Fray De Luis example essay topic

INTRODUCTION Fray Luis de Leon, the Spanish poet and theologian was born in Belmonte, Aragon in 1528 and died in Madrid, circa 1591. He was brought up with a heightened sense of honour and virtue, no doubt instilled in him by his strict bourgeoisie upbringing. At the age of fourteen he left his home to pursue his study of law at the University of Salamanca, six months after his arrival he entered the Augustinian convent in that same city. It would appear that from an early age Fray Luis was seeking both that peace and wisdom which could be attained through a deep sense of spirituality, that would in later life be a strong theme throughout his poetic work. In 1560, after attaining both his Theology and University degrees, he was appointed to the chair of Theology in Salamanca. But as in the case of the poetry of Fray Luis, which we will be examining in the course of this essay, his personal life was as perforated with moments of tranquillity as it was with moments of torture.

On the 27th March 1572, de Leon was incarcerated at Valladolid by order of the Inquisition for heresy despite being a religious figure; this personal tragedy was something that left a huge mark on both his life and work. After examining his writings and hearing the witnesses, the Inquisition summed up in 17 propositions the accusations urged against him. In these propositions he was not charged with heresy but with imprudence and rashness. The tribunal at Valladolid after a trial extending nearly five years, declared him guilty and asked that he be put to the rack and rebuked.

This sentence was however reversed on the 7th December 1576, by the supreme council in Madrid, acquitting him and ordering his reinstatement to the University of Salamanca, but warned him to be more cautious in his teachings. However he renounced the chair for the time being, in favour of the professor who had filled it during his absence. In 1582, his worlds of harmony and disharmony once more clashed, as he got into fresh trouble with the Inquisition, and was summoned before the high Inquisitor at Toledo and warned to be more circumspect. He never published his poetry he simply circulated his thoughts amongst his friends, to whom many of the poems we will be looking at are addressed and they could discuss and debate them. Despite a certain unevenness of style Fray Luis de Leon is one of the greatest masters of Castilian lyric poetry. His virtue, national spirit, both religious and patriotic, and his rare classical purity, magnanimity and sure judgement throughout his life and work strive to save him from effeminacy, affection and pedantry.

Before moving on to a more detailed analysis of some of his poetry, I would like to look briefly at some of the themes Fray Luis discourses on throughout his work. Firstly there is the theme of wisdom, a recurring subject, the life of Fray Luis is a constant quest for happiness; happiness that in the course of his life remains unfulfilled, although he refuses to relinquish the hope that some day he may attain it. He is simply a man seeking to live in peace with himself, he seeks a personal solace, which is often overlooked or cast aside in the hustle and bustle of the world of his time. Many of his poems also deal with that sense of harmony which can exist between the natural world and oneself and diametrically opposed with the ideas to the disharmony and discord that can be experienced in ones life if we give into the material sins which were characteristic of, w eed, power, wealth, fame, fortune and vanity to name but a few.

Another important theme within the work of Fray Luis, which to certain degree helps to strengthen the character and underlines the virtues of the man, is friendship, the majority of his poetic work is dedicated to particular friends, their names are either incorporated into the title of the piece, or mentioned throughout the text of the poem, which lends an air of warmth and sensitivity to his work. Finally the idea of justice is a subject constantly touched on throughout his poetry. Fray de Luis was a man with a short temper which he fought to control constantly throughout his life, this in itself conjures up images of harmony and disharmony in his personal life, and is a trait which he transfers into his work as both his personal nemesis and the enemies of the natural world are critiqued and attacked in his work. A la Salida de la Carcel And so on moving on to his poetry, I think a good starting point is if we look at the shortest of Fray Luis's poems on our course, "A la Salida de la Carcel", this poem was reputedly written during the five year term of incarceration in Valladolid, the poem is in one sense a reflection or lament to his time spent in prison, which for him had become a place of peace and tranquillity away from the madness of public life he may have encountered in Salamanca, this is echoed in the opening lines of the poem, "Aqui la envidia y la mentira / me tuvieron encerrado / Dich oso el humilde estado / de sabio que se retire" (line 1-4). Running alongside this is the idea that it is also a celebration of a simple way of life away from the evils of the so-called civilised world, "de aqueste mundo malvado" (line 5). As Fray Luis is a Holy man, he is also able to draw on his faith whilst he is in prison and so in a way finds it easier to seek out and channel that inner harmony that most mortal men would find hard to call on if placed in a similar situation.

He speaks as if being in jail is a harmonious or peaceful time away from the falsehood or disharmony of the outside world", y con pobre mesa y casa / en el campo deleitoso" (line 6-7), to him prison is a place of inner peace. He concludes this particular poem, by once more referring to the peace and tranquillity of the inner sanctum hidden away from the prying eyes of the outside world by reminding us that you cannot be envious if you are hidden away or in his case physically imprisoned, although spiritually at peace from the outside world, "y a solas su vida pasa / ni envidiado ni envidioso" (line 9-10). If we consider placing the poem within a frame, I believe that we will be able to decipher the point that Fray Luis is trying to convey to us on a clearer level, and so if we consider line 1-2, and line 9-10 as the two sides of the argument in relation to, "A la Salida de la Carcel", the poet frames the opposing worlds of harmony and disharmony by striking a balance between what we choose as individuals and what is chosen for us by a higher power, in the case of the poem we can see that the life he chooses is the simple life of solitude free of any of the sins of the material world", y a solas su vida pasa / ni envidiado ni envidioso" (line 9-10), and the life chosen for him, which is also the life of solitude, although this time it is enforced through imprisonment, "Aqui la envidia y la mentira / me tuvieron encerrado" (line 1-2). A Felipe Ruiz This is the first of our poems on the course by Fray Luis de Leon written to a friend, in this short ode to his friend he shares his ideas on avarice, this poem as we will see shares a common theme with the aforementioned, "A la Salida de la Carcel", as once more the poet discourses on the struggle between the worlds of harmony and disharmony, through the specific imagery he uses during the poem, which here is that of voyage and trade, demonstrating how material wealth can never deliver the peace it promises.

In true Fray Luis style he alludes to this idea as early as the opening verse, when he comments on how the Portuguese merchants and traders can travel as far as the exotic lands of Persia, but the treasures they return with will not bring peace to the soul, "En vano el mar fatima / la vela portuguesa: que ni el seno... que p ueda hacer un an imo sereno" (line 1-5). He moves on to repeat this image of the spiritually fulfilling search for wealth in the second verse, taking great care to address his informed opinion to Felipe, "No da repo so al pecho / Felipe, ni la mina, ni la rara / esmeralda prove cho" (line 6-8). Following this Fray Luis moves onto the classical world allusion to the sin of greed, in the shape of Tantalus, who as we know was condemned to an existence of everlasting thirst in the midst of water, "y Tanta lo met ido / en medio de las aguas afligido / de sed esta" (line 14-16), the point he is trying to convey here, is that the greedier a soul is the more it will suffer. Within the content of the penultimate verse, he asks the question, that is so often posed to the miser, i.e. what is the point of taking the path lest travelled if ultimately you become to mean to spend what you have amassed through your toil, "la suerte es del mezquino, que sin tasa / se cans a a si; y endura / el oro, y la mar pasa / osado, y no osa abrir la mano es casa" (line 17-20).

This idea of taking the least travelled path, enduring hardship and refusing to bask in the glory you have attained, is a recurring theme in the poetry and is something he will touch on again in "La Vida Retirada", as we will see in due course. The final verse of "A Felipe Ruiz", is an epilogue of sorts when all the events of the previous stanzas are summed up and the moral of the piece is delivered, in the case of this poem, Fray Luis ends with two questions which remain unanswered, and in doing so are left to the reader to draw the required solution, as he begs the question as to what worth can be placed on material possessions if a man is left devoid of spiritual and emotional fulfilment as a direct result of being rich", Que vale el no toca do... si mas enturbia el cent / y deja en la rique za pobre al d ueno" (line 21-25). From this we can conclude that Fray Luis doesn't reject the quest for wealth and power, as he will later on, but asks the question as to whether by indulging in the hunt for personal glory, we are neglecting the other side of our psyche devout to spirituality, and thus does our preoccupation with the material world interrupt the balance of harmony in our lives? Al lincenciado Juan de Grial In this poem we once more encounter an ode dedicated to a close friend of Fray Luis.

The theme of this piece is the writers vocation and what it means to be called to write, and the suffering that one has to endure along with it, as once more the theme becomes the cipher for delivering the opposing ideas of harmony and disharmony, in the guise here of the happiness associated with writing and the personal torture that accompanies it. In relation to this examination of this poem, I would like to be allowed the indulgence of passing over verses 1-3, which focuses on the beauty of the natural world which inspires the writer to take up pen, and move on to verse 4, the place at the heart of the argument of the piece. Stanza 4 is centred around the call to study and write as a noble request, "El tiempo nos con vida / a los estudios nobles; y la fama / Grial, a la subida" (line 16-18), to which they must respond in order to attain fame, this same fame that Fray Luis now seeks is something that he will go on to reject in, "La Vida Retirada", In the final line he tells his friend that the time has come to create a work which will last well after his death, "do no p odra subir la poster llama" (line 20), it would seem that Fray Luis is embracing the material world that he had previously rejected. In stanza 6, he seeks to readdress the balance by once more calling for a suppression of the material values that plague his world, as he calls on Juan to detach himself from the falsehood of the world, as he warns him not to seek money or fame and in doing so will ultimately achieve inner happiness, "No cures si el perdido / error admiral el oro, y va sedi ento / en pos de un bien fingido / que no ansi vue la el viento / Canto es frugal y vano a quel content" (line 26-30) The idea of the balance between disharmony and harmony is summed up in, "A Juan Grial", in its simplest form, as the poet attempts to draw a contrast between two types of good, one being the inner personal good that will bring happiness and harmony to the poet's life, and the other being an immaterial image of public discord and disharmony, in contrast to private harmony that the poet seeks through the medium of recognition of his work", y la fama / Grial, a la subida / del Sacro monte llama" (line 17-18) A Francisco Salinas Once more we encounter an ode dedicated to a friend of the poet, here it is homage to a colleague of his, with whom he worked in the University, and has at its core music as the fundamental metaphor. In the opening stanza he is paying his respect to his friend, and in typical Fray Luis style contrasts physical and spiritual images, in so much to say that Salinas is physically blind, and so lives in a world of eternal darkness, yet the music he plays is a divine harmony that enlightens the senses, and helps the soul overcome ignorance and folly", El aire se serena / y vista de hermosura y luz no us ada / Salinas, cuando siena / la musica extrema da / por vues tra sabi a mano gobernada" (line 1-5).

He begins the poem in this way to remind us that Salinas is blind and is thus uncorrupted, by the outside world, as he cannot see the effects his music has on the outside world, and is thus aloof from the disharmony and discord of the aesthetic world, and at peace in his inner sanctum due to the harmony he plays, this in direct accordance with the view that Professor O'Reilly reminds of in his essay on, "The ode to Francisco Salinas", when he says that", music has a natural power to raise the soul to heavenly things", (ref: handout, "The ode to Francisco Salinas". Prof. Terence O'Reilly) In stanza 2, the poet delves into the inner effects of music, as through the blind musician, Salinas the soul is reawakened, to discover its origin", A cayo son divino... torna a cobra r el tino / y memoria perdido" (line 6-9). In keeping with this idea of music as a soother of the soul within the content of verse 3, Fray Luis describes the impact of music on his understanding as the soul becomes aware of itself, through the harmony of the music", Y como se conoco / en suerte y pensamientos se mejor a" (line 11-12). Following this he ponders a moment on that recurring image of rejecting the superficial values of the material world, "el oro desconoce / que el vul go cie go adora / la belleza ca duca, enganadora" (line 13-15), in doing so becoming inwardly, in order to achieve what he sets out to do in stanza 4, to elevate the soul, through the material world to the heavens where he can find eternal peace, "Tras pasa el aire todo / hasta l legar a la mas alta e sfera / y oye alli otro modo / de no perecedera" (line 16-19). Stanzas 5 and 6 centres around the poets inner quest for wisdom and harmony, as through the music of his friend Fray Luis is able to achieve a balance between wholeness and wisdom, culminating in stanza 9, with the poet asking, that even in death the music of Salinas may echo in his ears, as a means of helping him reject all the qualities of the material world that wash over his earthly body, and open the eyes of the soul to eternal beauty", Oh sue no de conti no / Salinas, vues tro son en mis oid os / por quien al bien divino / despiertan los sentidos / que dando a lo dem as amortecidos" (line 46-50). La Vida Retirada And so we come to the longest and probably one of the most important of Fray Luis's poems, "La Vida retirada".

The metaphorical structure of this poem is a lot more complex than its simplicity would suggest, it centres around, as in the case of the majority of Fray Luis's poems, two opposites, here two opposite ways of living; the "escondida sienda", of the few and the "mundial ruido", of the many. The theme here is the attractive life of the "escondida sienda", the life of solitude which will bring us peace and wisdom. The first stanza, deals with the necessary decision that has to be made in order to reach a place of inner harmony, firstly it is necessary to turn away from the hustle and bustle of life, "Que descansada vida / la del qu ehuye el mund anal ruido" (line 1-2), and embrace the road least travelled", y sigue la escondida" (line 3). The second and third verses revolve around the question of status and fame, and how a person who seeks the hidden path, contains a sense of inner happiness and thus has no need for flattery", Que no le enturbia el pecho / de los sober bios grandes el estado" (line 6-7). The one who is believed to be wise is unmoved by flattery and fame, as he knows these twin tongues, deceive. These contrasting images of the inner harmony of the wise man and the tumultuous disharmony of the one who seeks fame are the central images at the heart of "La Vida retirada".

Stanza 3, focuses on the poet's own personal quest for inner spiritual fulfilment, by rejecting all human failings, such as jealousy and the need for fame and success, "No cura si la fama / cant a con voz su nombre prego nera" (line 11-12). He further concrete's this point in stanza 4, by asking as to how can fame increase his inner peace, as fame to the poet is a form of vanity, a vice that in order to reach his Utopia, he has undertaken to reject", si en busca de esta viento / ando desalentado / con ansi as vivas, con mortal cuidado?" (Line 18-20). Following this in stanza 5 and 6, he switches the focus to the place he hopes "la escondida sienda", will take him to the garden, which by its pure mention conjures up a peaceful naturalistic world, as he turns away from the tumultuous storm created by the wind, in order to enter the garden", oh secreto seguro deleitoso... hugo de aqueste mar tempestuoso" (line 22-25). In stanza 7 he further underlines his longing to reach the garden in order to achieve inner peace, by highlighting the peace that envelopes the garden, through invoking the image of the sweet music, in stark contrast with the harsh noise that swirls around the outside world", Despiertenme las aves / con su can tar sabroso no aprendido / no los cuidado's graves" (line 31-33), it is certain that this is a direct reference to harmony and disharmony arising from the one thing, and is similar to the idea echoed in the words of Friar Laurence in Shakespeare's, "Romeo and Juliet", when he tells us that love and hate arise from the one source in much the same way harmony and disharmony spring from one and the same here. Between verses 9 and 12, Fray de Luis paints the garden at the heart of the piece for us, a real garden yet metaphorical on several levels. The garden lies on the slope of a hill, where a fountain races along to become a bubbling stream weaving its way among the trees and enriching the meadow banks and flora.

In this garden the breeze blows softly, which is a further development of the image of the wind, here in contrast to the storm which destroys the treasure laden ships. The wind here is called on to be creative and awaken the fragrance of the garden. This particular peace of verse ends on a further contrast, between those who burn with an insatiable thirst and Fray Luis reclining in the shade crowned with ivy and laurel, the traditional markings of the poet. To conclude on this poem, it is clear that this is not simply an ode to the simple way of life or a lament to moments past, but a judgement on the folly of those people who choose worldly fame and fortune over a higher spiritual calling, as disorder and chaos usually spring forth from human desire and greed, represented here by the scuttled ship in the ferocious storm. Finally to conclude in relation to the work of Fray Luis de Leon, firstly I would like to acknowledge that I've failed to incorporate, "A Don Pedro Portocarrero", the last poem of Fray Luis, that we studied on the course, and I have done this for two reasons, firstly, due to the restraints imposed by the essay form, I felt that it's inclusion was unnecessary and secondly, I also feel that throughout the course of this lengthy reflection on the poetry of Fray Luis, I feel that I've shown, enough of Fray Luis's work, to prove beyond any doubt, that the poet attempts to create a balance between the elements of harmony and disharmony in his work, be the content of his poems spirituality, religion, patriarch ism, friendship, private or public world.

Bibliography

De LEON, Fray Luis". A Salida de la Carcel", Ref: Handout 14/02/02 De Leon, Fray Luis". A Felipe Ruiz", Ref: Handout 14/02/02 De Leon, Fray Luis. "A licencia do Juan Grial", Ref: Handout 21/02/02 De Leon, Fray Luis". A Francisco Salinas", Ref: Handout 07/03/02 De Leon, Fray Luis". Vida Retirada", Ref: Handout 14/03/02 De Leon, Fray Luis". A don Pedro Portocarrero", Ref: Handout 21/03/02 O'Reilly, Terence". The ode to Francisco Salinas", Ref: Handout 07/03/02 hat at the time Fray Luis would have seen as the modern world, such as gr.