Speaking Prose
The Power of the Voice in Cervantes

B. W. Ife

Studies in Hispanic and Lusophone Cultures 50

Legenda

  Spring 2025

ISBN: 978-1-839540-10-3 (hardback)  •  RRP £95, $120, €120

ISBN: 978-1-839540-11-0 (paperback, forthcoming)

ISBN: 978-1-839540-12-7 (JSTOR ebook)

RenaissanceSpanishFiction


Late on in Part II of Don Quijote, Cide Hamete Benengeli wishes that he'd never embarked on the history of Don Quixote: writing about a single subject is so dry and one-dimensional, and he dislikes having to 'speak through the mouths of very few characters'. Since Don Quijote has a cast of thousands, the irony of this remark is clear, but it poses a fundamental question at the heart of the novel: why does Cervantes - why does any novelist - persist in making his characters speak when we can't hear a word that they say? Cervantes is a master of dialogue and renowned for his ironic tone of voice so there is sleight of hand at work. Speaking Prose asks how Cervantes - how any novelist - manages to make silent pages speak (and sometimes sing) with such eloquence and why he wants his many characters to find their voice.

Sir Barry Ife is Cervantes Professor Emeritus at King's College London and Research Professor at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, where he was Principal from 2004-2017. His recent research is concerned with the performative nature of prose fiction in general and Cervantes in particular.

Bibliography entry:

Ife, B. W., Speaking Prose: The Power of the Voice in Cervantes, Studies in Hispanic and Lusophone Cultures, 50 (Legenda, 2025)

First footnote reference: 35 B. W. Ife, Speaking Prose: The Power of the Voice in Cervantes, Studies in Hispanic and Lusophone Cultures, 50 (Legenda, 2025), p. 21.

Subsequent footnote reference: 37 Ife, p. 47.

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

Bibliography entry:

Ife, B. W.. 2025. Speaking Prose: The Power of the Voice in Cervantes, Studies in Hispanic and Lusophone Cultures, 50 (Legenda)

Example citation: ‘A quotation occurring on page 21 of this work’ (Ife 2025: 21).

Example footnote reference: 35 Ife 2025: 21.

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


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