Hispanic American authors Colonial period

The first works of Latin American literature belong to both the Spanish literary tradition and that of its overseas colonies.
Thus, the first American writers—such as the Spanish soldier and poet Alonso de Ercilla y Zúñiga , creator of La Araucana
( 1569 - 1589 ),
An epic about the conquest of the Araucanian people of Chile by the Spanish—they were not born in the New World.
The wars and the Christianization of the newly discovered continent did not create a climate conducive to the cultivation
of lyric poetry and narrative, which is why Latin American literature of the 16th century stands out mainly for its didactic
works in prose and chronicles.
Especially notable in this field are the True History of the Conquest of New Spain ( 1632 ), written by the Spanish
conquistador and historian Bernal Díaz del Castillo , lieutenant of the also Spanish explorer Hernán Cortés , and the two-
part history of the Incas of Peru and the Spanish conquest of this country, Royal Commentaries ( 1609 and 1617 ), by the
Peruvian historian Garcilaso de la Vega , the Inca

. The first plays written in Latin America , such as Representation of the End of the World ( 1533 ), served as a literary
vehicle for the conversion of the natives.
The spirit of the Spanish Renaissance, as well as an exacerbated religious fervor, is evident in the texts from the
beginning of the colonial period, in which the most important disseminators of culture were the religious, among whom
are the Dominican missionary and historian Bartolomé de Las Casas , who lived in Santo Domingo and other Caribbean
colonies; the playwright Hernán González de Eslava , who worked in Mexico , and the Peruvian epic poet, although born
in Spain , Diego de Hojeda . Mexico (now Mexico City) and Lima , the capitals of the viceroyalties of New Spain and Peru ,
respectively, became the centers of all intellectual activity of the 17th century , and life in them, a splendid replica of
that of Spain , was steeped in erudition, ceremony and artificiality. The Creoles often surpassed the Spanish in
assimilating the baroque style predominant in Europe . This acceptance was evident, in the field of literature, by the
popularity of the works of the Spanish playwright

Pedro Calderón de la Barca and those of the poet, also Spanish, Luis de Góngora , as
well as in local literary production.
The most prominent of the poets of the 17th century in Latin America was the
Mexican nun Juana Inés de la Cruz , who wrote plays in verse, both religious in
nature—for example, the auto sacramental
The Divine Narcissus
The Divine Narcissus ( 1688 )—as profane. She also wrote poems in defense of women and autobiographical works in
prose about her varied interests. The mixture of satire and reality that dominated Spanish literature also reached the
New World , and there appeared, among other works, the satirical collection Diente del Parnaso , by the Peruvian poet
Juan del Valle Caviedes , and the novel Infortunios by Alonso Ramírez ( 1690 ). , by the Mexican humanist and poet
Carlos Sigüenza y Góngora.

In Spain, the House of Bourbon replaced the House of Habsburg at the beginning of
the 18th century . This event opened the colonies, with or without official sanction,
to influences from France , influences that were evident in the wide acceptance of
French neoclassicism and, during the latter part of the century, in the spread of the
doctrines of the Enlightenment. Thus, the Peruvian playwright Peralta Barnuevo
adapted French plays, while other writers, such as the Ecuadorian Francisco Eugenio
de Santa Cruz and the Colombian Antonio Nariño , contributed to the dissemination of
French revolutionary ideas towards the end of the century.
The period of independence

The period of the fight for independence caused a dense flow of patriotic writings, especially in the field of poetry. The
narrative, censored until now by the crown of Spain , began to be cultivated and, in 1816 , the first novel written in Latin
America appeared,

El Periquillo Sarniento , by the Mexican writer and journalist José Joaquín Fernández
de Lizardi . In it, the adventures of its protagonist frame numerous panoramic views
of colonial life, which contain veiled criticism of society. Literature and politics were
closely related during this period in which writers assumed attitudes similar to those
of the republican tribunes of ancient Rome . From the beginning they give clear signs
of their concern for highlighting the traditional aspects of reality, as well as their
interest in the problems of social and moral criticism.

The Ecuadorian poet and political leader José Joaquín Olmedo praised the
revolutionary leader Simón Bolívar in his poem 'Victoria de Junín ' ( 1825 ), while the
Venezuelan poet, critic and scholar Andrés Bello praised the tropical landscapes in
the jungle and the agriculture of the torrid zone ( 1826 ), similar to the bucolic poetry
of the classical Roman poet Virgil. The Cuban poet José María Heredia anticipated
romanticism in poems such as Al Niágara ( 1824 ), written during his exile in the
United States . Around that same year, in the south, anonymous popular poetry, of a
political nature, began to emerge among the gauchos of the La Plata region.
 legends of guatemala

The Llorona
The legend tells about a woman named María, who was desperate for not being able to support her children after the
death of her husband. He decides to take them to a distant river and push them, the children were carried by the
current until they drowned.

Tormented by remorse, and wanting to reunite with them, María takes her own life by throwing herself into the river.
Since that moment, neighbors say they hear La Llorona in places near the water, crying and screaming, looking for her
children.

The big hat

Wearing a black suit from head to toe, a shiny belt, loud boots and a hat that completely covers his face, Sombrerón
wanders the streets of Guatemala.
Accompanied by four mules and his guitar, he goes in search of beautiful women with big eyes and long dark hair, to
steal their souls.
Through music he conquers girls, interpreting beautiful melodies to the sound of his guitar.
In this way he manages to hypnotize them and at the most opportune moment braids their hair. From that moment on,
the woman's soul is hers.

The Cadejo
Some have said that there are 2 cadejos and be careful who you meet, because whether
you are still alive will depend on that.

In the shape of a dog, with goat caps and eyes of fire, the cadejo appears in two forms
before people.

One is the white one, who has good intentions and protects the drunks and children from any evil that the dark night
may bring.
And another is the black man, with a disturbing figure, who waits for the drunks and unexpectedly licks their faces, thus
stealing their spirit.
He chases his victim for 9 days, until the day he dies.
The Siguanaba
With a beautiful body and horse-like face, the Siguanaba appears bathing on the banks of rivers, water tanks and pools.

Behind a transparent white dress, she fixes her long hair with a golden comb. Any man who sees her is totally perplexed
by her body.

When she gets the men to approach her, she removes the veil from her face and shows her hideous face, opens her
mouth and captures the consciousness of the one who sees her.

The Tattoo
A mulatto woman of beautiful appearance was rejected by the people due to her dubious reputation, they speculated
that she attracted men with curses and spells.
She was brought to trial accused of practicing witchcraft and unjustly sentenced to death.

Already in her cell, La Tatuana decides to summon a demon and in exchange for her freedom, give up her soul.
Draw a boat on the wall in which he escapes from prison.
From that occasion, it is said that on days of heavy downpours, she is seen sailing on the waters in her boat, condemned
to wander forever.