Spain’s Golden Age Essay

Spain was at its most glorious stately topographic point in the seventeenth Century. at the clip when Miguel de Cervantes wrote his authoritative novel. “Don Quixote” . The state had established its settlements all over the universe. commanding Mexico. Peru. Cuba. the Americas. and even traveling every bit far as Asia. in the Philippines. Silver and gold poured in to catapult Spain in economic and political luster. doing it the world’s world power at that clip.

Historians call this period the aureate age of Spain. However. it was besides during this glorious epoch that Spain had ruthlessly suffered its inevitable licking. the most popular of which is the devastation of the Spanish armada in 1588. by English forces. Because of this. the state found itself in an untypical. conflicting period. a period wherein a new age was lifting to the surface. a period wherein the state was suspended between magnificence and debasement.

While the cause of Spain’s diminution is problematic. one thing is historically certain: its male monarchs were holding problem with pull offing the huge districts. and legion counter events. like the pestilence in Castille that claimed many Spanish lives. contributed to the country’s saddening destiny. Catholicism. Spain’s dominant faith was besides on the diminution. spurring struggles against other faiths like Islam and Protestantism. stemming from the campaigns in earlier history. These notable historical happenings are apparent in “Don Quixote” . since the novel illustrates the extremely diverse Spanish sociological and political experience at that clip.

However. it is Cervantes’ personal experience. sociological and political. that serves as the most powerful beginning of the novel. It contains elements in analogue with the novelist’s ain life ; for case. the Algerian plagiarists looking on the Spanish seashore. the Moors being exiled. the Spanish captives neglecting to get away are similar events in Cervantes’ ain life. Spain: The seventeenth Century Superpower Page 04 The sociological and political construction of seventeenth Century Spain had a direct. powerful influence in the authorship of Spain’s authoritative aureate novel.

The Romances: Spain’s seventeenth Century Literary Tradition The dominant literary tradition in this “golden age” was the knightly love affairs. Spain’s Arts and Humanities were loaded with popular Hagiographas of knights continuing gallantry. The chief characters of these narratives and poetries were knights who set out protecting and salvaging those who are weak. who go from one topographic point to another to make good workss. The love affairs contained melodramatic tones and overdone heroic efforts that the emotions illustrated seemed to be excessively sentimental. and the events portrayed seemed to be excessively heroically impossible.

The chief character of the fresh “Don Quixote. ” was besides a knight who set out to salvage people. but he was portrayed in a humourous visible radiation. and his escapades were played out in such a pathetic manner that it was clear the novel is a lampoon. a jeer of the knightly love affairs so popular in Cervantes’ clip. The novel. in this context. was a vituperative commentary of the literary tradition of the love affairs. The upholding of knightly ideals in the novel. nevertheless. produced another commentary on Spain’s seventeenth century literary tradition. this one being rather positive.

Cervantes was careful non to assault the codification of gallantry because he himself believed in it. The ideals may be communicated in a humourous mode. and through a humourous character. but the message was quite apparent: the belief in knightly ideals is ne’er incorrect. “Don Quixote” was a novel that educated its readers at the clip when they most needed such an direction. The diminution of Spain was evident. and yet its literati favored romantic literature which subscribed to impossible efforts and overdone Spain’s Golden Age Page 05 characters.

The broad credence and phenomenal success of “Don Quixote” merely proved that Spain’s literary market genuinely appreciated the enlightenment provided by Cervantes. Springboard for the Novel. “Don Quixote” The historical context and the literary civilization of Spain in the seventeenth century served as major prompters for the authorship of “Don Quixote. ” We can clearly see that Miguel de Cervantes was greatly influenced by the sociological. political and literary conditions in his clip that he incorporated and used these real-life elements in his novel.

Cervantes relied on his societal and political experience to bring forth a literary work that reverberates with sociological and political subjects. subjects which are in perfect consonant rhyme with his real-life scene. Spain’s double status of magnificence and debasement in his clip prompted Cervantes to research the subjects of human individuality and morality. supplying a commentary on the societal mores. More significantly. the novel is rich with historical influences. of events that really happened in seventeenth century Spain.

The literary civilization of seventeenth century Spain. on the other manus. played a cardinal function in the authorship of “Don Quixote. ” for really obvious grounds. The knightly love affairs popular at that clip made the novel an interesting. extremist read because it departs from its expression. The characters. Don Quixote and his loyal squire Sancho Panza. embody the knightly ideals upheld by the love affairs. but they besides destroy the image of the impossibly heroic knight by being humourous imitations of gallantry. Furthermore. their pathetic escapades make a jeer of the overdone heroic efforts portrayed in the love affairs.

These influences are strongly pronounced in the text of “Don Quixote” thereby turn outing that Miguel de Cervantes was a author who used his aureate age experience to compose a aureate novel. Spain’s Golden Age Page 06 References Barrio. J. F. ( 2007 ) . The aureate century. Si. Spain. Retrieved November 17. 2007 from SiSpain. org. & lt ; /http: //www. sispain. org/english/language/golden. html/ & gt ; Phillips. B. and Davidson. S. ( 2007 ) . SparkNote on Don Quixote. Retrieved November 17. 2007 from cgi. sparknotes. com. & lt ; /http: //www. sparknotes. com/lit/donquixote/ & gt ; .