Spanish Romanticism And The Uses Of History

Other matters considered include the medieval revival, the rejection of Enlightenment formulae, the fear of an absent but psychologically potent Revolution, Romantic diagnoses of nineteenth-century reality within the prism of the 'Two Spains', and the entailments of Romantic literary history and its construction of a casticista cultural identity."--Jacket.

This collection of thirteen specially commissioned essays by international scholars takes a fresh look at the profound impact of the Peninsular War on Romantic British literature and culture. The expertly authored chapters explore the valorization of Spain by nineteenth-century poets such as Lord Byron, William Wordsworth, Robert Southey, S.T. Coleridge, the Shelleys, and Felicia Hemans in contrast to the Enlightenment-era view of Spain as a backwards nation in decline. Topics discussed include the vision of Spain in Gothic fiction, Spanish experiences of exile as exemplified by the conflict between Valentin de Llanos and Joseph Blanco White, and British women writers' approach to peninsular fiction. Spain in British Romanticism: 1800-1840 is essential reading for scholars and enthusiasts of Romantic literature and Spanish history.

Publisher Description

This study provides a fresh assessment of Spanish Romanticism through a sympathetic appraisal of its literary theory and criticism. It identifies the origins of Spanish Romantic thought in the theories of German Romantic thinkers, in particular Herder's historicism. The range of reference, from the articles of Böhl von Faber to the judgments made by Cañete and Valera is counterpointed by the detail of close readings of books and articles published between 1834 and 1844, together with an examination of the ideas that informed the creative work of Fernán Caballero. Derek Flitter's use of the history of ideas offers a corrective to the recent preponderance of political approaches to Spanish Romanticism, countering their stress on its radical and liberal associations with a detailed demonstration that the majority of Spanish Romantic writers derived their inspiration from restorative, traditionalist, and Christian elements in their contemporaries' theory and criticism.

This publication "makes available two decades of work by the pioneering scholar of Spanish cultural studies, Jo Labanyi, covering literature, cinema, painting, photography, and memory studies, with a frequent focus on gender. The essays explore the ways in which cultural texts serve as a vehicle for negotiating cultural anxieties, through their encoding of emotional structures that reveal social tensions and contradictions. The discussion of a wide range of Spanish texts, from the early nineteenth-century to the present, traces stages in the history of the emotions and their imbrication in political processes. The essays have in common an attempt to read against the grain; in many cases, the focus on gender is what makes that possible."--Publisher's website.

Originally published in 1940 as the first part of a two-volume study, this book examines the Romantic Movement in Spain from its roots in the Spanish Golden Age during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, to the Romantic revival in the nineteenth century and the ensuing conflict between Classicists and Romanticists, which abated after 1837. Peers looks at key texts in the history of the Romantic style, as well as external influences on Spanish style in this period of literary upheaval. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in the history of Spanish literature or the Romantic Period.

This book offers a comprehensive account of modern Spanish culture, tracing its dramatic and often unexpected development from its beginnings after the Revolution of 1868 to the present day. Specially-commissioned essays by leading experts provide analyses of the historical and political background of modern Spain, the culture of the major autonomous regions (notably Castile, Catalonia, and the Basque Country), and the country's literature: narrative, poetry, theatre and the essay. Spain's recent development is divided into three main phases: from 1868 to the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War; the period of the dictatorship of Francisco Franco; and the post-Franco arrival of democracy. The concept of 'Spanish culture' is investigated, and there are studies of Spanish painting and sculpture, architecture, cinema, dance, music, and the modern media. A chronology and guides to further reading are provided, making the volume an invaluable introduction to the politics, literature and culture of modern Spain.

This work brings together the study of political and literary thought in response to revolution in order to present an alternative view of the strength of liberalism generally and progressivism in particular. It re-examines the achievements of progressive thought about politics, history, nationhood, and literature, investigating the basis of the philosophical dispute between Conservative and left Liberals. The strong presence of progressive thought in Spain is affirmed. The study also underlines the importance for literary historians of understanding more sympathetically the contribution of Conservative Liberal thought to a recognizable Liberal Romanticism.