O mito do sábio eremita. A oposição campo / cidade através da Literatura Espanhola

Abstract

In  this  essay, we  focus on the  myth  of  the wise  eremite, understanding  as such  the  figure  of  a  character  who  voluntarily  stands  on  the  margins  of society, in whose bosom he finds no place. The topic connects with a long classical  literary  tradition  (Horacio,  Juvenal)  in  terms  of countryside/cityopposition,  which,  in  turn,  leads  us  to  the locusamoenus and  its  variant,hortus  amoenus,  andbeatus  ille,  largely  linked  to  religiousaesthetics -here understood as opposition real world/divine world. We talk, then of the Milagrosof  Berceo  or  of  theViaje  al  Purgatorio in  the  Catalan  version  of Perellós   andin   the   Castilian   of   Montalbán.   The   Italian   Renaissance (Petrarch,  Sannazaro)  recovered  the  classic  topics,  which  are  replicated  in Spanish authors such as Fray Luis in his Odaa la vida retirada(poetry) or by  Guevara  (prose)  inMenosprecio  de  Corte  y  alabanza  de  aldea. The manifestations  of  the  bucolic  poetry  of  Garcilaso  with  hisÉgoglas notescape   to   the   praise   of   the   retired   life,   nor   the   contribution   to   the discussion that they provide mysticism and asceticism, especially, with the figure  of  Teresa  de  Ávila,  which  allows  us  to  reflect  on  the  influence  of Agustin de Hipona: “noli foras ire...”Cervantes and his Don Quijoteare no strangers  to  the  opposition,  and  the  motive  of  the  Cave  of  Montesinos. Calderón, in La vida es sueño,includes references to the poor sage and set them  apart  in  a  famous  fragment.  The  18th  Century  recovers  the  topic  of rural  life,  but  detached  from  any  idealism,  through  the  work  of  Mor  de Fuentes La Serafina, which describes the harsh reality of the countryside-especially  that  of  the  peasants-largely  anticipated  in  the  dialogues  of Quixote  and  Sancho  related  to  the  figure  of  Dulcinea.  It  is  logical  that Cadalso,  in  his Cartas  Marruecasand  inNoches  lúgubresis  manifested  in favor,  imbued  in  the  spirit  of  the  Enlightenment,  of  the  intellectual  at  the service  of  society  and  not separated,  as a citizen.  In  the  19th  Century, the bourgeoisie’s era as the social class par  excellenceand  the  novel,  Realism (through   Stendhal,   Flaubert   and   Balzac)   and   Naturalism   (Zola)   focus, respectively,  city and  countryside, although  in  Spain the  Naturalism  had  a minor fostering. Nevertheless, we talk about works that are partly realistic, partly  naturalistic  (Fortunata  y  Jacinta,  by  Galdós, La  madreNaturaleza, by  Pardo  Bazán,La  Regenta,  by  Clarín)  Finally,  we  find  in  the  novel  byCarlos  Saura -first  in  film  format-Elisa,  vida  mía(title  that  reproduces verses  of  the Égogla I  of  Garcilaso)  the  perfect  synthesis  to  the  course  of the oppositioncountryside/city in the figure of the character that leads the work, Luis, professor, intellectual, writer, who leaves the city of Madrid and his  family  to  go  live  in  the  countryside,  in  a  village,  and  try  to  realize  his dreams as a writer and satisfy his doubts about the meaning of lifetime.