A NEW APPROACH TO THE MISERIES OF THE COURT: CRISTOBAL DE CASTILLEJO'S AULA DE CORTESANOS (1547)

Anti-court literature was a trendy movement during the Golden Age, especially among a group of humanists of renown. The works that composed within this literary movement depict the court as a true sea of troubles (mare malorum). One of the main representatives of this literary trend was the poet Cristobal de Castillejo (Ciudad Rodrigo, 1490?-Viena, 1550). Even though his anti-court works have been generally neglected by critics, there is no doubt that his dialogue entitled Aula de cortesanos (1547), which is one of the most important compositions in his career, is a major milestone in the literature of his time. As a matter of fact, Aula is of great importance and stands out as a relevant and a decisive work to understand this literary genre as well as its subsequent projection. The current study analyzes Aula as yet another fundamental testimony of the miseries found within the domains of the European court.