In order to truly understand a country’s literary history it is necessary to start from its earliest stages. In the case of Spain, that starting point is often considered to be the medieval epic, Poema (Cantar) de Mio Cid, which is the first extensive verse text written in Spanish.
It seems as though Medieval literature is often brushed to the side when compared to the outstanding masterpieces in both visual and literary arts that came during the Renaissance and the following periods, such as the Golden Age of Spain. However, in order to understand and truly value any other period of writing we must look to the Middle Ages when each Romance country came into its own in terms of literature and art. The Middle Ages are especially important for the Romance countries because this period exemplifies the divisions in culture and art that began to form after the fall of the Roman empire. In terms of Spanish Medieval writing, Poema de Mio Cid stands out as a key piece of literature that reflects the society of the time. This influential, infamous work is a bit of a mystery in the fact that we do not have a confirmed author or date of the work, both of these issues becoming topics for debate and argument among historians. The work reflects Spanish history of the time, from the way in which wealth is represented to the conflicts between Christians and Muslims at the time. The Poema is categorized as an epic, which highlights external influences. This introduction will discuss the speculation around the date and author of the work, the characteristics of Medieval art, the genre of the Spanish epic, and finally the historical context regarding Christian and Islamic conflict.
In the present, our society cannot stand the idea of not knowing the author behind a work. We can see this perfectly with the example of the italian author, Elena Ferrante. Readers do not know her true name or identity, and reporters continuously go to great lengths to discover the true identity of this author. However, this was not the case in the Middle Ages in Spain. The Poema de Mio Cid is a clear example of this. Colin Smith discusses this in his introduction to his own translation of the epic by writing, “There are many anonymous and unattributable artistic products of the Middle Ages, when the individual hardly thought of asserting his personality within the tradition and rarely claimed that his earthly fame or name had a right to survive” (Poema de Mio Cid xxxiv). This quote helps distinguish the Middle Ages from the time we live in now, highlighting the fact that at the time that this work was written there was no emphasis on the importance of the individual. However, the fact that there is no name written on the surviving manuscript does not stop historians from speculating possible authors and even simply possible characteristics that the author may possess. For example, the Spanish Medievalist Ramón Menéndez Pidal, who brought the Poema back into the spotlight in the 19th century, believes that that a man named Per Abbat is the true author of the work (Poema de Mio Cid xxxiv). This man was a Castilian lawyer during the 13th century who showed interest in the Cid. Others, such as Colin Smith, simply attempt to guess some of the attributes that the author may hold such as being a lawyer due to the specific legal aspects written about in the Poema, and someone who had access to historical texts. Perhaps, part of the intrigue of this infamous epic comes from the fact that we may never be able to confidently attach an author’s name to this work, simply showing that when it comes to analyzing medieval texts the author does not need to play a large role.
Another important aspect of the text that cannot be confidently confirmed from the only surviving manuscript is the date. Pidal estimates that the work was written in 1140, putting it only a several years after the death of the historical figure of the Cid. Peter Such and John Hodgkinson write in their book regarding the text, “The only existing manuscript of the work shows the date ‘era de mill ee .cc xlv anos’, which led historians to believe that the text can be dated to A.D. 1207” (Such and Hodgkinson 1). However, some historians, such as Pidal himself, believe that there is a gap between cc which would provide room for an extra c which would put the publishing date at 1307 (Such and Hodkinson 1). The most widely accepted time frame for this work is the thirteenth century, so for the purpose of this analysis we will use this as the historical framework for this piece.
Given this time period, it is crucial to understand what characterized literature and art during this part of European, and more specifically Spanish, history. The Middle Ages presented both visual and literary art that was very two-dimensional. In terms of visual art, figures were scaled on their importance during the period rather than on the actual dimensions of the human body, which we see in the Renaissance (Such and Hodkinson 19). Similarly, literary art of the time also saw it’s characters being flat, without much depth into their thoughts, feelings, and flaws. Such and Hodgkinson write in their introduction to the piece, “The poet’s technique was very similar to that of the visual artist. He was not interested in ‘psychological’ depth or expression of subjective emotions” (Such and Hodkinson 20). This quote demonstrates the fact that the Poema does not attempt to provide dynamic characters, following the pattern of the Middle Ages, which is important to understand when analyzing the text because it clarifies that the text does not require it’s readers to ponder the feelings and emotions of the characters, but rather, for the most part to simply read it for it in a more superficial way than texts that came after it.
This work has been categorized as a Spanish epic, depicting the life of the famous Spanish hero, Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar. Although today we can considered Rodrigo as one of the most famous heroes in Spanish history, many historians attribute his fame to the Poema de Mio Cid. The fact that this work is considered an epic is an important indicator of Spanish history and society at the time. Epic’s originated in France, which is home to some of the most famous epics such as Chanson de Roland. The fact that this poem is considered an epic is important because it shows the French influence on Spanish society at the time. Many French people began migrating to Spain on a religious pilgrimage to the tomb of St. James in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, bringing with them their French culture, including art and literature (The Making of the Poema 13). In fact, the importance of this French pilgrimage is clear given that it is only Spain, of the Romance countries, that has produced any type of epic. Colin Smith writes of this, stating, “ Among the Romance countries other than France, only Spain (and only Castile among the Hispanic states, so far as we can tell from surviving evidence) had a vernacular epic literature of any strength” (Poema de Mio Cid xv). Despite the fact that the epic originated in France, historians have tried to emphasize the differences between Spanish and French epics. Smith writes of one example that Pidal brought to attention, which was that Spanish epics seemed to be more historically accurate in comparison to their French counterparts, mainly due to the time between the historical events and the writing of the epic. Not only does the epic show French influence on Spain, but it also has linguistic meaning as well. Matthew Bailey writes about the importance of the Spanish epic in terms of linguistic history. He writes, “The late- thirteenth-century historians in the employ of Alfonso X incorporated the epic narratives into their official history of Spain. In doing so, they abandoned the Latin of earlier histories and initiated the vernacular prose tradition in Castilian, the language of the epic (Bailey 254). This quote shows the grand linguistic affect the epic had on Spanish history, it began the shift from Latin to early Spanish.
In order to further understand the historical context of this text, it is necessary to discuss the conflict between the Christians and Muslims during this time period in Spain. Islamic soldiers from Northern Africa first invaded Spain in the eighth century, taking over much of the southern portion of the country. Throughout the following centuries, leading up to the fall of the Caliphate in Cordoba in the eleventh century, there was a slow moving expansion of Christianity toward the south. During this time of Islamic presence in the Peninsula, great progress was made in terms of education, economy, and trade. Of course, for the context of this paper I want to focus on what Islamic rule brought to Spain in terms of art and literature. “Greek science was supplemented by Persian astronomy and Hindu mathematics, again by way of translations made at Baghdad. All of these works were accompanied by commentaries, expositions, and corrections written by Muslim scholars in the East. Alongside this erudite literature was the world of traditional Arabic poetry whose themes celebrated war, the hunt, nature, wine, and love” (Reilly 6). It is important to recognize the advancements and influences that were brought to Spain during the Middle Ages because it allows readers to have a deeper understanding of the historical context of this Castilian epic. It is interesting to see that Arabic poetry also focused on similar themes such as war and the hunt that is also reflected in this epic, perhaps demonstrating the Arabic influence experienced by the writer of this work. It is also important to understand the history of the conflict between Christians and Muslims in the Peninsula leading up to the time of this work to be able to recognize why the author includes this conflict in the epic. It is only by this conflict, that Rodrigo, the Cid, is able to gain prominence through his valiance in these battles.
When analyzing any text is is important to have a strong foundational understanding of the foundational aspects that play a role in it’s creation. From the author, time period, and artistic movement each of these pieces is crucial in how the text was created. Through this introduction, I hope to have brought light to a few key aspects that influenced the author of the epic, but also influence how we should interpret the text in the present day.