En corte extraña: Las epístolas de Diego Hurtado de Mendoza a Luis de Ávila y ZúñigaIn Foreign Court: Diego Hurtado de Mendoza's Epistles to Luis de Ávila y Zúñiga

Abstract

AbstractThe two verse epistles addressed by Diego Hurtado to Luis de ávila define a discourse in which the satire about public life and the exaltation of the emperor and his victories give way to the Anacreontic celebration of the voluntarilt isolated way of life, wine, friendship, and modest pleasures. Nevertheless, in spite of these common features, both poems present important differences. In contrast to the sober and grievous tone of the first one, the second turns out rough and unbalanced, sprinkled with harsh remarks that show a disenchantment with diplomatic life, the humiliations and disappointments suffered by the ambassadors, who were victims especially vulnerable to the political labyrinth and court intrigue of the 16th century. This work examines the epistles, appreciating the early effort to create a poetic language free of Petrachan influences in order to express disconformity with court life, in a genre that joins satire, mockery and a certain existential annoyance.