Parnassianism: context, characteristics, authors

O parnassianism was a literary movement that emerged in France in the late nineteenth century, having as main flag the opposition to the realism and to naturalism, movements that occurred in this context. In Brazil, this movement was mainly opposed to romanticism, since, despite the romantic ideals having given way to realism and nonaturalism in prose, its characteristics in poetry were still strong. Thus, the Parnassian poets incorporated in their poetic productions traits that were directly opposed to romantic poetry.

Read too: Realism in Brazil – literary movement that consecrated Machado de Assis

Historical context and origin of Parnassianism

THE second half of the 19th century it was a period in which European literature sought new forms of expression, which were in tune with the changes taking place in different spheres of society and in different areas of knowledge. In this context, for example, scientific and sociological theses were developed and disseminated, such as the determinism Social.

Parnassianism, then, emerged as a movement concomitant to realism and naturalism, but having the lyrical genre as its main manifestation. Parnassianism comes from the word "Parnassus", which, according to Greek mythology, refers to a place, a hill, dedicated to Apollo and the muses, in which poets, inspired by the aura of the place, composed.

In addition to this mythical origin, Parnassianism was the name given to the literary movement that emerged in France in second half of the 19th century, also due to an anthology, published in three volumes, the first in 1866, titled Contemporary Parnasse (Contemporary Parnassus).

Edward Burne-Jones, English painter who, at the time of Parnassianism, returned to classically influenced themes in painting. [1]

Characteristics of Parnassianism

The very name that designates the Parnassian movement is already indicative of its main characteristic: the strong interest in Greco-Latin culture. This thematic and formal interest in classical culture it was directly opposed to the current aesthetics in the romanticism, a movement rejected by the Parnassians, since romantic artists were not interested in a return to Ancient Greece, but rather a representation capable of meeting the bourgeoisie growing. Here are the characteristics of Parnassianism, divided into formal and content aspects:

→ Formal aspects

• Objective language, as opposed to the more subjective language of romanticism;
• Predominance of cult vocabularies and syntactic structure;
• Search for formal balance;
• Prediction for sonnet.

→ Content Aspects

• Greco-Latin paganism, as opposed to Christianity and the mysticism of the simbolism;
• Resumption of elements of the classical tradition;
• materialism and rationalism;
• Containment of feelings, as opposed to romantic love externalization;
• The search for art for art.

Parnassianism in Portugal

In Portugal, Parnassianism, movement introduced by poet João Penha (1838-1919), coexisted with the realist movement and the symbolist movement, mainly opposing the romanticism, an earlier movement, with regard to sentimentality and self-centeredness so typical of writers romantics. The poems of the main Portuguese Parnassian poets were gathered, by Teófilo Braga, in the book Modern Portuguese Parnassus, published in 1877.

• Main authors and works of Parnassianism in Portugal

• Junqueiro War (1850-1923): Poet and politician, he was considered by his peers as the most popular poet of his time in Portugal. Began his literary career in the newspaper The leaf, directed by the poet João Penha. He published numerous works, and the most controversial was the old age of the eternal priest (1885), in which he weaves harsh criticisms of the clergy.
  
• Teófilo Braga (1843-1924): Poet, sociologist, philosopher and politician, he began his literary career in 1859, in the famous literary journal The leaf. He collaborated in several newspapers of the time, in which he published many of his poems. He wrote, among other works, History of modern poetry in Portugal (1869).
  
• João Penha (1838-1919): Poet and jurist, noted for having founded the literary journal The leaf, being considered one of the main Portuguese Parnassian writers. He wrote the following poetry books: rhymes (1882), new rhymes (1905), echoes from the past (1914), latest rhymes (1919) and the swan song (1923).
  
• Gonçalves Crespo (1846-1883): Poet and jurist, he was born in Rio de Janeiro, but took up residence as a child in Portugal. Son of a slave mother, he stood out in the Portuguese literary world, having contributed to the newspaper The leaf, main means of dissemination of Parnassian poetry. His first book was the compilation Thumbnails, published in 1870.
  
• António Feijó (1859-1917): Poet and diplomat, he served in Brazil as ambassador to the consulates located in the states of Pernambuco and Rio Grande do Sul. He published the following poetic works: Transfigurations (1862), Lyrical and bucolic (1884), Chinese Songbook (1890), island of loves (1897), ballet (1907), Winter sun (collection written between 1915-1917), and New Ballet (edited posthumously in 1926).
  
• Cesario Verde (1855-1886): Poet and merchant, he wrote many of his poems in periodicals of the time, highlighting the weekly white and black (1896-1898) and the magazines the west (1878-1915), Renaissance (1878-1879) and the Olive (1919-1922). After his death, his poems were collected, by Silva Pinto, in the work Cesário Verde's book (1887).

• Example of poem from Portuguese Parnassianism

old fable

In the beginning of the world Love was not blind;
I saw even through the thick darkness
With Lynx pupils in Bat eyes.

But one day, joking, Dementia, irritated,
In a rush of fury his eyes leaked out;
It was Dementia right away to the doomed beasts,

But Jupiter, smiling, the feather switched.
Dementia was just obliged
To accompany Love, since it blinded him,

Like a poor man who takes a blind man along the road.
United ever since by invisible bonds
When Amor takes the simplest journey,
Dementia goes ahead and leads her steps.

(António Feijó)

In “Ancient Fábula”, poem by António Feijó, one of the most important Portuguese Parnassian poets, it is observed that the lyrical voice does not manifest itself around an "I", as the presence of the first person singular is not noticed at any point in the poem. this attempt to avoid the manifestation of subjectivity as much as possible., a very common feature in romanticism, was one of the aesthetic flags of the Parnassians.

Regarding the theme, the poem, as its title suggests, expresses what would be, mythically, the origin of love. Thus, mention is made of elements of the Greco-Latin tradition, such as the reference to the god Jupiter, a characteristic widely defended and disseminated by Parnassian poets.

The use of the Greek myth of the origin of love as the thematic plan of the poem is in line with the criticism that the Parnassians weaved in relation to the romantic poets regarding sentimental exaggeration. This is because, as noted in the last verse of the poem, the mythical character Dementia starts to guide men's steps when they are lassoed by blind Love. The criticism of romantic love, therefore, is evident, as Parnassianism does not deny this feeling, but it shows itself critical of the exaggeration of romanticism regarding the expression of love.

See more: Luís Vaz de Camões – important poet of Portuguese classicism

Parnassianism in Brazil

O Brazilian Parnassianismbegan to be disseminated in the country from 1870 onwards., because at the end of that decade, a controversy was created in the newspaper Rio de Janeiro Diary, which brought together, on the one hand, the followers of romanticism and, on the other, the followers of realism and Parnassianism. As a result of this literary quarrel, developed in articles, known as "Battle of Parnassus", there was a diffusion of ideas and characteristics of Parnassianism in artistic and intellectual circles.

• Main authors and works of Parnassianism in Brazil

• Teófilo Dias (1854-1889): He was a lawyer, journalist and poet. The first book of poetry considered Parnassian, published in 1882, was a work by him: Fanfares. He also published the following books:Flowers and loves (1874), Tropical corners (1878), green years lyre (1876), The comedy of the gods (1887) and America (1887).
  
• Alberto de Oliveira (1857-1937): He was a pharmacist, professor and poet, and one of the founders of the Brazilian Academy of Letters, having even been elected the “Prince of Poets” in 1924. He wrote the following poetic works: romantic songs (1878), southern (1884), Sonnets and poems (1885), Verses and rhymes (1895), Poetry - 1st series (1900), Poetry - 2nd series (1906), Poetry - 2 vols. (1912), Poetry - 3rd series (1913), Poetry - 4th grade (1928), chosen poems (1933), Posthumous (1944).
  
• Raimundo Correia (1859-1911): He was a magistrate, professor, diplomat and poet. One of the founders of the Brazilian Academy of Letters, he wrote the books first dreams (1879), Symphonies (1883), Verses and Versions (1887), hallelujahs (1891), Poetry (1898).
  
• olavo bilac (1865-1918): He was a journalist, educational inspector and poet. He was also one of the founders of the Brazilian Academy of Letters. She has published the following works: Poetry (1888), Chronicles and novels (1894), Sagres (1898), Criticism and fantasy (1904), Children's Poetry (1904), Literary Conferences (1906), versification treaty (with Guimarães Passos) (1910), rhyming dictionary (1913), Irony and pity (1916), Evening (1919).
  
• Vicente de Carvalho (1866-1902): He was a lawyer, journalist, politician, magistrate, poet and short story writer. She has published the following works: Ardentias (1885), Reliquary (1888), rose, rose of love (1902), Poems and Songs (1908), youth verses (1909), verse and prose (1909), loose pagesat (1911), the voice of the bells (1916), Luizinha (1924).
  
• Francisca Julia (1871-1920): He was a poet and literary critic. However, despite her literary consistency, she did not enter, as a woman, the Academia Brasileira de Letras. She has published the following works: marbles (1895), childhood book (1899), Sphinxes(1903), Witchcraft from the scientific point of view (speech) (1908), child's soul (with Júlio César da Silva) (1912), Sphinxes 2nd ed. (enlarged) (1921), Poetry(organized by Péricles Eugênio da Silva Ramos) (1962).

• Example of poem from Brazilian Parnassianism

chinese vase

Strange treat that vase! I saw him,
Casually, once, from a fragrant
Counter on the shiny marble,
Between a fan and the beginning of an embroidery.

Fine Chinese artist, in love,
In him had put the sick heart
In crimson flowers of a subtle carving,
In burning ink, in a dark heat.

But, perhaps in contrast to misfortune,
Who knows... of an old mandarin
There, too, was the singular figure.

What art to paint it! We happen to see it,
I felt like I don't know what with that chim
Eyes cut like almonds.

(Alberto de Oliveira)

In the sonnet “Chinese Vase”, there is a lyrical self that reconstitutes the impressions made on your subjectivity by a vase. From the first verses, the main characteristics of Parnassian poetry can be seen, such as the predilection for syntactic inversions, according to the following verses: “I saw it, / Casually, once, of a perfumed / Counter on the shining marble, / Between a fan and the beginning of an embroidery”. If it were in the direct order, characterized by the sequence subject, verb and predicate (complement), there would be no terms interspersed between commas. This inversion also occurs in relation to the position of the adjective, as in “red flowers” ​​and in “singular figure”, in which it appears before the noun.

Another Parnassian characteristic that is evident concerns the use of terms rare and cult, as “luminous marble”, an expression that means shiny marble. The objective of this option for rare words, as well as the taste for syntactic inversions and the adjective in relation to substantive, is to make the poem sophisticated, which would evidence the poet's goldsmith work, in other words, very detailed.

Regarding subjectivity, there is the presence of a self emotionally impacted by the sight of an object that pleases him very much, but this emotional manifestation is subtle, controlled. In romanticism, a movement opposed by the Parnassians, the expression of emotion tends to be more effusive, less controlled.

Also access: May 1st - Day of Brazilian Literature

solved exercises

Question 1 -  (UFRGS) Read the following sonnet by Olavo Bilac.

NEL MEZZO DEL CAMIN...

I arrived. You've arrived. weary vines
And sad, and sad and tired I came,
You had the soul of dreams populated,

And the dream soul populated I had...
And we stopped suddenly on the road
Of life: long years, stuck to mine
Your hand, the dazzled view
I had the light that your gaze contained.

Today, you go again... on departure
Not even the tears moisten your eyes,
Nor does the pain of parting move you.

And I, lonely, turn my face, and shiver,
Seeing your disappearing figure
At the extreme bend of the extreme path.
Consider the statements below about this poem.

I – The lyrical self relates, in the first quartet, the meeting between two people marked by fatigue and sadness and immersed in dreams.

II – The unexpected meeting between the two lovers triggers a brief relationship marked by mutual affinity.

III – In the triplets, when describing the indifference of the loved one who leaves, the lyrical self takes up the image of the road/path that had already appeared in the poem.

Which ones are correct?

The) Just I.

B) Only III.

c) Only I and III.

d) Only II and III.

e) I, II and III.

Resolution

Alternative C. In the first quartet, the lyrical self recounts the encounter between two people marked by fatigue and sadness, their souls filled with dreams. In the first triplet, the lover's indifference is evident; in the second, the lyrical self resumes the image of the road/path with which the sonnet begins.

Question 2 - (UPE-2015)

Text 1

to the heart that suffers
To the suffering heart, separated
From yours, in exile where I see myself crying,
Simple and sacred affection is not enough
With which misadventures I protect myself.
It's not enough for me to know that I'm loved,
I don't just want your love: I want
Have your delicate body in your arms,
Have the sweetness of your kiss in your mouth.
And the just ambitions that consume me
Don't embarrass me: because more baseness
There is no need for earth to exchange for heaven;
And more lifts a man's heart
Being a man always and, in the greatest purity,
Stay on earth and humanly love.

(BILAC, Olav. Available in:. Accessed on: 6 Oct. 2014. )

Text 2

Sonnet
Pale in the light of the dim lamp,
On the reclining bed of flowers,
Like the moon embalmed by night,
Among the clouds of love she slept!
She was the virgin of the sea, in the cold scum
By the tide of rocked waters!
It was an angel among clouds of dawn
That in dreams he bathed and forgot!
She was the most beautiful! Breast throbbing...
Black eyes, eyelids opening...
Naked forms on the bed slipping...
Don't laugh at me, my beautiful angel!
For you - the nights I watched crying,
For you — in dreams I will die smiling!

(AZEVEDO, Álvares de. Available in:. Accessed on: 6 Oct. 2014.)

Texts 1 and 2 have love as the theme, seen, however, from different points of view, in mainly reason why their authors belong to literary movements and historical contexts distinct. Based on your reading of the texts and your knowledge of the authors' literary production, mark the appropriate relationships.

I. Text 1 – Carnal view of love: Parnassianism.
II. Text 2 – Unreal and caste vision of women: ultra-romanticism.
III. Text 1 – Rational view of love: ultra-romanticism.
IV. Text 1 – Anthropocentric view of life: Parnassianism.
V. Text 2 – Improbable lovemaking: ultra-romanticism.

The CORRECTLY established relationships are only:
a) I, II, III and IV.
b) I, II, IV and V.
c) I, II and III.
d) I, III and V.
e) II, IV and V.

Resolution

Alternative B, because relations I, II, IV and V are correct.

THE relation I it's correct. Text 1 is by Olavo Bilac, the main poet of Parnassianism, a literary movement in which the philosophical but artificial meditation poetry, the taste for facts, landscapes and exotic objects, and there is a carnal vision of love, as occurs in the verses: "I do not only desire your love: I desire / To have your delicate body in your arms, / To have in your mouth the sweetness of your kiss".

THE relationship II it's correct. In Text 2, as is characteristic of ultra-romanticism, we find an unreal and chaste vision of the woman, as the verses attest: "She Was the virgin of the sea, in the cold scum / By the tide of rocky waters!"

THE relationship III is incorrect. In Text 1, we find a poem belonging to Parnassianism, not ultra-Romanticism.

THE relationship IV it's correct. In Text 1, we have an anthropocentric view of life, typical of Parnassianism, whose humanist traits go back to Antiquity classic, explicit in the verses: "And more elevates the heart of a man / Being of a man always and, in the greatest purity, / Staying on earth and humanly love".

THE relation V it's correct. In Text 2, as is typical of ultra-romanticism, lovemaking appears as improbable, as in the verses: "Don't laugh at me, my beautiful angel! / For you — the nights I watched weeping, / For you — in dreams I will die smiling!".

Image credit

[1] Renata Sedmakova / Shutterstock

By Leandro Guimarães
Literature teacher

Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/literatura/parnasianismo.htm