Key Events in Tudor and Stuart History: Mary I, Kirk, and Parliament
Mary I and the Throne
Mary I, the Catholic daughter of Catherine of Aragón, became queen when Edward VI, aged sixteen, died in 1553. A group of nobles tried to put Lady Jane Grey, a Protestant, on the throne. But Mary succeeded in entering London and took control of the kingdom. She was supported by the ordinary people, who were angered by the greed of the Protestant nobles. However, Mary was unwise and unbending in her policy and her beliefs. Mary, for political, religious, and family reasons,
Read MoreRenaissance Humanism and Neoplatonism
Neoplatonism
Neoplatonism defends the beauty of natural things as a reflection of divinity (idealization of the feeling of love). Erasmus advocated for an intimate religiosity focused on the purity of morals.
Admiration for the Classics
Italian city-states, longing to restore classical ideals, made Greek and Latin cultures a benchmark for study. Therefore, imitation of classical authors was considered more prestigious than originality. This imitation and admiration, and the defense of Latin, coexisted
Read MoreCalderón de la Barca: Themes, Style, and Major Works
Calderón de la Barca
Topics: Calderón de la Barca’s Jesuit education greatly influenced his work. Recurring themes include freedom, moral conflict, the relationship of humans with power, the disconnect between reality and enthusiasm, and honor and destiny, always marked by the pessimism that accompanies the author.
Style: Calderón was almost exclusively a theatrical writer. His work did not represent a break with the model proposed by Lope de Vega, but perfected it and included ideological and
Read MoreRealism and Naturalism: Key Concepts and Literary Figures
Realism and Naturalism
In the mid-nineteenth century, a new cultural and literary power emerged, following the decline of Romanticism. Realism replaced the exaltation of individual freedom with an emphasis on explaining and analyzing social reality.
While Romanticism coincided with the spread of liberal ideas, Realism is related to social conflicts between the ruling bourgeoisie and the working class, who began to fight for their rights. This movement was influenced by a series of philosophical and
Read MoreAntonio Machado, Valle-Inclán, and Juan Ramón Jiménez
Antonio Machado
Born in Seville in 1875, Antonio Machado moved to Madrid, where he studied at the Institución Libre de Enseñanza. He became a professor of French at the Institute of Soria. He lived in Paris, where he encountered the Symbolist literary world. A proponent of the legal government of the Popular Front and a supporter of the Republic, he died in Collioure.
The Work of Antonio Machado
The first stage encompasses feelings of modernist grief. Melancholy and loneliness appear, and Romantic
Read MoreRamon Llull, Ausias March, and the Catalan Noucentisme
Ramon Llull: Ideology and Objectives
A key feature of Ramon Llull’s work is the extraordinary consistency of his thought. His objectives included:
- Composing a philosophical system based on reason.
- Combating the errors of unbelievers.
- Exerting missionary work.
- Persuading Christian kings to create schools for preachers where they could learn languages and arts.
Llull’s Art is a logical system that aims to prove the dogmas of the Christian faith through reason.
Language and Rhetoric
Llull wrote in several
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