Spanish Literature of the 17th Century: Culteranismo, Conceptismo, and Theater

Posted on Oct 12, 2024 in Latin

Spanish Literature of the 17th Century

Culteranismo and Conceptismo

Culteranismo and Conceptismo arose during the Renaissance. Both aimed to find beauty and surprise in writing. They share commonalities in difficulty and exaggeration but differ in their expressive processes. Culteranismo focuses on elaborate language, while Conceptismo emphasizes intricate ideas and wit.

Culteranismo

  1. Form over Content: The focus is on elaborate and complex language. The subject matter is secondary to formal beauty.
  2. Stylistic Figures: Reality is embellished through the use of various stylistic figures.
  3. Lexicon and Syntax: Difficult vocabulary and syntax are employed, creating a literary language distinct from common speech.
  4. Main Representative: Luis de Góngora (also known as Góngora).

Conceptismo

  1. Association of Ideas: Conceptismo is based on connecting ideas and concepts in ingenious ways.
  2. Conciseness: The ideal is to express much with few words, resulting in a sharp, concise, and meaningful literary language.
  3. Rhetorical Figures: Abundant use of rhetorical figures like paradoxes and puns.
  4. Main Representatives: Francisco de Quevedo and Baltasar Gracián.

Poetry in the 17th Century

Two main types of poetry can be distinguished:

  • Cultured Lyric: Continued Renaissance themes, including love and philosophical issues.
  • Traditional and Popular Lyric: Expressed in songs and carols. Also included are new romances written by learned poets on pastoral, historical, and Moorish topics.

Luis de Góngora

Born in Córdoba, Góngora became a priest and later moved to Madrid. After the fall of the Duke of Lerma, he returned to Córdoba, where he died.

Obra Poética

Góngora’s poetry is objective, focusing on form over content. It is pure poetry, based on formal qualities and detached from the author’s feelings. Beauty is the overriding principle.

There are two stages in his poetic life:

  • Youth: Abundant compositions in traditional meters (romances, letrillas, dirges). Culteranismo aspects are not prominent (Gongora claro).
  • Maturity: Poems written in a full Culteranismo style (sonnets, The Fable of Polyphemus and Galatea, Soledades) (Gongora oscuro).

Francisco de Quevedo

Poetry

Quevedo’s poems, published posthumously, exhibit Conceptismo trends: wit, expressive condensation of thought, and wordplay. His poems can be divided into three groups:

  • Moral and Philosophical: Expressing pessimism and disillusionment.
  • Love: Expressing hatred of women and humanity in Petrarchan style.
  • Satirical-Burlesque: Deformations and satires, often aimed at Góngora.
Prose
  • El Buscón: A picaresque novel with a pessimistic character, written in a complex style.
  • Sueños: Satirical fantasies using dreams to criticize customs and vices of the time.

Other Poets

  • Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz: A Mexican nun who wrote poetry and plays.
  • Classical Poets: Continued the Renaissance trend, writing in classical styles (e.g., Rodrigo Caro).

Prose in the 17th Century

Fiction

  • Picaresque Novels: Guzmán de Alfarache by Mateo Alemán, La hija de Celestina by Salas Barbadillo, and El Buscón by Quevedo.
  • Satirical Novel of Manners: El Diablo Cojuelo by Luis Vélez de Guevara.

Non-fiction

  • Doctrinal and Didactic Prose: Aimed to spread philosophy and morality, represented by Gracián and Quevedo.

Baltasar Gracián

Gracián’s work is philosophical and moral, focused on human and spiritual formation.

  • El Héroe: Describes the qualities of an ideal gentleman.
  • El Discreto: Rules of conduct for a prudent man.
  • Agudeza y arte de ingenio: Literary criticism on rhetoric and Baroque style.
  • El Criticón: A philosophical novel about two protagonists, Critilo (guided by reason) and Andrenio (guided by instinct).

Theater in the 17th Century

The New Comedy

Theater was highly successful, with performances in corrales de comedias. Lope de Vega led the renewal of Spanish theater.

Lope de Vega’s Innovations
  1. Mix of Tragedy and Comedy:
  2. Rejection of the Three Unities:
  3. Three-Act Structure:
  4. Variety of Meters:
  5. Language Suited to Characters:
  6. Introduction of the Gracioso:
  7. Inclusion of Lyrical Elements:
  8. Recurring Characters:
  9. Themes of Honor, Love, Monarchy, and Religion:

Lope de Vega’s Poetry

Lope’s poems are based on personal experiences, collected in Rimas, Rimas Sacras, and Rimas Humanas y Divinas del Licenciado Tomé de Burguillos.

Lope de Vega’s Plays

Lope de Vega wrote a vast number of plays. His goal was to entertain the audience. His fundamental ideas were honor, monarchy, and religious sentiment.

Examples of Plays
  • Fuenteovejuna:
  • El Caballero de Olmedo:
  • Peribáñez y el Comendador de Ocaña:
  • El mejor alcalde, el rey:
  • Comedies of Manners:

School of Lope de Vega

Authors who followed Lope’s guidelines included Tirso de Molina, Juan Ruiz de Alarcón, and Luis Vélez de Guevara.

Tirso de Molina

Tirso de Molina (pseudonym of Gabriel Téllez) was a prolific playwright known for his female characters and the creation of the Don Juan archetype.

Juan Ruiz de Alarcón

A Mexican playwright whose works are characterized by moralizing and psychological analysis (e.g., La verdad sospechosa, Las paredes oyen).