MOUNT CANIGÓ. A TALE OF CATALONIA

Catalonia's towering Romantic poet and rebel priest, Jacint Verdaguer (1845-1902), delves deep into the Catalan imaginary in his foundational long poem Mount Canigó (1886), recounting the historical and legendary mix, both tragic and triumphant, of the medieval origins of modern Catalonia. The collision between duty and love is mirrored by the symbolic conflict between, on the one hand, a powerful folk mythology rooted in the natural geography and, on the other, the widely institutionalized universalism of Christianity concomitant to the reconquest of the Iberian peninsula. Rich in lyrical and thematic correspondence with long poems ranging from u003ciu003eLa chanson de Rolandu003c/iu003e, Ariosto's u003ciu003eOrlando Furiosou003c/iu003e and Spenser's u003ciu003eFaerie Queeneu003c/iu003e to Milton's u003ciu003eParadise Lostu003c/iu003e, Longfellow's u003ciu003eEvangelineu003c/iu003e and Tennyson's u003ciu003eIdylls of the Kingu003c/iu003e, Verdaguer's masterful verse rivals all the legendary magic and wonder of the mountains themselves.u003cbru003e u003cbru003e Jacint Verdaguer is regarded as one of the greatest poets of Catalan literature.u003cbru003e u003cbru003e Ronald Puppo is the translator of u003ciu003eSelected Poems of Jacint Verdaguer: A Bilingual Editionu003c/iu003e. u003ciu003eMount Canigó: A Tale of Cataloniau003c/iu003e is published in association with Editorial Barcino.u003cbru003e u003cbru003e Winner of the 2016 "Serra d'Or" Critics Award for Research in Catalan Studiesu003cbru003e u003cbru003e