The Last Days of Humanism
A Reappraisal of Quevedo’s Thought

Alfonso Rey

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Studies in Hispanic and Lusophone Cultures 15

Legenda

11 October 2015  •  226pp

ISBN: 978-1-909662-81-0 (hardback)  •  RRP £80, $110, €95

ISBN: 978-1-315086-11-8 (Taylor & Francis ebook)

RenaissanceSpanishPoetryPhilosophy

Francisco de Quevedo (Madrid, 1580-1645) was well known for his rich and dynamic style, achieved through an ingenious and complex manipulation of language. Yet he was also a consistent and systematic thinker, with moral philosophy, broadly understood, lying at the core of his numerous and varied works. Quevedo lived in an age of transition, with the Humanist tradition on the wane, and his writing expresses the characteristic uncertainty of a moment of cultural transition. In this book Alfonso Rey surveys Quevedo’s ideas in such diverse fields as ethics, politics, religion and literature, ideas which hitherto have received little attention. New information is also provided towards a reconstruction of the cultural evolution of Europe in the years prior to the Enlightenment, and thus the scope of the book extends beyond that of Spanish literature.

Alfonso Rey is Professor of Spanish Literature at the University of Santiago de Compostela, and directs the publication of both the Complete Prose Works and the Complete Poetry of Quevedo.

Reviews:

  • ‘A thoughtful, wide-ranging contribution from a well-known quevedista... Many interesting points are raised, for example, Quevedo’s aims in writing a wide variety of works; his indebtedness as a humanist to Greek philosophy, Roman culture and Renaissance theories; Quevedo’s aspirations in courtly circles; his commitment to his country and Catholicism; and his views on life, death, virtue and wisdom... an excellent study.’ — John A. Jones, Bulletin of Spanish Studies 95.1, January 2018, 163-64

Bibliography entry:

Rey, Alfonso, The Last Days of Humanism: A Reappraisal of Quevedo’s Thought, Studies in Hispanic and Lusophone Cultures, 15 (Legenda, 2015)

First footnote reference: 35 Alfonso Rey, The Last Days of Humanism: A Reappraisal of Quevedo’s Thought, Studies in Hispanic and Lusophone Cultures, 15 (Legenda, 2015), p. 21.

Subsequent footnote reference: 37 Rey, p. 47.

(To see how these citations were worked out, follow this link.)

Bibliography entry:

Rey, Alfonso. 2015. The Last Days of Humanism: A Reappraisal of Quevedo’s Thought, Studies in Hispanic and Lusophone Cultures, 15 (Legenda)

Example citation: ‘A quotation occurring on page 21 of this work’ (Rey 2015: 21).

Example footnote reference: 35 Rey 2015: 21.

(To see how these citations were worked out, follow this link.)

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