1.3 Literary Periods & Movements

A timeline

Spanish literature spans the Edad Media (Medieval), Renacimiento (Renaissance), Barroco (Baroque, Siglo de Oro), Romanticismo, Realismo, and 20th-century movements like the Boom latinoamericano.

The Siglo de Oro

The Siglo de Oro (Golden Age, ~1500s–1600s) produced Cervantes, Lope de Vega, Sor Juana, and the picaresque novel — a peak of Spanish-language literature.

The Boom

The mid-20th-century Boom brought Latin American writers — García Márquez, Cortázar, Borges — to world attention, often through realismo mágico and experimental narrative.

Key terms

Siglo de Oro

Golden Age (~1500s–1600s): Cervantes, Sor Juana

Barroco

Baroque — ornate style, part of the Siglo de Oro

Boom latinoamericano

mid-20th c.: García Márquez, Cortázar, Borges

Realismo mágico

magical realism — the ordinary and marvelous merge

Timeline

Edad Media → Renacimiento → Barroco → ... → Boom

Try an AP-style question

The Spanish Golden Age (Siglo de Oro) produced…

1. Allende and Cortázar
2. Cervantes, Lope de Vega, and Quevedo
3. Neruda and Mistral
4. Borges and García Márquez