El arte epistolar en el renacimiento espanol.

Abstract

The art of letter-writing in the Renaissance has been a neglected topic among scholars, particularly in respect to Renaissance Spain. This dissertation attempts to address the problem, with special attention to epistolary theory and practice in XVIth-century Spain. In a first part, dedicated to the theoretical aspects of the art, the study undertakes the examination and comparison of two major treatises on letter-writing, Erasmus' Opus de conscribendis epistolis (Basle, 1522), and Juan Luis Vives' De conscribendis epistolis (Basle, 1536), with mention of some other minor treatises of the period. The aim of the study is to prove that both treatises are quite different from one another, and, despite what some scholars have said, one does not stem from the other. The second part of the dissertation is a practical application of the theory in two very different and important collections of letters in sixteenth-century Spain: Fray Antonio de Guevara's Epistolas familiares, and Saint Teresa of Avila's Epistolario. While Saint Teresa's letters are authentic cartas, that is, letters sent to and read by individuals, Guevara's letters are actually epistolas, meant to be read by many, and, in fact, are essays. This would situate Fray Antonio as precursor of the essay genre in the Renaissance. Also, it is significant that, although both Spanish writers are using different forms of the letter, they still remain within the limits of the demands of the genre with respect to decorum, form and style. They are conscious of an existing epistolary system, which they follow.