314 



THE STANDARD DICTIONARY OF FACTS 



languages, and. with its liberty of thought and 

 expression, was a great su< 



Two m<t noted among dramatic writers. 

 (Vrvante> and LOJH- de Yei:a. were contempora- 

 ries. Cervantes, horn in 1,~>47. began writing 

 comedies and tragedies; the first, "Galatea." 

 ;l>lished in 1.">M. Hi- gival work. "Don 

 Quixote." pul)lished in ir>().">. was immediately 

 translated into all the languages of Europe. 

 "Don Quixote" has been defined as the social 

 romance of Sixteenth and Seventeenth Century 

 Spain. Lope de Vega was a prodigy of learning 

 and imagination. He wrote numberless dramas 

 and detached verses, many of which are collected 

 under the name "Obras Sueltas." 



The "Golden Age" of Spanish literature 

 :rom the union of Aragon and Castile and 

 the connection of the House of Austria, which 

 gave unity to the literature of Spain, as well as 

 ttiah politics. During this age Calderon 

 I '.area (1600-1681) was the head of the 

 Spanish drama. His plays are of four kinds: 

 sacred dramas from Scriptural sources, historical 

 dramas, classic dramas, and pictures of society 

 and manners. The most celebrated are "The 

 Constant Prince." and "El Magico Prodigioso." 

 Calderon was attached to the court for the pur- 

 pose of furnishing dramas for the royal theater, 

 and in making his story to hold interest through- 

 out, facts were no obstacles. 



With the celebrated Juan de Mariana (1536- 

 new manner of writing history appeared. 

 In place of the tagging on of one fact after an- 

 other, with no apparent connection, he wrote 

 a general survey of the history of Spain. Vari- 

 ous accounts of more or less important episodes 

 in the history of the country were written by 

 different authors with reports of trans-Atlantic 

 conquests. Gracilasso de Vega, a clescendant 

 of the Incas. wrote a history of Florida, based 

 upon the adventures of De Soto. To another 

 hi.-torian, Solis, belongs "Conquest of Mexico," 

 a flattering picture, and very successful. Go- 

 ma na, Oviedo, and Las Casas left records of 

 their adventures in the new world, and on these 

 records all history of early Spanish settlements 

 in America is founded. Letter writers are nu- 

 merous in Spanish literature, and from collections 

 of letters may be gathered history of the times 

 and secrets of Spanish policy. Among these is 

 Antonio Perez (died 1611), whose letters give 

 much information in a gallant and sprightly 

 fashion. 



Philosophy was poorly represented in these 

 centuries, the few thinkers writing in Latin, 

 and the very existence of mathematical science 

 was unknown. 



Luis de Leon and Herrera led in lyric poetry 

 during the Sixteenth Century and much of their 

 in -pi rat ion came from the Hebrew Scriptures. 

 After these writers ballads grew to be a delight 

 among the people, and no poetry of modern 

 times has been more widely known or influenced 

 so thoroughly all national life. Many of these 

 ballads were by authors who wrote little else; 

 but ballads are also found in the works of all 

 writers who wished for fame, or to become of 

 interest among the Spanish people. The relig- 

 ious poems of Quevedo show beauty, but he is 

 best known by his prose satires. 



At the end of the reign of Charles II.. in 1700, 

 France had great place in Spanish thought; 

 French customs crept into use and French be- 

 came the language of the society of the court. 

 Translations from the French took the place of 

 native work and little advance was made. 



Charles III. (1759-1788) "gave new life by 

 abridging the power of the Inquisition and al- 

 lowing books to stand by defense of author or 

 publisher. In these years the poems of Moratin, 

 the literary fables of Yriarte. and the "Life of 

 Friar Gerund." by Sala/ar. were added to the 

 literature. 



The return of the Bourbons in 1814, however. 

 made this of small account. During fierce po- 

 litical changes and long civil war the political 

 pamphlet was the only book to attract great 

 attention. Jose de Larra (1X09-1837) was a 

 prose writer of talent, who gained reputation 

 by his "letters" on political subjects. He was 

 better known by the pseudonym of "Figaro." 



Among later writers Antonio de Trueba is 

 known by his popular songs and short stories, 

 Lista and Duran as literary critics, and Cam- 

 poamor and Bequer, poets. In the novel we 

 find the best contemporary Spanish literature. 

 Perez Galdos, a writer of fiction, touches modern 

 thought in the conflicting interests of Spanish 

 life. Juan Valera is the author of " Pepita 

 Jimenez," a famous novel, and the stories of 

 Caballero, though not of equal merit, find trans- 

 lators. 



RUSSIAN LITERATURE 



Going to the foundations of Russian litera- 

 ture we find, as in most literatures, the oral 

 tradition in the form of poetry. This poetry is 

 not rhyme but poetic in figures, and has a sort 

 of cadence appreciated by the scholar of the 

 language. These tales of old time, known as 

 bilini, are full of interest, many in number, and 

 have been carried by wandering minstrels all 

 through the land, as minstrels have chanted the 

 songs and sagas of so many peoples. Thus we 

 find in Russian literature the division of the 

 oral and the written. 



The oral literature of song or tale has been 

 marked by scholars into periods, beginning with 

 that of the old heroes. Songs in this period 

 reach to the bounds of mythology, for the oldest 

 heroes are represented as monstrous beings and 

 might be personifications of the powers of nat ure. 

 In all these there is also the imagery of popular 

 poetry, the terms "brightest sun" used to des- 

 ignate the hero, "damp earth" in connection 

 with a being of evil propensities, and others like. 

 Giants of the mountains and serpents of the 

 caves are made the subjects, or heroes, of the 

 songs, and are shown guarding their surround- 

 ings. The animal natures are prominent, as in 

 the well-known legendary characters, Idolistche 

 Poganskoe, the great glutton, and Solovei Raz- 

 boinik, the nightingale robber, with his nest in 

 six oaks, who is the terror of travelers. 



Fabulous tales or legends centering around 

 the cruel tyrant, their celebrated Prince Vladi- 

 mir and his introduction of Christianity in con- 

 nection with the Greek Church, seem to mark 

 the second literary period. The chief hero of 

 these is known as Ilya Murometz, a giant in 



