This book is the only one of its kind in English. Part literary history, part literary criticism, it is above all a personal assessment of a rich and important body of work which is still not widely known outside Catalonia. Catalan literature, one of the three major Peninsular literatures, reached an impressive level of excellence in the middle ages, beginning with Ramon Llull and the chronicles, and culminating in the two great fifteenth-century writers, the poet Ausiàs March and Joanot Martorell, the author of Tirant lo Blanc, one of the landmarks in early prose fiction. After three centuries of relative eclipse, the nineteenth-century Renaixença produced a distinctive version of Romanticism with notable achievements in poetry, theatre and the novel. More recently, Catalan writers have successfully assimilated a number of international tendencies, from Symbolism to Surrealism, while remaining deeply aware of the possibilities of the Catalan language itself. After the cultural disruption caused by the Civil War of 1936-39 and its aftermath, Catalan literature has once again shown its capacity for self-renewal, and the present literary scene is one of great interest and originality. The book does not presuppose any knowledge of Catalan; all quotations and book titles are translated, and a list of works translated into English is included.
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Editorial Reviews
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Offers a comprehensive survey from its first beginnings to the twenty-first century. --World Literature Today
Impressive synthesis and guide... Highly recommended. --Choice --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Impressive synthesis and guide... Highly recommended. --Choice --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
About the Author
ARTHUR TERRY is Emeritus Professor of Literature at the University of Essex. .
--This text refers to the
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very good introduction - but somehow expensive!,
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This review is from: A Companion to Catalan Literature (Monografías A) (Hardcover)
With Arthur Terry being one of the most prominent experts in the field of Hispanic and, more specifically, Catalan literature, one opens this book with high expectations - and without being deceived: Terry presents the entire history of Catalan literature, from the medieval beginnings up to the 21st century, in a very readable and concise way. The book does not expect the reader to have an active knowledge of Catalan and not even of Spanish, as all quotes are translated. The bibliography indicates further reading and - even more useful for the newcomer - English translations of important Catalan literary work. Terry insists throughout the book on the fact that the development of Catalan literature may only be understood in relation to the historical and political circumstances (although this is probably true for any national or regional literature). Obviously, treating an entire national literature as the Catalan one on 160 pages is not possible without some restrictions; therefore, Terry concentrates on the most important names and leaves aside minor authors. For the readership he has in mind - students of Hispanic literature with no previous knowledge about Catalan literature - this is okay. The more advanced or specialized reader will therefore not discover many new things in Terry's book. However, Terry takes into account representative authors from all parts of the Catalan-speaking zone, not only from Catalonia itself but also from València and the Balearic Island. As an introductory book - namely for readers without or with poor knowledge of Catalan, Spanish or other Romances tongues - I can highly recommand this book. It is a well-designed and well-produced book, but a consequence of this is the somehow expensive price (which made me attribute 4 stars "only"), so a cheaper paperback edition would be welcome if the book was really to be used as a companion reader in a universitarian literature class.
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