The advent of Portuguese poetry dates back to early 12th century. Lyric poetry is a treasure of Portugal literature which was produced by some of the notable Portuguese poets, like Sa de Miranda who introduced sonnet in Portuguese poetry.
Unfortunately, Portuguese literature was unstudied and unknown outside of Portugal until the 19th century. It was after 19th-century remarkable Portuguese works were translated with the help of Portuguese translation services. Yet from its establishment, it came into contact with many linguistic and national influences. However, Portugal has a distinct individuality, and it is expressed in its national temperament as well as language & literature.
Let us get to know about the different phase of Portuguese poetry.
Early works
Early works of Portugal’s literature developed between 12th to 14th centuries, and the earliest evolution was in lyric poetry. The poems were collected in song books, and some of the earliest works were – Cancioneiro da Ajuda, da Vaticana, and Colocci-Brancuti.
Prose writing took some more time to develop, and the first writings were romances of chivalry.
The Renaissance
The Renaissance in Portugal made a remarkable impact in poetry and drama. Gil Vicente was country’s greatest dramatist who portrayed satirical pictures of Portuguese society in his 44 plays. Later in the 16th century, Portuguese poetry was gets influenced by the Italianate school. With the return of Francisco de Sa de Miranda from Italy, new poetic styles evolved. Diogo Bernardes, Miranda, and many other poets mastered the new forms of lyric poetry which achieved its peak point in the works of Luis de Camoes. The Renaissance also observed an increase in historic writing which chronicles the discoveries and conquests in Africa, Asia, and America.
Literary movements in 18th and 19th century
A progressive growth was seen in the 18th century with Romantic Movement liberal ideas from abroad. The maximum growth was focused in the 19th century with Júlio Dinis, José Maria Eça de Queirós, and Camilo Castelo Branco, using a social realist and satirical manner to write about class relations, heritage, family, and religion.
A group of poets rebelled against romanticism and focus their works on philosophical and social ideas.
20th century
The 20th century was distinguished for lyric poetry. In this age, realism also influenced the Portuguese literature which was manifested in the short stories of rural life by Manuel Torga.
In the early 1970s, Portuguese literature enriched with the publication of a volume of gathered notes, letters, poems and stories by Maria Isabel Barreno, Maria Velho da Costa and Maria Teresa Horta.
In a nutshell, Portuguese poetry and literature is rich and produced many notable poets and novelists.
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