Modern Foreign Language
The "Cántigas de Santa María": A Genre Study
Document Type
Oral Presentation
Location
Indianapolis, IN
Subject Area
Modern Foreign Language
Start Date
11-4-2014 9:00 AM
End Date
11-4-2014 10:30 AM
Sponsor
Ivette Wilson (Wabash College)
Description
Written during the reign of Alfonso X, king of Castile-León (1221-1284), the Cántigas de Santa María is a collection of 420 medieval songs and poems devoted to Mary, the mother of Jesus in the Christian religion. In these Galician-Portuguese holy songs, the listener hears presentations of daily life in the Iberian Peninsula: stories of miracles, acts of love, depictions of gambling, and much more. The fact that this mix of ideas all appear in one holy book shows the centuries of cultural influence that impacted the Cántigas; literary traditions from the Muslim world, hymns from Catholic Europe, medieval theatre, and love songs from Provence all play a role in the Cántigas. In this presentation, Patrick Stroud '14, Wabash College, will explore how the text's presentation of its two main characters--Alfonso X, the narrator, and the Virgin Mary--reflects the genres that inspired the court of Alfonso X to write the Cántigas.
The "Cántigas de Santa María": A Genre Study
Indianapolis, IN
Written during the reign of Alfonso X, king of Castile-León (1221-1284), the Cántigas de Santa María is a collection of 420 medieval songs and poems devoted to Mary, the mother of Jesus in the Christian religion. In these Galician-Portuguese holy songs, the listener hears presentations of daily life in the Iberian Peninsula: stories of miracles, acts of love, depictions of gambling, and much more. The fact that this mix of ideas all appear in one holy book shows the centuries of cultural influence that impacted the Cántigas; literary traditions from the Muslim world, hymns from Catholic Europe, medieval theatre, and love songs from Provence all play a role in the Cántigas. In this presentation, Patrick Stroud '14, Wabash College, will explore how the text's presentation of its two main characters--Alfonso X, the narrator, and the Virgin Mary--reflects the genres that inspired the court of Alfonso X to write the Cántigas.