This article describes "Verse Chronograms" in the Cabrera Portrait (1750) of Sor Juana. The author explains the meaning of three hard-to-see sets of verses inscribed on the canvas, that are a kind of text known as a chronogram, a literary puzzle in which the numerical values of letters that correspond to Roman numerals are added up so…

This article underscores the importance of Canto 7 in the design of Part One as well as its significance in the overall architecture of Alonso de Ercilla's "La Araucana" (1569, 1578, 1589). During his depiction of Concepción's destruction, Ercilla collapses the dichotomies established in the poem's opening cantos between the masculine…

A grief-stricken daughter calls out to her deceased mother asking if she can see her--"Si me puedes mirar"--and thus recognize her pain. This title appears in Olga Orozco's "Los juegos peligrosos" (1962), an elegy in which a poetic voice (in this case a daughter) laments the loss of her mother, the woman who recognized and…

Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis's poem "Soneto de Natal" and the chapter "Um soneto" from his novel "Dom Casmurro" exhibit striking points of intersection that describe the same process: the creation of a sonnet. In the novel, Bentinho abandons his attempt with only a first and last line. "Soneto de Natal"…

This short-form article introduces the Pre-Texts protocol (Harvard Cultural Agents Initiative) as a way to introduce new texts in class by using creation as a catalyst for reflection and dialogue. This current article briefly describes the benefits of this technique for the present generation of learners and teachers, as well as outlines clearly…

The poem "Ritmos negros del Perú" by Afro-Peruvian writer Nicomedes Santa Cruz recovers Afro-Peruvian history and agency through the retelling of the journey of a mythical grandmother. Through the retelling of her story, the poet claims blackness and African roots as pillars of Peruvian culture. In so doing, Santa Cruz opens the door not…

This article examines a number of poems in which Shirley Campbell challenges the myth of historical objectivity by suggesting that the history of African diasporic peoples and societies has been obliterated in Europe's agenda to relegate them to positions of subservience and deny even their very existence. The poetic voice declares that…

This article examines poetry written during the Spanish Civil War that reflects on the modern character of the conflict: the novel tactic of aerial bombing civilian populations as it was disseminated through the mass media. A comparative reading of this body of poetry written by Spanish, British, and American authors allows for the examination of…

This article argues the pedagogical and scholarly benefits to Spanish language faculty who themselves conduct community-engaged service projects in Spanish-speaking communities. The author explores the term "service" as it is understood in higher education in relationship to teaching and scholarship, positing that service projects…

This study examines the impact that membership in a Spanish language theater and poetry troupe had upon a group of Mexican and Chicano university students in terms of the development of academic identities, feelings of belonging, connections with friends and family, and other factors that correlate with academic perseverance. Also examined was the…

At a conference on environmental change in Latin America, Homero Aridjis, writer, environmental activist, and founder of the Grupo de los Cien, quoted Yeats when answering my question about the connection between his prolific literary work and untiring activism: "In dreams begin responsibility." He later explained that through writing…

After thirty-three years of exile in Mexico, Ernestina de Champourcin returned to Madrid in 1972, in time to witness the profound political changes in Spain prompted by the death of Franco and by the cultural revolution originating in the capital known as the "movida madrileña." Between 1979 and 1980, she responded to the explosion of…

Clara Janes's "Kampa" is a love song dedicated to the renowned Czech poet Vladimir Holan. The work includes a musical and lyrical composition performed on tape, and its unconventional musical mode offers an alternative to divisions between western and non-western literary and musical forms. The poetry of "Kampa" presents musical methods of…

At the beginning of the twentieth century a new subgenre of poetry written in Spanish, but rooted in Japanese literary tradition, began to emerge in the works of Spain's vanguard and Generation of 1927 poets and among young modernist poets in Mexico and South America. Transmitted first through France and later directly from Japan, the popularity…

This article analyzes Vinicius de Moraes's "Patria minha" (1948) within the historical context of his first diplomatic post abroad. "Patria minha" was written while Moraes was stationed in Los Angeles as a Consul de Segunda Classe (Ministerio, "Moraes" 385). Moraes's poetic interpretations of Brazil often originated…