Walt Whitman’s Poetic Legacy: Free Verse, Democracy, and the Self
Walt Whitman: Poet of Democracy and Freedom
Walt Whitman (1819–1892), the poet of democracy and freedom, broke with the conventions of his period. He is considered a non-conformist, aligning with Transcendentalism. Born into a family of nine children on Long Island, he was influenced by his father in politics and was strongly against slavery and racism.
Leaves of Grass (1855)
Leaves of Grass is Whitman’s most important work. The volume of poetry was greeted with incomprehension for its exuberant
Read MoreLiterary Currents and Catalan Authors: Renaissance to Neoclassicism
The Early Modern Age: Printing and Literature
This period encompasses the Modern Age, spanning three centuries from the Renaissance to the late eighteenth century. Printing consolidated, and workshops began operating as real businesses.
First Printed Texts
The first texts printed included:
- Greek and Latin texts
- Bible translations
- Legal and scientific books
- Collections of poems
Promoting Reading and Literacy
Books were the engine of verifiable reading growth. Booksellers imported and exported texts. The development
Read MoreMastering English Intonation: Tone, Tonicity, and Tonality
Intonation: Pitch Variation and Pragmatic Meaning
Intonation refers to the perceived variations in pitch during speech that can modify the pragmatic meaning of an utterance.
The Three Components of Intonation
Intonation is a crucial part of suprasegmental phonology. It is concerned with three main aspects:
- Tonality: How an utterance is divided into word groups (tone units).
- Tonicity: Where the most prominent accent (the tonic) occurs within a word group.
- Tone: The nature of the pitch change (the direction
Literary and Political Landscape of 18th Century Britain
The 18th Century: Political and Literary Context
During the reign of Queen Anne, the last Stuart monarch, a renewal of tension embittered the political atmosphere. England, leading her allies Holland, Austria, and Bavaria, achieved victory in the War of the Spanish Succession against France and Spain. The hero of the war was John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough. This conflict was largely a Whig war, supported by Whig Lords and the Whig merchants of London.
Three Georges occupied the throne during the
Read MoreLiterary Currents Preceding Ausias March: Toulouse and Italian Influences
The Influence of the School of Toulouse on Catalan Poetry
James and Peter March: Precursors to Ausias March
James March and Peter March, uncle and father respectively of Ausias March, wrote from very different viewpoints. James leaned toward the court and cultivated loving subjects of French influence, dictating sirventesos. Peter criticized customs, often focusing on the lives of craftsmen.
Peter March (Pere March)
Father of Ausias March, he wrote a work famous among his contemporaries, The Evil
Read MoreMedieval Spanish Literature: From Epics to Prose
Historical and Cultural Context
The medieval period spanned from the 5th to the 15th century. Society was divided into three classes: the nobility, the clergy, and the common people. The monarchy required the support of the nobles for campaigns against the Arabs, and the territory was divided into various Christian kingdoms.
Culture was primarily confined to monasteries. Books were very scarce and were written by hand, leading to widespread illiteracy among the general population.
The medieval worldview
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