Cordel literature is a literary manifestation from the interior of northeastern Brazil. It's a literary genre made in verses with meter and rhyme and characterized by orality and for one Informal language.
Also called popular literature in verse, this tradition became popular in the late nineteenth century, when such poems were printed in leaflets and sold at fairs.
The name “cordel” refers to the ropes where the leaflets were displayed. Its format was inspired by the Portuguese cordéis, brought to Brazil by Portuguese colonizers.
Cord leaflets are displayed on rope or string, held together by staples.
The twine booklets measure about 12 x 16 cm and as they are folded sheets, they have a number of pages always multiples of four. Its cover is made in woodcut and features illustrations that refer to the content of the poems.
Cordel poems portrayed the reality of the northeastern hinterland and told stories about local customs, with strong use of humor and irony. In addition, they served as a source of information for the region's residents.
Origin of string literature
The format of the leaflets originates from the portuguese strings, brought to Brazil during colonization. These tracts depicted stories of kings and queens and were popular in other European countries as well, such as England, France, and Spain.
These were publications adapted from scholarly books written for the elite and intended for the people. Printed in single sheets and in large quantities, they were sold at affordable prices.
Although the format of Brazilian cordel literature was inspired by Lusitanian pamphlets, in Regarding content, this cultural manifestation gains autonomy and originality with the poets Brazilians.
Initially, cordelista poetry was marked exclusively by the orality. The rhymes made by Northeastern poets were spoken and sung, which is justified by the high rates of illiteracy in the region.
But with the emergence of the press and also with the growth of literacy, leaflets were printed on paper. The passage from verse to writing, however, never removed from tradition the character of orality, which is an essential characteristic of cordel to this day.
The first cordelist to print his verses was Leandro Gomes de Barros (1865-1918), one of the greatest names in this literary style. His brochure was printed in 1907 and in the following decades several cordel publishers were created.
Other big names of cordelistas born in the late nineteenth century are João Martins Athayde (1880-1959) and Francisco das Chagas Batista (1882-1930).
Among the poets born in the 20th century, names such as:
- Antonio Carlos dos Santos
- Arievaldo Viana Lima
- Expedito Sebastião da Silva
- José Costa Leite
- Manoel Monteiro
- Patativa do Assaré
- Zé da Luz
The cordelistas, in general, were men with little education and instruction. Many of them did not even attend school and learned to read and write informally.
The themes of the string poetry bring elements of the sertanejo reality, dealing with the social questions and politics and also served as source of information for the northeastern people.
Observe the excerpt from the poem "The sad departure" from Patativa do Assaré, the report of the northeastern reality and the informality of the writing style:
September passed, with October and November
It's already December.
My God, what is it to us?
So speaks the poor of the dry Northeast,
Afraid of the plague,
From fierce hunger.
The cordelistas also intended to amuse their readers and listeners, for that they used sarcasm, irony and humor.
String brochures are sold at affordable prices.
Cordel brochures are today a rich source of information about the history of the Northeastern and Brazilian people. In the collection of Brazilian Academy of Cordel Literature (ABLC) there are about 7,000 leaflets, books and research materials about cord.
know more about poetry and verse.
Cordel Literature Texts
Below, see an excerpt of cordelista poetry by Zé da Luz and a full poem by Leandro Gomes de Barros.
Excerpt from the string poem “Brasil Caboclo”, by Zé da Luz.
What is Brasí Caboco?
It's a different Brazil
do Brasil das capitás.
It's a Brazilian Brazil,
no stranger mixture,
a national Brazil!
It's Brazil that doesn't wear
gazimir liform,
hard chest shirt,
with gold engraving...
Brasi caboco only wears,
thick list shirt,
“Polish” jeans
doublet and choir hat!
Cordel poem “Ave Maria das Eleições”, by Leandro Gomes de Barros:
on election day
The people all ran
The opposition shouted:
Holy Mary!
We saw groups of people
Selling votes in the square
And the government urn:
Full of grace.
Each other asked:
_ do you vote with us?
A kettle replied:
This one, the Lord is with you.
I saw two pans
With offspring of ten oxen,
I greeted them by saying:
Blessed are you!
voters, scared
of the ensign's swords,
they even went into hiding
Among women...
Candidates walked
With a brute threat,
Because a vote for them,
it's blessed fruit
a government board member
I took the urn happy
And he said: - “I boast
From your womb!"
Characteristics of string literature
The poems spoken and written in pamphlets by the cordelistas have as main characteristics:
- Reporting on popular topics;
- Use of informal language (colloquial);
- Use of metrics and rhymes;
- Orality and musicality;
- Use of humor, irony and sarcasm;
- Depict local customs.
Suddenly and string literature
The suprise and cordel literature are popular expressions from the Northeast that share some similarities, but differ in the way they are elaborated.
In string literature, poems are written in pamphlets and are often also spoken. They are elaborated by individual cordelistas, who work on their text until it is ready to be presented to the public.
The suprise are also creations in verse, but they are essentially presented in an oral way, elaborated in an improvised way by the repentistas. Verses are suddenly spoken and sung to the sound of a guitar.
Repentistas usually do their improvisations accompanied by a musical instrument.
See also the meanings of literature, poem and know what are rhymes. Also read about The Types of Art.