Gaspar Gil Polo
Encyclopedia
Gaspar Gil Polo Spanish
novelist and poet
, was born at Valencia
.
He is often confused with Gil Polo, professor of Greek
at Valencia University between 1566 and 1573; but this professor was not named Gaspar. He is also confused with his own son, Gaspar Gil Polo, the author of De origine et progressu juris romani (1615) and other legal treatises, who pleaded before the Cortes as late as 1626.
A notary by profession, Polo was attached to the treasury commission which visited Valencia in 1571, became coadjutor to the chief accountant in 1572, went on a special mission to Barcelona
in 1580, and died there in 1591. Timoneda, in the Sarao de amor (1561), alludes to him as a poet of repute; but of his miscellaneous verses only two conventional, eulogistic sonnet
s and a song survive.
Polo finds a place in the history of the novel as the author of La Diana enamorada, a continuation of Montemayor
's Diana, and perhaps the most successful continuation ever written by another hand. Cervantes
, punning on the writer's name, recommended that the Diana enamorada should be guarded as carefully as though it were by Apollo
himself; the hyperbole is not wholly, nor even mainly, ironic.
The book is one of the most agreeable of Spanish pastorals; interesting in incident, written in fluent prose, and embellished with melodious poems, it was constantly reprinted, was imitated by Cervantes in the Canto de Caliope, and was translated into English, French, German and Latin.
The English version of Bartholomew Young
, published in 1598 but current in manuscript fifteen years earlier, is said to have suggested the Felismena episode in the The Two Gentlemen of Verona
; the Latin version of Caspar Barth, entitled Erotodidascalus (Hanover, 1625), is a performance of uncommon merit, as well as a bibliographical curiosity.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
novelist and poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, was born at Valencia
Valencia (city in Spain)
Valencia or València is the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third largest city in Spain, with a population of 809,267 in 2010. It is the 15th-most populous municipality in the European Union...
.
He is often confused with Gil Polo, professor of Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
at Valencia University between 1566 and 1573; but this professor was not named Gaspar. He is also confused with his own son, Gaspar Gil Polo, the author of De origine et progressu juris romani (1615) and other legal treatises, who pleaded before the Cortes as late as 1626.
A notary by profession, Polo was attached to the treasury commission which visited Valencia in 1571, became coadjutor to the chief accountant in 1572, went on a special mission to Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
in 1580, and died there in 1591. Timoneda, in the Sarao de amor (1561), alludes to him as a poet of repute; but of his miscellaneous verses only two conventional, eulogistic sonnet
Sonnet
A sonnet is one of several forms of poetry that originate in Europe, mainly Provence and Italy. A sonnet commonly has 14 lines. The term "sonnet" derives from the Occitan word sonet and the Italian word sonetto, both meaning "little song" or "little sound"...
s and a song survive.
Polo finds a place in the history of the novel as the author of La Diana enamorada, a continuation of Montemayor
Jorge de Montemayor
Jorge de Montemayor was a Portuguese novelist and poet, who wrote almost exclusively in Spanish.-Biography:He was born at Montemor-o-Velho , whence he derived his name, the Spanish form of which is Montemayor....
's Diana, and perhaps the most successful continuation ever written by another hand. Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was a Spanish novelist, poet, and playwright. His magnum opus, Don Quixote, considered the first modern novel, is a classic of Western literature, and is regarded amongst the best works of fiction ever written...
, punning on the writer's name, recommended that the Diana enamorada should be guarded as carefully as though it were by Apollo
Apollo
Apollo is one of the most important and complex of the Olympian deities in Greek and Roman mythology...
himself; the hyperbole is not wholly, nor even mainly, ironic.
The book is one of the most agreeable of Spanish pastorals; interesting in incident, written in fluent prose, and embellished with melodious poems, it was constantly reprinted, was imitated by Cervantes in the Canto de Caliope, and was translated into English, French, German and Latin.
The English version of Bartholomew Young
Bartholomew Young
Batholomew Young or Yong , was the translator of Montemayor's Spanish romance of ‘Diana.’Young was, according to a pedigree in Harleian MS. 1754, son of Gregory Young of Yorkshire...
, published in 1598 but current in manuscript fifteen years earlier, is said to have suggested the Felismena episode in the The Two Gentlemen of Verona
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
The Two Gentlemen of Verona is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1590 or 1591. It is considered by some to be Shakespeare's first play, and is often seen as his first tentative steps in laying out some of the themes and tropes with which he would later deal in more...
; the Latin version of Caspar Barth, entitled Erotodidascalus (Hanover, 1625), is a performance of uncommon merit, as well as a bibliographical curiosity.