C2 · 50 words
Literary theory in Spanish
Text, author, reader, canon — the terms literature is argued about with.
Two of our senses of « character » sit in two different Spanish words, and this list uses one of them. El personaje is the person in the book — and also the notable person outside it: un personaje de la política is a public figure, and ser todo un personaje said of somebody real means quite a character. What el personaje never is, is the moral kind: that is el carácter, and so is the typographic one, the letter counted in a field — un máximo de 280 caracteres. Ask in Spanish whether a novel has good carácter and you have asked about its temper.
The words
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Phrase (39)
la teoría literariathe study of what makes works literaryPhraseC2
La teoría literaria pregunta qué hace literario a un texto.Literary theory asks what makes a text literary.
la crítica literariathe study that judges particular worksPhraseC2
La crítica literaria juzga obras concretas.Literary criticism judges particular works.
la función poéticathe use of language that points at the message itselfPhraseC2
La función poética dirige la atención al mensaje mismo.The poetic function turns the attention to the message itself.
el formalismo literariothe school that moved the author out of the analysisPhraseC2
El formalismo literario apartó al autor del análisis.Literary formalism moved the author out of the analysis.
la falacia intencionalthe warning against explaining a work by the writer's intentionPhraseC2
La falacia intencional advierte contra explicar por la biografía.The intentional fallacy warns against explaining by the biography.
la muerte del autorthe argument that hands the meaning back to the readerPhraseC2
La muerte del autor devuelve el sentido al lector.The death of the author gives the meaning back to the reader.
la estética de la recepciónthe study of how a work has been read over timePhraseC2
La estética de la recepción estudia cómo se ha leído.Reception aesthetics studies how a work has been read.
el horizonte de expectativasthe set of expectations a generation brings to a bookPhraseC2
El horizonte de expectativas cambia con cada generación.The horizon of expectation changes with every generation.
el vacío del textothe gap the text leaves for the reader to fillPhraseC2
El vacío del texto es lo que el lector completa.The gap in the text is what the reader completes.
la comunidad interpretativathe group whose agreement decides which readings are allowedPhraseC2
La comunidad interpretativa decide qué lectura es admisible.The interpretive community decides which reading is admissible.
la canonización de una obrathe slow admission of a work into the canonPhraseC2
La canonización de una obra tarda generaciones.Admission into the canon takes generations.
la tradición literariathe inheritance a writer also choosesPhraseC2
La tradición literaria se elige tanto como se hereda.A literary tradition is chosen as much as it is inherited.
la convención genéricathe agreement about a genre that a reader brings to the pagePhraseC2
La convención genérica es un contrato de lectura.A genre convention is a contract for reading.
la hibridación de génerosthe mixing of genres that no longer stay apartPhraseC2
La hibridación de géneros define buena parte del siglo.The mixing of genres defines a good part of the century.
el pacto narrativothe agreement between the teller and the one being toldPhraseC2
El pacto narrativo se rompe cuando el narrador miente sin aviso.The narrative pact breaks when the narrator lies without warning.
el narrador no fiablethe narrator whose account cannot be taken at face valuePhraseC2
El narrador no fiable obliga a leer dos veces.An unreliable narrator forces a second reading.
el tiempo del relatothe time the telling takes, against the time toldPhraseC2
El tiempo del relato no coincide con el de la historia.The time of the telling does not match the time of the story.
la elipsis narrativathe leap that skips years in a single linePhraseC2
La elipsis narrativa salta años en una línea.A narrative ellipsis skips years in one line.
el sumario narrativothe compressing of what does not need to be shownPhraseC2
El sumario narrativo condensa lo que no importa mostrar.A narrative summary condenses what does not matter to show.
la escena novelescathe scene that stops the clock and lets the dialogue runPhraseC2
La escena novelesca detiene el tiempo en el diálogo.The novelistic scene stops time inside the dialogue.
el personaje redondothe character who can surprise you and still convincePhraseC2
El personaje redondo puede sorprender de forma creíble.A round character can surprise you and be believed.
el personaje planothe character who does one job and no morePhraseC2
El personaje plano cumple una función y basta.A flat character does one job and that is enough.
el arquetipo narrativothe figure that turns up in cultures with no contactPhraseC2
El arquetipo narrativo reaparece en culturas sin contacto.The narrative archetype turns up in cultures with no contact.
el tópico literariothe commonplace that crosses centuries under its Latin namePhraseC2
El tópico literario atraviesa siglos con el mismo nombre latino.The literary topos crosses centuries under the same Latin name.
la suspensión de la incredulidadthe disbelief the reader agrees to set asidePhraseC2
La suspensión de la incredulidad la concede el lector.The suspension of disbelief is granted by the reader.
la crítica biográficathe reading that explains the work by the writer's lifePhraseC2
La crítica biográfica explica la obra por la vida.Biographical criticism explains the work by the life.
la crítica marxistathe reading that places the work in its material conditionsPhraseC2
La crítica marxista lee la obra dentro de sus condiciones materiales.Marxist criticism reads the work inside its material conditions.
la crítica feministathe reading that went through the canon and found the gapsPhraseC2
La crítica feminista revisó el canon y encontró huecos.Feminist criticism went through the canon and found gaps.
los estudios poscolonialesthe reading that asks who is narrating whomPhraseC2
Los estudios poscoloniales preguntan quién narra a quién.Postcolonial studies ask who narrates whom.
la literatura comparadathe reading that works between languagesPhraseC2
La literatura comparada trabaja entre lenguas.Comparative literature works between languages.
el criterio de ediciónthe editorial rules an edition sets out in its prefacePhraseC2
El criterio de edición se explica en el prólogo.The editorial rules are explained in the preface.
el aparato de variantesthe record of the variant readings, at the foot or at the endPhraseC2
El aparato de variantes va al pie o al final.The apparatus of variants goes at the foot or at the end.
el manuscrito autógrafothe manuscript in the author's own handPhraseC2
El manuscrito autógrafo revela lo tachado.The autograph manuscript shows what was crossed out.
la variante de autorthe change the author made, which is not a misprintPhraseC2
La variante de autor no es una errata.An authorial variant is not a misprint.
la filología textualthe discipline that restores what was actually writtenPhraseC2
La filología textual reconstruye lo que se escribió.Textual scholarship reconstructs what was written.
la recepción críticathe way the critics have read a work, changing over the yearsPhraseC2
La recepción crítica de una obra cambia con los años.The critical reception of a work changes over the years.
la fortuna editorialthe publishing history that explains which books get readPhraseC2
La fortuna editorial explica por qué unos libros se leen.The publishing history explains why some books are read.
la traducción como reescriturathe translation understood as a rewriting of its ownPhraseC2
La traducción como reescritura forma parte de la historia literaria.Translation as rewriting is part of literary history.
la prosa de ideasthe prose that does its thinking as it writesPhraseC2
La prosa de ideas piensa escribiendo.Prose of ideas thinks as it writes.
Noun (f) (9)
la literariedadthe quality that makes a text literature rather than its subjectNoun (f)C2
La literariedad no está en el tema sino en el uso de la lengua.Literariness lies in the use of language, not in the subject.
la deconstrucciónthe reading that works from the cracks in the text itselfNoun (f)C2
La deconstrucción trabaja desde las grietas del propio texto.Deconstruction works from the cracks in the text itself.
la focalizaciónthe choice of whose eyes the story is seen throughNoun (f)C2
La focalización decide quién percibe lo narrado.Focalisation decides who perceives what is told.
la diégesisthe world inside the storyNoun (f)C2
La diégesis es el mundo dentro del relato.The diegesis is the world inside the story.
la metadiégesisthe story told inside another storyNoun (f)C2
La metadiégesis es un relato dentro de otro.A metadiegesis is a story inside another one.
la metaficciónthe fiction that shows its own seamsNoun (f)C2
La metaficción enseña sus propias costuras.Metafiction shows its own seams.
la mímesisthe imitation of the world that was never a copyNoun (f)C2
La mímesis nunca fue una copia.Mimesis was never a copy.
la verosimilitudthe inner consistency that makes a work believableNoun (f)C2
La verosimilitud es interna, no comparación con el mundo.Verisimilitude is internal, not a comparison with the world.
la autoficciónthe fiction that plays with the author's own nameNoun (f)C2
La autoficción juega con el nombre del propio autor.Autofiction plays with the author's own name.
Noun (m) (2)
el extrañamientothe making strange that lets the usual be seen againNoun (m)C2
El extrañamiento hace ver de nuevo lo habitual.Defamiliarisation makes the usual visible again.
el estructuralismothe school that looked for common rules under the storiesNoun (m)C2
El estructuralismo buscó reglas comunes bajo los relatos.Structuralism looked for common rules underneath the stories.
This list belongs to Art and culture — 29 lists and 1450 words that can also be practised as a whole.
Practise this list
From these 50 words, as many per round as you like — up to all of them: first what is due today, then new ones. First you choose, then you fill the gap, then you write it yourself. Mistakes come back again shortly.