Juan Boscán Almogáver: Difference between revisions

Joan Boscà i Almogàver (Catalan pronunciation: [ʒuˈam busˈka j əɫmuˈɣaβə], Spanish: Juan Boscán Almogávar) (c. 1490 – 21 September 1542), was a Spanish poet who incorporated hendecasyllable verses into Spanish.

Biography

The exact date of birth for Boscà is unclear, but there is a consensus that he was born anywhere between 1487 and 1492. Boscà was born in

With Boscán's fame came great controversy, because he constantly had to combat with those who preferred the old style of poetry over the new. In 1539, he married Ana Girón de Rebolledo of Valencia and fathered three daughters. Boscán died on 21 September 1542 after becoming ill in Perpignan, while he was preparing some of his poetry for publication.

Works

Joan Boscà's most famous works appear in Las obras de Boscán y algunas de Garcilaso de la Vega repartidas en quatro libros (The Works of Boscà and Some of Garcilaso de la Vega Divided in Four Volumes). In volume three, this includes Leandro y Hero (Leander and Hero), based on an ancient Greek fable and Ottava Rima (Royal Octave). A stanza of "Ottava Rima" reads:

Later reputation

Boscà's and his close friend Garcilaso de la Vega (who he met at the Spanish court) are seen as very influential in the poetry of the Spanish Renaissance. Boscán was the first poet to introduce the Italian metres to Spain.

Boscà's poems were published after his death by his widow around 1543 (Garcilaso died in 1536 and Boscà was given the task of editing some of his works before his own death on September 21, 1542). The collection proved popular: between 1543 and 1597, twenty-one editions were printed throughout Europe. While the collection was supposed to focus mainly on his poetry, Boscà was soon overshadowed by his friend Garcilaso. In contrast to Garcilaso, who explored several genres and themes in the new Italian style, Boscà wrote mostly about love. He has been compared to Fray Luis de León, a poet and professor of the 16th century, who also enjoyed the process of translating and writing poetry.

One of his works, Oh Sombra!, was adapted into a song by the

External links

• [1] Link to search for more information and critical essays on Juan Boscán in the Literature Resource Center (a database). Template:En icon Template:Es icon
• Juan Boscán Template:Es icon