British Empire and Victorian Era: Literature Analysis
The British Empire in Literature: Kipling and Conrad
LIT 49 Growth & Administration of the British Colonial Empire in the 18th & 19th Centuries: Joseph Conrad & Rudyard Kipling.
1. Introduction
2. The British Empire
2.1. Origins of the British Empire: 16th-17th Centuries
2.2. Development of the British Empire in the 18th Century
2.3. Expansion & Consolidation in the 19th Century
3. Voices of the Empire in Literature
3.1. Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936)
3.2. Joseph Conrad (1857-1924)
4. Didactic
Read MoreMercè Rodoreda, Quim Monzó, and Catalan Literature
Mercè Rodoreda’s *Aloma* and Literary Context
Mercè Rodoreda’s *Aloma* (1937) was written before and revised after the Spanish Civil War (up to 1958), reflecting a period of rebuilding lives. Rodoreda’s stories often blend reality with a unique, personal world. The work can be seen in two blocks: realistic and non-realistic. When the “mirror breaks,” all realities are revealed.
Rodoreda’s other notable works include *The Time of the Doves* (*La plaça del diamant*, 1962). The protagonist, Colometa,
Read MoreVictorian Novel and Poetry: Authors and Themes
The Victorian Novel
Main Literary Trends: Realism, Didacticism: Poetry as a criticism of life. Aestheticism: “art for art’s sake”. Decadence.
The Novel
Authors, readers, and publishers. Formal features: Narrators, Plots, Characters.
The Novel Variety
The “Condition of England Question”: Elizabeth Gaskell and Charles Dickens. The satirists. William Thackeray: Vanity Fair. Romanticism revisited. Emily and Charlotte Brontë: Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre. The intellectual/psychological novel. George Eliot:
Read MoreJuan Ramón Jiménez, Antonio Machado, Pedro Salinas: Poetic Trajectories
Juan Ramón Jiménez: Trajectory and Stages
Juan Ramón Jiménez’s life revolves around poetry. His career is recognized in three phases: innocence and simplicity, the poetry of décor or complication, and poesía pura (pure poetry). His work is influenced by classical Spanish and traditional poetry, Modernism, the Generation of ’27, and French Symbolism. His life’s work is distinguished by three stages:
First Stage: Sensitive
The fundamental issue is sensitivity, expressing the poet’s feelings about
Read MoreModernism and the Generation of ’98: Key Figures & Themes
Modernism and the Generation of ’98
The Generation of ’98 is formed by a group of writers with similar intellectual and stylistic approaches, breaking with previous literary traditions. This development is influenced by the Disaster of 1898 and the spiritual guidance of Miguel de Unamuno. Valle-Inclán is a prominent writer belonging to this generation.
Valle-Inclán’s extensive work spans narrative, poetry, and drama, often defying genre conventions and showcasing a profound evolution parallel to
Read MorePost-War Spanish Literature: A Study of Existential and Social Novels
The Existential Novel (1940-1950)
During the early postwar years, a gender gap existed in narrative, and significant authors of fiction from before the Civil War had either died or were in exile. In Spain, only Pío Baroja, revered by younger writers, remained a prestigious figure, though already in decline. However, 1942 saw the publication of The Family of Pascual Duarte by Camilo José Cela, a novel that initiated a new trend called “tremendismo,” marking the recovery of the genre. Nothing, by
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