This version of the course guide is provisional until the period for editing the new course guides ends.

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Spanish Literature: Enlightenment to Romanticism

Code: 106358 ECTS Credits: 6
2025/2026
Degree Type Year
Spanish Language and Literature OB 2

Contact

Name:
Rebeca Martín López
Email:
rebeca.martin@uab.cat

Teaching groups languages

You can view this information at the end of this document.


Prerequisites

By obtaining the minimum of credits in basic training subjects, students have demonstrated to have acquired the basic competences and they will be able to express themselves orally and in writing.

It is also expected that students know the general rules of submission of an academic work. However, students could apply the specific rules that the teacher of the subject may indicate to them if they deem it necessary.


Objectives and Contextualisation

The subject aims to offer an overview of Spanish literature at the beginning of modernity, from the mid-18th century to the mid-19th century. Special attention will be paid to the description and development of the main stages of literature and its literary and aesthetic currents.

Special attention will be given to the description of the different currents and aesthetic tendencies that intersect with the stages called Enlightenment and Romanticism, concerning the historical period in which they have developed. For this reason, the focus will be mainly on the reading and analysis of some of the fundamental texts of those stages, periods, movements, or trends.


Competences

  • Act with ethical responsibility and respect for fundamental rights and duties, diversity and democratic values.
  • Demonstrate the ability to work autonomously and in teams in order to achieve the planned objectives in multicultural and interdisciplinary contexts.
  • Develop arguments applicable to the fields of Hispanic literature, literary theory, Spanish language and linguistics, and evaluate their academic relevance.
  • Identify the most significant periods, traditions, trends, authors and works in Spanish-language literature in their historical and social context.
  • Recognise the main theories, themes and genres of literature in the different Spanish-speaking countries.
  • Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  • Use digital tools and specific documentary sources to gather and organise information.
  • Use the methodology and concepts of literary analysis taking into account sources and contexts.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analyse the features of the literary genres of the Spanish Enlightenment and Romanticism.
  2. Analyse the features of 19th-century Spanish narrative.
  3. Assess, through the analysis of literary productions, the prejudices and discriminations that may be included in actions or projects, in the short or long term, in relation to certain people or groups.
  4. Comment on a text taking into account the figures of thought and expression.
  5. Contextualise historically, socially and ideologically the literary production of Realism and Modernism.
  6. Contextualise historically, socially and ideologically the literary production of the Enlightenment and Romanticism.
  7. Contextualise historically, socially and ideologically the literary production of 19th century Spanish poetry and theatre.
  8. Critically interpret bibliography.
  9. Critically interpret literary works taking into account their historical and social context.
  10. Elaborate summaries or reviews of academic works.
  11. Examine the features of 19th-century Spanish poetry and theatre.
  12. Identify the features of the literary genres of Realism and Modernism.
  13. Justify the characteristics of the texts and literary periods under study in different types of academic writing (written exams, academic papers, summaries and reviews).
  14. Recognise the principles of the discipline of study and its main sources.
  15. Use appropriate terminology in the construction of an academic text.
  16. Use digital tools to obtain, classify, interpret and analyse relevant data related to the study of Spanish language and literature.
  17. Use the appropriate terminology in the construction of an academic text and in the transmission of their knowledge.
  18. Use traditional sources to obtain, classify, interpret and analyse relevant data related to the study of Spanish language and literature.
  19. Write and present academic works.

Content

1. Crosscurrents in eighteenth century Spanish literature: Rococo, Enlightenment, Neoclassicism, Enlightened Sensibility.

2. The prose in the Enlightenment, between the essay and the novel.

* Required reading: Cartas marruecas. Noches lúgubres by José Cadalso.

3. General features of neoclassical theater: from heroic tragedy to sentimental comedy and comedy of manners. The popular theater.

4. Enlightened poetry: didacticism and sentimentality.

* Required reading: Anthology of eighteenth–century poetry.

5. The reception of European Romanticism in Spain.

6. Romantic poetry: from Espronceda to Bécquer.

* Required reading: El estudiante de Salamanca by José de Espronceda.

7. The prose during Romanticism: historical novel, Costumbrism and fantastic tales.

8. The romantic drama.

* Required reading: Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino by Ángel de Saavedra, Duque de Rivas.

 

Mandatory readings

 * José Cadalso, Cartas marruecas. Noches lúgubres, by Emilio Martínez Mata y estudio preliminar de Nigel Glendinning, Barcelona, Crítica (Biblioteca Clásica); Cartas marruecas. Noches lúgubres, ed. by Joaquín Arce, Cátedra (Letras Hispánicas).

* Poesía española del siglo XVIII, edition by teacher.

* José de Espronceda, El estudiante de Salamanca. El diablo mundo, ed. by Robert Marrast, Madrid, Castalia (Classics Castalia, 81), 1978.

* Angel of Saavedra, Duke of Rivas, Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino, ed. by Miguel Ángel Lama and preliminary study of Ermanno Caldera, Barcelona, Crítica (Biblioteca Clásica, 91); Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino, ed. by Alberto Sánchez, Cátedra (Letras Hispánicas), Don Álvaro, ed. by Enrique Baltanás, Alianza.


Activities and Methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Master classes and classroom practices 60 2.4 1, 6, 17, 14, 15
Type: Supervised      
Tutorials 12 0.48 16, 18, 8, 9, 15, 3
Type: Autonomous      
Individual study and production of papers and analytical comments written 75 3 1, 6, 17, 14, 3

The learning of this subject by the students is distributed as follows:

Directed activities. These activities are divided into master classes and seminars and classroom practices led by the faculty, in which theoretical explanation is combined with discussion of all types of texts.

Supervised activities. These tutorials are programmed by the teacher, dedicated to correcting and commenting on problems at different levels of literary analysis.

Autonomous activities. These activities include both time devoted to individual study and production of papers and analytical comments written, as well as oral presentations.

Evaluation activities. The evaluation of the subject will be carried out through written tests.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Critical commentary 20% 1 0.04 2, 1, 4, 6, 7, 5, 19, 10, 11, 17, 16, 18, 12, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 3
Written test 1 40% 1 0.04 2, 1, 4, 6, 7, 5, 19, 10, 11, 17, 16, 18, 12, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 3
Written test 2 40% 1 0.04 2, 1, 4, 6, 7, 5, 19, 10, 11, 17, 16, 18, 12, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 3

Continuous assessment

To be eligible for a passing grade, it is mandatory to complete all the course readings and achieve a score of 5 or higher in the weighted average of the assessment activities. The evaluation of the course consists of three parts:

1. A text commentary or the development of a topic related to the subject of the course. The teacher will provide the content of this test on the first day of class, which will be carried out in a session dedicated to this activity. [20%].

2. A written test on the subject taught during the first half of the course [40%], which will cover the topics related to Enlightement and their corresponding readings.

3. A second written exam on the subject taught during the second half of the course [40%], which will cover the topics related to Romanticism and the corresponding readings.

Erasmus students who wish to bring forward an exam must present the teacher with a written document from their home university justifying their request.

The written expression of the tests must be adequate. The student must write a well-structured speech, with complete, coherent and well-developed paragraphs. Faults (spelling, syntax, punctuation errors, unnecessary repetitions, Anglicisms, Catalanisms, etc.) will be deducted 0.25 points each; with more than ten faults, the test will be graded Fail.

The activities, practices and works presented in the course must be original and partial or total plagiarism of other people's materials published in any medium will not be admitted under any circumstances. The person enrolled in the course must make the authorship of all quotations and the use of other people's materials explicit, according to the uses of bibliographic documentation. In the event that the teacher asks the student for the sources used (annotated articles and books,diagrams, notes, etc.), the student must present them. The presentation of non-original material without adequately indicatingits origin or the inappropriate or incorrect use of the bibliography will automatically result in a grade of failure (0), with no possibility of recovery.

In the event that the student commits any type of irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade of an evaluation act, this will be graded with a 0, regardless of the disciplinary procedure that may result. In the event that several irregularities are verified in the assessment acts of the same subject, the final grade for that subject will be a 0.

This subject allows the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies exclusively in the process of preparing the text commentary or development of the topic. The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies to generate texts is not allowed. In case of resorting to this technology, the student must (i) identify the parts that have been generated with AI; (ii) specify the tools used; and (iii) include a critical reflection on how these have influenced the process and the final result of the activity. Lack of transparency in the use of AI in this assessable activity will be considered a lack of academic honesty and will result in the activity being assessed with a 0 and not being recoverable, or higher penalties in cases of severity.

At the time of each evaluation activity, the teacher will inform the students (Moodle) of the procedure and the date for the revision of the grades.

The student will be able to recover the subject as long as he/she fulfils the following requirements:

1. To have taken at least 2/3 of the assessment activities, that is, the two tests on syllabus and readings [40% + 40%].

2. To have obtained at least a 3.5 average in the continuous assessment of the course.

3. The commentary [20%] is not recoverable. If the student has not completed the text commentary, it will be graded with a zero in order to calculate the weighted average.

The result of the make-up test will replace the grade of the failed test to calculate the final grade of the subject.

A student who has not completed more than 30% of the assessment activities will be considered “Not evaluable”. The completion of two activities implies the willingness to be assessed in the subject.

 

Single assessment

The date of the single assessment will be announced during the first days of the course on the subject’s Virtual Campus.

In order to pass the course, it is compulsory to have completed all the course readings.

1. A text commentary or the development of a topic related to the subject of the course. The teacher will provide the content of this test on the first day of class, which will be carried out in a session dedicated to this activity. [20%].

2. A written test on the subject taught during the first half of the course [40%], which will cover the topics related to Illustration and their corresponding readings.

3. A second written exam on the subject taught during the second half of the course [40%], which will cover the topics related to Romanticism and its corresponding readings.

The same recovery system will be applied as for continuous assessment.

For the rest of the considerations regarding the correctness of written expression, plagiarism, revision of tests, remediation and the grade of ‘Not evaluable’, the rules of continuous assessment will be applied.


Bibliography

The teacher will provide students with a specific bibliography (articles, book chapters, books, etc.) for each block. Most of these resources will be published on the Virtual Campus.

 

Aguilar Piñal, Francisco (1991), Introducción al siglo XVIII, Madrid, Júcar.

Albiach Blanco, María-Dolores (2011), Historia de la literatura española. 4. Razón y sentimiento (1692-1800), Barcelona, Crítica.

Alborg, Juan Luis (1980), Historia de la literatura española, IV: El Romanticismo, Madrid, Gredos.

Alonso, Cecilio (2010), Historia de la Literatura Española. Vol. 5. Hacia una literatura nacional (1808-1898), Barcelona, Crítica.

Álvarez Barrientos, Joaquín (1991), La novela del siglo XVIII, Madrid, Júcar.

*Álvarez Barrientos, Joaquín (2005), Ilustración y Neoclasicismo en las letras españolas, Madrid, Síntesis (Historia de la Literatura Universal. Literatura Española, 18).

Álvarez Barrientos, Joaquín (2008), Los hombres de letras en la España del siglo XVIII. Apóstoles y arribistas, Madrid, Castalia.

Amorós, Andrés (ed.) (1998), Antología comentada de la Literatura española. Siglo XVIII, Madrid, Castalia.

Arce, Joaquín (1980), La poesía del siglo ilustrado, Madrid, Alhambra.

Bolufer, Mónica (2019), Arte y artificio en la vida en común: Los modelos de comportamiento y sus tensiones en el Siglo de las Luces, Madrid, Marcial Pons Historia.

*Caldera, Ermano (2001), El teatro español en la época romántica, Madrid, Castalia.

Cantos Casenave, Marieta (ed.) (2022), Mitos e imaginarios de España (1831-1879), Madrid, Vervuert.

*Carnero, Guillermo (coord.) (1995), Siglo XVIII (I y II), Tomo 6 y 7 de la Historia de la literatura española dirigida por Víctor García de la Concha, Madrid, Espasa Calpe.

*Carnero, Guillermo (coord.) (1996), Siglo XIX (I), Tomo 8 de la Historia de la literatura española, dirigida por Víctor García de la Concha, Madrid, Espasa Calpe.

Caso González, J.M. (ed.) (1983), Ilustración y Neoclasicismo. Historia y crítica de la literatura española, Barcelona, Crítica

*Checa, J., J.A. Ríos e Irene Vallejo (1992), La poesía del siglo XVIII, Madrid, Júcar.

Domínguez Ortiz, Antonio (1976), Sociedad y Estado en el siglo XVIII español, Barcelona, Ariel.

Establier Pérez, Helena (2023), Damas del siglo ilustrado: la escritura de las mujeres españolas en el XVIII, Madrid / Fránkfurt, Iberoamericana Vervuert.

García Hurtado, Manuel (coord.) (2009), La vida cotidiana en la España del siglo XVIII, Madrid, Sílex.Fontana, Josep (2015), La época del liberalismo, en Josep Fontana y Ramón Villares (dirs.), Historia de España, vol. 6, Barcelona, Crítica / Marcial Pons.

Gies, David T. (ed.) (1989), El Romanticismo, Madrid, Taurus («El escritor y la crítica», 197).

Gies, David T. y Sebold, Russell P. (eds.) (1992), Ilustración y Neoclasicismo. Primer Suplemento. Historia y crítica de la literatura española, Barcelona, Crítica.

*Gies, David T. (1998), El teatro en la España del siglo XIX, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Lilti, Antoine (2023), La herencia de la Ilustración. Ambivalencias de la modernidad, Barcelona, Gedisa. 

*Llorens, Vicente (1989), El Romanticismo español. Ideas literarias. Literatura e historia, Madrid, Castalia.

Lynch, John (1991), Historiade España, XII. El siglo XVIII, Barcelona, Crítica.

Marrast, Robert (1989), Espronceda y su tiempo, Barcelona, Crítica.

Montesinos, J.F. (1955), Introducción a una historia de la novela española del siglo XIX, Madrid, Castalia, 3ª edición ampliada de 1973.

Molina, Álvaro (2013), Mujeres y hombres en la España ilustrada. Identidad, género y visualidad, Madrid, Cátedra (Ensayos Arte Cátedra).

*Navas Ruiz, Ricardo (1990), El Romanticismo español, Madrid, Cátedra.

Navas Ruiz, Ricardo (1971), El Romanticismo español. Documentos, Salamanca, Anaya.

Palacios Fernández, Emilio (2002), La mujer y las letras en la España del siglo XVIII, Madrid, Arcadia de las Letras.

Payán, Juan Jesús (2022), Los conjuros del asombro: Expresión fantástica e identidad nacional en la España del siglo XIX, Newark, Juan de La Cuesta-Hispanic Monographs.

Pérez Magallón, Jesús (2001), El teatro neoclásico, Madrid, Ediciones del Laberinto.

*Romero Tobar, Leonardo (1994), Panorama crítico del Romanticismo español, Madrid, Castalia.

Sánchez-Blanco, Francisco (1991), Europa y el pensamiento español del siglo XVIII, Madrid, Alianza.

Sánchez-Blanco, Francisco (1992), La prosa del siglo XVIII, Madrid, Júcar.

Sánchez-Blanco, Francisco (1997), La Ilustración en España, Madrid, Akal.

Sánchez-Blanco, Francisco (ed.) (1998), El ensayo español. 2. El siglo XVIII, Barcelona, Crítica.

Sánchez-Blanco, Francisco (1999), La mentalidad ilustrada, Madrid, Taurus.

Sebold, Russell P. (1989), El rapto de la mente. Poética y poesía dieciochesca, Barcelona, Anthropos.

Tuñón de Lara, Manuel (2000), La España del siglo XIX, 2 vols., Madrid, Akal.

Zavala, I.M. (1971), Ideología y política en la novela del siglo XIX, Salamanca, Anaya.

*Zavala, Iris (ed.) (1982), Romanticismo y realismo. Historia y crítica de la literatura española, Barcelona, Crítica.

*Zavala, Iris, (ed.) (1994), Romanticismo y realismo. Primer suplemento. Historia y crítica de la literatura española, Barcelona, Crítica.

 

Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes

(www.cervantesvirtual.com)

Bibliotecas de Autor:

Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer

José Cadalso

José de Espronceda

Leandro Fernández de Moratín

Tomás de Iriarte

Juan Meléndez Valdés

Ángel de Saavedra, Duque de Rivas

Félix María de Samaniego


Software

Moodle, TEAMS.


Groups and Languages

Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.

Name Group Language Semester Turn
(PAUL) Classroom practices 1 Spanish second semester morning-mixed
(TE) Theory 1 Spanish second semester morning-mixed