight-syllable verses, assonant rhyme in pairs, and odd verses unrhymed. Themes included historical events, epic and literary figures, and romantic or lyrical subjects.
Romanceros (Collections of Romances)
- Old Romancero: Anonymous texts from oral tradition.
- New Romancero: Written by known authors with artistic intent.
Style of Romances
- Preference for action.
- Dialogue structure.
- Beginning in media res (in the middle of things).
- Truncated endings.
- Use of archaisms.
- Repetition.
- Questions and exclamations.
Gonzalo de Berceo
A prominent figure in medieval literature, Gonzalo de Berceo was the most important writer of the clerical mester de clerecía and the first known Spanish poet by name. His works include:
- Lives of Saints: e.g., Life of Santo Domingo de Silos.
- Doctrinal Works: e.g., The Sacrifice of the Mass.
- Marian Works: e.g., Praises of Our Lady.
Berceo’s style was simple and popular, aiming to spread the Romance language to ordinary people. He drew on written sources, employed minstrel techniques, used vernacular Rioja language, and incorporated rhetorical devices.