A lo divino
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A lo divino is a Spanish phrase meaning "to the divine" or "in a sacred manner". The phrase is frequently used to describe a secular work, rewritten with a religious overtone, or a secular topic recast in religious terms using metaphors and symbolism. These types of adaptations were most popular during the 16th and 17th centuries, the Golden Age of Spanish literature.[1]
Marcelino Menéndez y Pelayo, a Spanish literary scholar felt the adaptations were of little note, calling them a short-lived whim of the pious. It took Dámaso Alonso study of their influence on Garcilaso de la Vega's poetry before they were considered significant to the development of Spanish literature.
A lo divino also refers to a style of music that incorporates religious chants.
[edit] Famous authors
- Saint John of the Cross - many of his poems contained a lo divino in the title, indicating that they were taken from a secular work and changed to fit a religious interpretation.
- Sebastian de Cordoba - rewrote some of Garcilaso's secular love poems in this style.
[edit] References
- ^ Ward, Philip [1978]. The Oxford Companion to Spanish Literature. Oxford University Press, USA, 17. ISBN 9780198661146.
[edit] Further reading
- Crosbie, John A. (1989). A Lo Divino Lyric Poetry: An Alternative View. University of Durham. ISBN 0907310192.
