«Si nunca del umbroso y cavo seno» de Francisco de Aldana: motivos pastorales y marinos a la luz de la tópica renacentista y la tradición clásica

Abstract

In this article, I study the pastoral and marine imagery in Francisco de Aldana’s sonnet «Si nunca del umbroso y cavo seno». Firstly, I explain that short pastoral forms in the sixteenth century derive not only from long forms such as the eclogue and idyll, but also from the pastoral epigrams of the Greek Anthology and their imitations in contemporary Neo-Latin poetry. I demonstrate that in Aldana’s case, the use of short pastoral forms such as the pastoral-votive sonnet can be attributed to the influence of Benedetto Varchi. With regard to the sonnet «Si nunca del umbroso y cavo seno», I identify a group of epigrams which influence the Renaissance tradition of descriptions of spring, on which Aldana draws. I also highlight the frequent contamination of amatory lyric in these kind of compositions.