The fabric and the suit: Gongorism and Latin American criticism

Abstract

Multifaceted, generous and difficult, the phenomenon of Gongorism in Latin America has always been a unique and controversial field, in which not only the literature and history, but also the criticism and its forms, have tested and developed its ideas and techniques. But, as a “phenomenon”, “Gongorism” is –and always has been–fundamentally a critical issue, distinct but not completely seperate from Góngora and his works. Juan de Espinosa Medrano, pioneer in this question of distinctions, not only points out the problem in his Apologético en favor de don Luis de Góngora (1662). He also defines the problem and establishes the abilities and experience of a language and the community it involves as a central issue in the debate.