The Time of the Doves
Encyclopedia
The Time Of The Doves is a 1962 novel written by exiled Catalan
writer Mercè Rodoreda
. It is noted by its use of stream of consciousness. The book is named after a square in Barcelona
's district of Gràcia
. It's featured in Harold Bloom
's The Western Canon as part of the list of canonical books of the "Chaotic Age". Arguably the author's most accomplished work, the novel has been translated into more than twenty languages and is regarded as one of the most important pieces of fiction in contemporary Catalan literature
. It's also one of the staple readings in secondary school
programs across Catalonia
.
Dealing with the Second Spanish Republic
and the Spanish Civil War
, the novel is set in Barcelona
before, during and after the war and pictures a young woman's struggles in life as well as her conflictive relationships with two men, and her progression from nearly complete submission until she develops a full-fledged outlook in life, personal maturity and independence. It's also a faithful chronicle of life in the city at the time, in a balanced mixture of psychologism
and naturalism
.
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
writer Mercè Rodoreda
Mercè Rodoreda
Mercè Rodoreda i Gurguí was a Spanish Catalan novelist in the Catalan language.She is considered by many to be the most important Catalan novelist of the postwar period...
. It is noted by its use of stream of consciousness. The book is named after a square in 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...
's district of Gràcia
Gràcia
Gràcia is a district of the city of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It comprises the neighborhoods of Vila de Gràcia, Vallcarca i els Penitents, El Coll, La Salut and Camp d'en Grassot i Gràcia Nova. Gràcia is bordered by the districts of Eixample to the south, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi to the west and...
. It's featured in Harold Bloom
Harold Bloom
Harold Bloom is an American writer and literary critic, and is Sterling Professor of Humanities at Yale University. He is known for his defense of 19th-century Romantic poets, his unique and controversial theories of poetic influence, and his prodigious literary output, particularly for a literary...
's The Western Canon as part of the list of canonical books of the "Chaotic Age". Arguably the author's most accomplished work, the novel has been translated into more than twenty languages and is regarded as one of the most important pieces of fiction in contemporary Catalan literature
Catalan literature
Catalan literature is the name conventionally used to refer to literature written in the Catalan language. The Catalan literary tradition is extensive, starting in the Middle Ages....
. It's also one of the staple readings in secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
programs across Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
.
Dealing with the Second Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
and the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, the novel is set in 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...
before, during and after the war and pictures a young woman's struggles in life as well as her conflictive relationships with two men, and her progression from nearly complete submission until she develops a full-fledged outlook in life, personal maturity and independence. It's also a faithful chronicle of life in the city at the time, in a balanced mixture of psychologism
Psychologism
Psychologism is a generic type of position in philosophy according to which psychology plays a central role in grounding or explaining some other, non-psychological type of fact or law...
and naturalism
Naturalism (literature)
Naturalism was a literary movement taking place from the 1880s to 1940s that used detailed realism to suggest that social conditions, heredity, and environment had inescapable force in shaping human character...
.
Adaptations
It was made into a film in 1982 directed by Francesc Betriu, and has spawned several theatre adaptations, including a play directed by Joan Ollé in 2004.External links
- Qüestionari del llibre (material didàctic)
- Resum de l'obra per Sara Bailac
- Informació sobre l'adaptació teatral de l'obra al TNC (web del TNC)
- Informació sobre l'adapatació de l'obra al TNC (web de l'Ajuntament de Barcelona)
- Reflexió sobre l'obra per part de Carme Arnau a PENcatala.cat
- Apunts sobre l'obra al Rincón del Vago
- La Plaça del Diamant real amb l'escultura de la Colometa
- Any Rodoreda 1908-2008