Authoring the past : history, autobiography, and politics in medieval Catalonia / Jaume Aurell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Aurell i Cardona, Jaume.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

James I, King of Aragon, 1208-1276. Llibre dels fets.

James.

Desclot, Bernat. Llibre del rei en Pere.

Desclot, Bernat.

Muntaner, Ramón, -1336. Crònica.

Muntaner, Ramón.

Pedro IV, King of Aragon, 1319?-1387. Cronica de Sant Joan de la Penya.

Pedro.

Gesta comitum Barcinonensium.

Historiography--Spain--Catalonia--To 1500.

Historiography.

Catalan prose literature--To 1500--History and criticism.

Catalan prose literature.

Catalonia (Spain)--Historiography.

Catalonia (Spain).

Catalonia (Spain)--Kings and rulers--Biography--History and criticism.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (329 p.)

Place of Publication:

Chicago ; London : University of Chicago Press, 2012.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Authoring the Past surveys medieval Catalan historiography, shedding light on the emergence and evolution of historical writing and autobiography in the Middle Ages, on questions of authority and authorship, and on the links between history and politics during the period. Jaume Aurell examines texts from the late twelfth to the late fourteenth century-including the Latin Gesta comitum Barcinonensium and four texts in medieval Catalan: James I's Llibre dels fets, the Crònica of Bernat Desclot, the Crònica of Ramon Muntaner, and the Crònica of Peter the Ceremonious-and outlines the different motivations for the writing of each. For Aurell, these chronicles are not mere archaeological artifacts but rather documents that speak to their writers' specific contemporary social and political purposes. He argues that these Catalonian counts and Aragonese kings were attempting to use their role as authors to legitimize their monarchical status, their growing political and economic power, and their aggressive expansionist policies in the Mediterranean. By analyzing these texts alongside one another, Aurell demonstrates the shifting contexts in which chronicles were conceived, written, and read throughout the Middle Ages. The first study of its kind to make medieval Catalonian writings available to English-speaking audiences, Authoring the Past will be of interest to scholars of history and comparative literature, students of Hispanic and Romance medieval studies, and medievalists who study the chronicle tradition in other languages.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part 1. Historical Writings and Historical Authors

Part 2. Theories and Interpretations

Conclusion

Notes

Index of Names

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 24. Apr 2020)

ISBN:

9786613529817

9781280125959

1280125950

9780226032344

0226032345

OCLC:

780446397