Catalan Fiction in the 15Th Century
CATALAN HISTORICAL REVIEW, 11: 25-40 (2018) Institut d’Estudis Catalans, Barcelona DOI: 10.2436/20.1000.01.144 · ISSN: 2013-407X http://revistes.iec.cat/chr/ Catalan fiction in the 15th century Antoni Ferrando* Universitat de València Received 26 June 2017 · Accepted 30 September 2017 Abstract Catalan fiction in the 15th century is framed within the context of the expansion of the Crown of Aragon around the Mediterranean, the emergence of Valencia as the cultural capital of the Crown, the crisis in the prevailing mediaeval values, the consolidation of a monetary economy, and fertile contacts between Catalan culture and Castile, France, Burgundy and especially Italy. This is perfectly illustrated by the five most important fictional pieces from that era: Història de Jacob Xalabín, which refers to the Ottoman Empire; Curial e Güelfa, which is set in Italy, France, the German Empire, the eastern Mediterranean and North Africa; Tirant lo Blanc, by Jo- anot Martorell, which focuses on England, the eastern Mediterranean and North Africa; Espill, by Jaume Roig, whose main character travels around Catalonia, France, Castile and Galicia; and Vita Christi, by Mother Isabel de Villena, which sets Jesus’ life in a courtly milieu. Keywords: Història de Jacob Xalabín (anonymous), Curial e Güelfa (most likely Enyego d’Àvalos), Tirant lo Blanc (Joanot Mar- torell), Espill (Jaume Roig), Vita Christi (Isabel de Villena) A varied fictional output in a complex the chivalric romances Curial e Güelfa and Tirant lo Blanc political and cultural context are impressive tableaux vivants of the society that gener- ated them. At least for readers who are unfamiliar with the history of The geopolitical changes in 16th-century Europe still the Catalan-speaking lands, a presentation of 15th-centu- have consequences today: the Crown of Aragon and the ry Catalan fiction requires a brief historical contextualisa- Duchy of Burgundy are invisible in Europe today, and tion.
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